Is local broadband penetration restricting the networking space?

With Australia’s broadband uptake behind other developed countries, it raises the issue of the effects on the networking space.

Many global vendors have been pushing network-based offerings in Europe and the US to build their next wave of development. A common example is the development of VoIP on foreign shores.

UK research, commissioned by telecommunications vendor Teleware, surveyed 100 IT managers and found that one in 10 had installed VoIP, while 39 percent were moving towards an installation. Only 16 percent had no plans to move towards VoIP.

There is no realistic talk of that level of deployment in Australia.

Don Gulling, president of Verteks Consulting, a US-based solution provider, told CRN US recently: “Our VoIP sales have been up year over year about 20 percent, not down at all”. How many Australian resellers are making similar comments?

Another network-reliant hot topic globally is IPTV. According to Infonetics Research, the combined IPTV and switched digital video (SDV) market is forecast to grow in healthy double-digits annually to reach US$9.8 billion worldwide in 2011. Infonetics also found that in 2007, the regional breakdown for worldwide IPTV equipment revenue was 40 percent North America, 30 percent EMEA, 28 percent Asia Pacific.

Those facts do not specifically cover the Australian market, but Internet TV operators in China severely overestimated the growth rate of the market. The total number of IPTV viewers in China was estimated to have reached only 846,000 at the end of 2007, far below service operators’ earlier predictions of 1.3 million. Is Australia also failing and is broadband infrastructure to blame?

However, there are options for users. IDC’s latest analysis of the Australian mobile and wireless broadband markets, found that mobile technology has gained significant traction against wireless (WiMAX) technology in delivering ubiquitous, high-speed Internet access independent of fixed-line coverage.

“Mobile broadband services in Australia have garnered increasing interest led by key developments that have enhanced coverage and service capacity,” said Jerson Yau, research analyst for wireless and mobility research at IDC Australia. “Mobile broadband offerings have taken a substantial lead in the Australian mobility broadband market with superior coverage and high speeds at competitive access costs.”

This week we ask our industry experts: “Is Australia’s broadband infrastructure restricting local networking innovation and deployment?”