Telstra wants in on NBN

After much speculation, the telco provided the Federal Government with a proposal to build a "world-class" open access NBN capable of delivering high-speed access to up to 90 percent of Australians.

According to Telstra, the proposal outlines what would be achieved by the fully detailed bid that Telstra has prepared but could not be submitted due to a number of unresolved issues in the Government's Request for Proposals (RFP).

It believes the Government can consider its proposal under the existing terms of the RFP and should agreement be reached on outstanding concerns a possibility exists for more detailed dialogue.

The telco has made it clear it is willing to engage in discussions with the Government to ensure Australia harnesses the benefits of a high-speed, high-definition world.

Under Telstra's proposal to build the NBN; it would invest up to $5 billion of its own capital; the Government would provide $4.7 billion in the form of a concessional loan; Up to 90 per cent of the population would be covered; the network will be capable of providing downlink speeds between 25 Mbps and 50 Mbps in 65 percent to 75 percent of the footprint, with downlink speeds of between 12 Mbps and 20 Mbps in the remainder of the footprint; the network would be designed to be upgradeable.

It would also provide a wide range of services including IP telephony, high-speed internet, IPTV, video-conferencing and telemedicine would be supported; a $29.95 per month entry level 1Mbps retail broadband pricing plan (four times faster than the existing plan at the same price) for customers with a Telstra fixed line telephone service would be available.

According to Telstra, under the proposal the rollout would commence as soon as possible across multiple locations in metropolitan and regional Australia and be completed far quicker than any alternative.

It claims the proposal is “pro-competition and would be open access”, with wholesale customers buying access services on an equivalent basis to Telstra's retail units. Telstra expects the open access rules would be legislated and policed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

Telstra's proposal is subject to a number of conditions for the life of the project, including no further separation of the telco and regulatory certainty.

Telstra stated the NBN is essentially an upgrade of Telstra's fixed network and will be one of the largest infrastructure projects ever undertaken in Australia.

It will be the world's largest fibre to the node network in geographic terms, requiring some 4000 staff throughout the life of the project.

collaboration networking telco telstra wants