The National Broadband Network Company has taken to YouTube to defend the early NBN pricing plans unveiled by Internode this week, arguing the ISP’s plans compare “very favourably” to current options in Australia’s broadband market.
Internode will only offer so-called ‘bundled’ plans which come with a telephone connection and prices starting at $59.95 a month and ranging up to $189.95 for a plan with 100Mbps speeds and a terabyte of quota. Although many of the plans are comparable in price to current ADSL services at similar speeds, the company’s prices have already been attacked by the Coalition, with Shadow Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull claiming the pricing undercut the argument for the NBN.
Speaking in a video published on YouTube yesterday, NBN Co head of product development and sales, Jim Hassell, said it was “great to see the first plans” from the company’s retail ISP customers.
“They’ve put a range of plans in the marketplace, from basic Internet broadband service plus telephone, which compares very favourably to existing plans in the marketplace,” Hassell added “and goes through a whole range of levels of speed up to some significantly faster speeds than people can get in their homes now, at what I think are some very good prices.”
Hassell said there was “a great deal of confusion” in the market about what customers would actually get under the NBN, so he said it was worth pointing out that NBN Co end users would get a broadband service plus a telephone line.
“Quite often you see with people’s plans, those things are separated out. So if you’re comparing prices and comparing plans, remember to compare broadband plus telephone services and how they are and that will give you the total price that you’ll pay,” the executive said.
Hassell also pointed out with respect to the pricing debate that the range of speeds which customers could get from NBN services was broader than that available under current ADSL broadband plans.
“Some of the speeds which we’re we’re in people’s homes across a fibre network are significantly increased from what people could previously get across a copper network,” he said. “Those speeds in themselves start to offer new opportunities for applications across a whole range of areas, from entertainment to education, to health, and we’re already starting to see some of those come out, and we’ll see more and more of those come out as we roll out the network.”
Conroy told ABC Radio’s AM program this this week that the Government was also disappointed with the points of interconnect decision, which was made by the national competition regulator, but exhorted observers to remain patient on the pricing issue.
“There are many companies yet to put their pricing in and we expect to see robust competition taking place which will see consumers better off because of NBN as pricing becomes more and more competitive,” he said. Since Internode released its plans, other ISPs have also started to come out with alternative pricing plans. iTNews has reported, for example, that cut-price ISP Dodo has already revealed plans to introduce a NBN plan below $40 on the NBN in coming months.
The prices do seem a bit high at the higher usage end of the scale, but all that will change once others release their pricing and we get some competition. It’s still early days.
“Hassell said there was “a great deal of confusion” in the market about what customers would actually get under the NBN, so he said it was worth pointing out that NBN Co end users would get a broadband service plus a telephone line”
Just don’t ask for a telephone line yet!
…
Oh alain, tell us more doom and gloom…c/o of your precious Telstra/ Lib party..
we are doomed, tell us… nooooo!
Planker…!
I expect more will come out of the woodwork given the media coverage Internode is getting.
I understand that it’s bundled pricing but what if I don’t want a telephone service. Surely we will be able to buy a straight broadband service? I’m just about to get rid of our fixed phone line.
I don’t know if this has been made clear. I mean, there are separate ports(obviously) for voice and data. And we have been told that we can use different service providers for voice/data/video/(some new service), but they keep talking like everyone will have a phone service.
If anyone can shed some light on this part of the puzzle, I would very much appreciate it.
Sorry I forgot to click ‘reply’. See my comment below.
@Martin: Running voice over an internet connection is very cheap. Removing the voice service from an NBN plan would thus not save a substantial amount of money. Some of the lower cost providers may decide that removing this service is worthwhile. We’ll have to wait and see.
I know that it’s cheap to run a phone line over the internet. That doesn’t mean we won’t get charged too much for it though. The problem I can see is that the business model is assuming that everyone wants a fixed phone line.
I’m a supporter of the NBN, especially with Quigley running the show but there are a couple of minor issues with it due to politics unfortunately.
It doesn’t assume everyone wants a phone line – but assumes that the majority of current BB plans require a phone line!
In NBN world you get a BB service. If you want a phone (which most do) it’s a cheap add on. (See current offerings from internode & iinet for thier voip services).
In the current world, you get a cheaper BBplan – if, and only if you buy a ~$30 phone line. So it’s not cheaper.
Take a look at http://www.iinet.net.au/broadband/plans.html try to find a plan that is cheaper without a phone! (there is one IIRC).
There is a simplification of the market of course – but it’s a problem for the last majority of connections last I checked.
You’ll find Internodes NBN plans costs the same/slightly less than their naked plans while including a phone and $10 of credit.
*You’ll find Internodes NBN plans costs the same/slightly less than their naked plans while including a phone and $10 of credit.*
Internode’s naked plans also have VOIP $10 credit bundled in for the same NBN price.
@Martin Eddy
“The problem I can see is that the business model is assuming that everyone wants a fixed phone line.”
