Many Australian businesses are keen for a faster broadband service

A recent business survey has concluded that a new burst in productivity will be unleashed in Australia when it finally builds a national broadband network.
Although unanticipated benefits could be obtained from delays in the date of the deployment, the Australian Industry Group (Ai Group) have said that there would be great cost to businesses if there is any further deferment.

It was found that 66 percent of chief executives felt that their businesses would “greatly” benefits from a faster speed of broadband in a recent survey of 526 CEO’s.
Indications were made that they would be looking at upgrading to a faster broadband connection when it became available by almost 75 percent of those surveyed, with the most prominent factor that influence their choice being reliability.

Heather Ridout, the Ai Group chief executive said that the survey shows that a national broadband network network “will unleash a new productivity burst for the Australian economy”.

She went on to say that Australia was so far behind its international competitors that initially “low-hanging fruit” would be picked easily – “and it’s very sweet fruit indeed”.

June of the year was supposed to have seen the finalising of the tender process for The governments’ multi billion dollar project, with the end of 2008 seeing the commencement of construction. Although the end of 2009 is now the more probable date for the fiber-to-the-node construction.

Ms Ridout said that given the current financial turmoil as the moment the delay was more a positive thing.

At the launch of the Ai Group/Deloitte survey she said “The timing’s probably pretty right given what’s happened to credit markets. You wouldn’t have wanted to let a contract six months ago on something like this when the financial conditions underpinning it were going to change quite profoundly.”
Although she did say that any further delays should be avoided.

Ms Ridout said “The idea that it could be deferred, delayed, argued about again is not warranted. Even though the economic environment for this project has changed profoundly in the last couple of months it’s our view that we’ve got to press ahead with it … with some urgency.”

Stephen Conroy, Communications Minister said that a strong desire “to link with government to drive the digital economy” had been shown by industry in the results of the survey.

Senator Conroy said “There is a thirst for higher capability broadband services. It’s heartening to see that our CEOs get it. Because even as recently as yesterday there was still a call from our opponents to have a major cost-benefit analysis about whether we need it.”

Nick Minchin, the Opposition communications spokesman said recently “the Australian people have a right to know what the cost-benefit trade-off is for the expenditure of $4.7 billion of taxpayers’ money”.