![]()
After months of speculation, the government goes back to the drawing board with broadband
In a shock announcement the Federal government has shelved its current national broadband network plans and started over again, which will allow Telstra back in the running.
The Federal government is going to establish a new company to build the new network and will invest up to $43 billion to build it. It will be fibre to the home, which means it will be a lot more expensive.
Speaking at a press conference Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said that none of the private consortia who tendered (after Telstra were dropped) met the requirements of the old plan, which has reopened the door for Telstra.
Rudd expects the project to take about eight years and the federal government will initially invest about $4.7 billion. The roll out is expected to begin early next year and will service up to 90 percent of the country. He also claims it is possible for the network to be up to 100 times faster than current internet speeds. Finally, he expects the government to sell its share within five years of the network being fully operational.