Well the business model at the moment makes the opposite assumption, you cannot get a fixed phone line from the NBN Co, for want of a better term it is Naked FTTH with a 3rd party VoIP add on if you want voice.
I” but there are a couple of minor issues with it due to politics unfortunately.”
That’s surprising, it’s only a Labor Party political decision by Conroy and Rudd run by a taxpayer funded public service department
:)
“so he said it was worth pointing out that NBN Co end users would get a broadband service plus a telephone line.” I don’t want a damned telephone line, I’ve never wanted a damned telephone line, why would I care to pay a cent for something I never use?
It’s like buying a house living on water tanks and being forced to pay for municipal water supply that you’ve never used!
I waited years to ditch the telephone line, I don’t want one back under NBN.
“I’ve never wanted a damned telephone line, why would I care to pay a cent for something I never use?”
The point is that you won’t have to may much more than a cent for the phone line. MyNetFone charges $5/year for a VOIP phone line so it’s a very cheap service to provide. I suspect you won’t pay a cent for it because your ISP will provide the ability to receive telephone calls for free in the hope that you’ll use that line to make calls.
Terrible, terrible prices.
Sounds like a load of sh!t.
The Government should respect broadband users right to not have a phone line, and should make it mandatory for ISP’s to release plans without a phone service.
I reckon this whole NBNCO sounds like crap.
Jarrad and others claiming Telephone Line !=Traditional Phone Line.
It’s VOIP.
Please do the research, before stating it’s crap or other shit.
http://www.internode.on.net/news/2011/07/236.php
“All Internode’s NBN plans include $10 worth of monthly call credits for the bundled NodePhone Voice over IP (VoIP) telephony service.”
that makes it even WORSE.
Internode’s buying a bundled voice+data wholesale product from NBNco, and turning around and giving you a lousy VoIP instead of a proper UNI-V product.
ToshP300,
Have you used voice service from NBNCo ToshP300 to back up that claim of yours?
the proper NBNco UNI-V product is QoS’ed with dedicated conduit.
Internode’s VoIP is just exactly that, voice over the internet.
not even comparable.
It’s QoS, yes, but there’s no dedicated conduit. It’s QoS’d at the ethernet level, which is why I’m not sure VoIP over the data connection is actually any different. My understanding is that the UNI-V connection exists only so you can plug a regular telephone directly into the NTU — it all goes out over the same piece of fiber at the other end.
[1] describes how it works in the trial, but I would guess it’s basically the same for the “final” product as well. That is, RSPs can include 150Kb/s of class 1 (that is, voice) traffic to be delivered either over the UNI-D (at no extra cost) or the UNI-V port (at the cost of an extra AVC).
About the only difference, that I can see, is that the battery backup only works for the UNI-V ports, not the UNI-D ports. But that makes sense, because if you’re getting VoIP over the UNI-D connection, you’d need a separate modem anyway (with it’s own battery backup) for the handset to plug into.
At least, that’s my understanding. I’m happy to be corrected if you’ve found more up-to-date information.
[1] http://www.nbnco.com.au/assets/documents/product-description-beta-nfas-feb-11.pdf
http://delimiter.com.au/2011/07/20/telstra-forcing-fibre-voice-bundling/#comment-100405
Um, OK, but that goes directly against what NBNCo are saying in their own document. On pages 6&7 of the document I liked to, it says:
where Customer prefers to provide voice telephony services using the UNI-D:
A) the 150Kbps TC-1 (CIR) data transfer rate will be provided through the same AVC as the corresponding TC-4 data transfer rate is provided;
(B) the 150Kbps TC-1 (CIR) data transfer rate will be included within the overall corresponding TC-4 data transfer rate; andProduct Description – Beta NBN Co Fibre Access Service Product Description – NBN Co Beta Fibre Access Service 7
(C) the AVC will be mapped to the UNI-D on the NTU at the relevant Premises
Yes the sky is still falling…sigh…!
My wife and I ditched our expensive fixed phone line several years ago and we have two much cheaper cellphone plans. We don’t foresee ever needing NBN fixed (VOIP) phones.
The advertised NBN plans are inferior in value and utility to our current wireless internet connection which regularly runs at about 12Mb/sec downstream and should be even cheaper by the time the NBN is available.
This looks like a serious loss in terms of the dividend we should expect in return for our huge investment as tax-payers.
and the NBNco cheerleaders say wireless only broadband users don’t exist!
No, we say wireless only users are not wired users just waiting to switch.
People have access to wireless right now, why aren’t they using it instead of their fixed system? Because they are using it in ADDITION (obvious examples to the contrary above not withstanding).
And don’t argue: “you can’t ignore the examples of the wireless users!!11”, the numbers aren’t in your favour.
Once again whats the point of the NBN
I do not want a phone line.
I use my mobile phone and only use a phone line so i can have adsl and i am forced to pay line rental for it
If we have to have a phone line as well to have the net then its no different to now
What a waste of all that money.
