Tracking the NBN's tumultuous 2017

NBN Co chief accuses ISPs of inciting price war

NBN Co came under fire in August when chief executive Bill Morrow told a senate inquiry that ISPs were to blame for mounting complaints about the network.

Facing scrutiny over the need to revamp its wholesale pricing structure, Morrow said that ISPs had incited a "price war" with each other, racing each other to sell NBN services at lower prices while cutting corners on customer service.

The comments drew the ire of a number of telcos, including Telstra, Inabox and start-up RSP MyRepublic.

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NBN complaints double

On the same day as Morrow's comments about ISPs, the federal government called for an investigation by the ACCC, ACMA and Department of Communications into the best way to avoid or remedy the most common issues with the NBN.

A month later, the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman released a report in October claiming that the number of complaints about NBN services had increased 159.3 percent in 2017.

The ombudsman said it expected to see some increase given the accelerated network rollout, but an increase of more than double was concerning. NBN Co said it was positive to see that fewer than 15 percent of complaints were directed at the company itself, but that it was working with RSPs to improve the overall customer experience.

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NBN Co cracks $1 billion

NBN Co announced that it crossed the $1 billion revenue mark in August, after almost doubling its network footprint for the third consecutive year.

The company revealed that it had activated the network at 2.4 million premises, and that 5.7 million were ready for service, reiterating that it was on track to connect 8 million premises by 2020.

That number has since hit 3 million premises as of October, with NBN Co maintaining its rate of 80,000 connections per month.

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Telstra, Optus blame NBN for woes

Throughout the year, Australia's two largest telcos have pinned their problems on issues with the NBN, including the level of complaints sledged against them as well as ongoing financial issues.

The TIO released a report in August naming Telstra and Optus as the two most complained-about telcos in Australia. The two largest NBN market share leaders received nearly double the number of complaints as the third largest telco, Vodafone, which is yet to launch its NBN offering.

Both Telstra and Optus said the complaints mostly stemmed from issues with the NBN, saying they would both work with the network operator to curb the level of complaints.

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Bill Morrow casts doubt on NBN's ability to turn profit

The NBN model was built on the idea it would generate an internal rate of return on the $29.5 billion taxpayer investment in the project. Taxpayers have also “loaned” NBN Co up to $19.5 billion more to complete the build. One of the loan’s conditions is that NBN Co must get into a position to be able to refinance it.

However, NBN Co chief executive Bill Morrow in October confirmed what many had suggested for years: that the network builder’s economic model is broken and that it may never turn a profit.

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Telstra, Optus to compensate customers for slow speeds

Telstra and Optus both said they would compensate their NBN customers for advertising internet speeds that could not be achieved.

The ACCC said that limitations of the NBN's fibre-to-the-node and fibre-to-the-building services left some customers paying for internet plans that could not reach the speeds that customers were advertised.

Telstra agreed to compensate 42,000 customers in November, followed by Optus a month later who agreed to reimburse 8700 customers.

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NBN to pause HFC rollout

NBN Co paused all new orders over its hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) network in December, which will last until at least June 2018, in order to improve service quality for customers and ISPs.

While some view the freeze as step in the right direction, the Labor Party hit out at the government, claiming the delay could add an additional $790 million to the cost of the NBN. Telstra also revealed the impact, saying the halt would wipe $700 million off its revenue next year.

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NBN cuts wholesale prices

Following months of pressure to revamp its wholesale prices, NBN Co announced plans to cut prices on its two premium internet access plans.

The new plans include a discount on the 'NBN 50' wholesale bundle at $45 per month with 2Mbps bandwidth included – a 27 percent discount on the current pricing model. The new 'NBN 100' wholesale bundle will cost $64 per month with 2.5Mbps capacity, representing a 10 percent price cut. The HFC improvement work will take place in both locations already deemed ready to connect as well as areas not previously declared ready for service.

The company said it wanted the NBN 50 bundle to be “the new normal” for retailers to pitch as the NBN’s flagship product.

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Former Telstra channel director joins NBN

Telstra's former channel director Keith Masterton returned to the channel 13 months after leaving the telco to join NBN Co as executive manager, ICT channel development. Three months later, NBN Co announced a pilot for a new ICT partner program to encourage midmarket and enterprise users to migrate to the network, along with a host of other improvements.

Telstra and Westcon-Comstor were revealed as two of the first companies to trial the program, which is scheduled to launch in the first quarter of 2018.

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Major NBN contractors go under

2017 saw a handful of contractors building the NBN face financial and legal trouble. A major contractor, Daly International, was spared from liquidation after its owner agreed to pay creditors back with sales of company assets. The company had at least $5.1 million owed to unsecured creditors when it entered administration, and all 80 of its employees were let go.

Trilogie Resourcing, a contractor working on Telstra's copper network, let 55 technicians go after going under, leading the Communications Electrical Plumbing Union (CEPU) to accuse its parent company of allowing the company to fail.

Subcontractor Civcomm was wound up after its director was accused of fraud in the NSW Supreme Court, claiming it was owed close $150,000 in unpaid invoices by telco construction firm QC Communications.

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Vodafone, Kogan to compete in NBN market

While NBN Co says it wants to make it easier for startups to enter the broadband market, this year saw Australia's third-largest telco finally put its skin into the broadband game.

In 2016, Vodafone announced plans to enter the home broadband market with fixed services on the NBN. Australia's third-largest telco finally launched its services in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Geelong and Newcastle in December.

Online retailer Kogan also announced plans to launch NBN services over Vodafone's network, which is set to go live in 2018.

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ACCC sues Optus for misleading customers

The ACCC initiated court proceedings against Optus in December, alleging the telco misled some 20,000 customers over the need to quickly jump from its existing HFC network to the NBN.

Optus is accused of making false and misleading representations by writing to its customers between October 2015 and March 2017 and advising it would disconnect their HFC service within a specified time period as the NBN would soon be available in their area.

The ACCC said the timeframes set out by Optus were earlier than the telco was contractually allowed to cancel services.

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