Telstra has revealed that it would cost $2 billion to replace the pair gain (line splitting) technology it has used throughout Australia.
This line splitting technology was used by Telstra to reduce its capital expenditure. Unfortunately, “pair gains” mean that over 1.2 million Australians have slower dial-up internet connection speeds as a result. They also block the ‘ADSL’ broadband service.
Telstra has been rolling out this inferior technology as a cost-cutting measure, and the Howard Government, obsessed with maximising the profitability of Telstra prior to privatisation, has encouraged it.
As a result Australia now has last-mile telecommunications networks that are far from future-proof. This means the existing copper network will never be able to support a high proportion of broadband penetration.
Broadband communication should be the objective of our national telecom provider – the potential benefits to the education of our children, and the competitiveness of our industry are enormous. Broadband can connect regional Australians to the services that metropolitan residents take for granted, but until our network is brought up to speed we will be missing out.
This Coalition legacy will see Australia languish as an internet backwater, whilst countries such as South Korea, Canada and Iceland outpace Australia in terms of broadband connectivity.
The $2 billion nominated by Telstra to remove all pair gains systems is the price of its negligent under-investment in the telecommunications network.
27 May 2003. Media contact: Jason Ives on (02) 6277 3334 or 0411 237 683