Want some lower prices and not looking at getting a quote over 200GB? Take a look at Exetel: http://www.exetel.com.au/residential-fibre-pricing-mainland.php
No forced VoIP bundling, uploads are not counted towards your quota, and once you go over your limit you are shaped to a reasonable 512k/128k.
An extra comment:
As the NBN is costing us around $4000-5000 per household, what is the actual benefit we’ll all get in return?
Telstra’s cable already passes my gate on the Gold Coast, but they can’t get it past a 1 metre-wide concrete path, so my internet connection has always had to be wireless and presumably always will be.
My Sierra AC312U wireless modem gives me portability, as well as adequate data limits and speed/price comparable with the NBN.
The NBN benefit looks about as good as the benefit from “Carbon” trading.
Sorry, the world doesn’t revolve around solving your (already solved) internet issues.
Its for everyone else that cant get broadband, and like better latency than 200ms.
Oh, and people that live in high density areas (wireless bandwidth issues). People that live in RIMs, people with only Telstra ADSL or Telstra wireless as choices for internet access.
So, that benefit like the carbon trading scheme, is one that is completely over your head. Too hard for you to understand the really basic principals, thus you write it off.
I get it when people say: “We don’t need these benefits for this price” that is a valid opinion. “My wireless is awesome, how could anyone ever need fibre” is just wilful stupidity.
PeterA:
1. I have no internet issues for the world to “revolve around”.
2. If it’s just for those who can’t get broadband, is the NBN not expensive overkill?
3. You obviously have not read my posting carefully and your insults contribute nothing of value, while demeaning the whole discussion. I’m surprised that your message was allowed.
Reply if you like, but I won’t see it – I’m out of here as of now.
One wonders how many of the forum posters on this news article are paid members of the liberal party.
Even naked ADSL has a wholesale pricing component on your copper line.
Internode (yes I’m a customer), has never been the cheapest. They have good, reliable service and I’m happy to pay for it. Dodo has released their monthly prices for under $40/month. Go buy there.
if it’s possible to get paid to criticise or expose the NBN for the WASTE that it is, please let me know where i can sign up! and some indication of the rates, $/hr, $/post would be helpful!
AT out office here I will gladly pay $190/month + an extra $30 month for the business pack. It will be 25x the speed on download and 12.5x the speed on upload on what telstra can offer me for $1500/month, with worst customer service and less flexibility. Just as an aside quotes for that service have varied from $1500/month to $15,000/month with huge installation fees despite the fact I have dark fibre running from our building to the nearest telstra exchange already.
New headline for your “NBN less than 1/10th price and faster than existing services”
1/ are there different prices for “residential” vs “business” on NBN retail pricing?
business ADSL is more expensive b/c “business” is currently subsidising “residential” ADSL. there may also be other QoS issues.
2/ those $1,500/mth quotes reflect market pricing of what it actually costs to provision the faster service. NBNco is selling BELOW COST and hoping that ARPU will organically rise over time to pay off the present “subsidies”.
hahaha…what kind of cr*ppy business model expects one customer to subsidise another customer? You make money off BOTH customers!
Businesses have to pay extra for improved QoS!
Ever priced a current commerical fibre plan? It’s massively expensive so only big business can afford it. Ever tried to run a business? Fibre gives smaller players a massive leg up in terms of being more efficient and reducing costs.
*hahaha…what kind of cr*ppy business model expects one customer to subsidise another customer?*
REAL WORLD business models. not SimCity.
*Businesses have to pay extra for improved QoS!*
exactly, that was my point.
*Ever priced a current commerical fibre plan? It’s massively expensive so only big business can afford it.*
naturally, of course. and….. ?
*Ever tried to run a business?*
definitely not ones that rely on taxpayers spending $50bln to “fix” your “business model” or allow you to so-called “innovate”.
*Fibre gives smaller players a massive leg up in terms of being more efficient and reducing costs.*
do taxpayer subsidies make subsidy receipients better off? of course.
**hahaha…what kind of cr*ppy business model expects one customer to subsidise another customer?*
*REAL WORLD business models. not SimCity.
lol. Real world business makes money from customers. Governments take from group A to give to group B.
————-
**Ever priced a current commerical fibre plan? It’s massively expensive so only big business can afford it.
*naturally, of course. and….. ?
Why is this natural? Why not support the smaller players who compete against the bigger players so who also employ a majority of Australians? If you increase your small businesses economics, you get a tax windfall. Sounds like a good reason to help small business.
————-
**Ever tried to run a business?*
*definitely not ones that rely on taxpayers spending $50bln to “fix” your “business model” or allow you to so-called “innovate”.
So a definitive “no”.
————-
**Fibre gives smaller players a massive leg up in terms of being more efficient and reducing costs.*
*do taxpayer subsidies make subsidy receipients better off? of course.
Taxpayer subsidies also assist taxpayers to do better so they pay more tax.
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