Tasmanian ADSL2+ market to be entered by Netspace without deal with Basslink

Even though Netspace decided to launch ADSL2+ services in Launceston and Hobart early it has advised that it may wait several months after the launch of Basslink before signing any kind of capacity deal with them.

Three Tasmanian exchanges have been completed in the initial 12-month deployment of DSLAM and a further nine will come online “in the next couple of months” according to the ISP, and there is a potential rollout of DSLAM to a further tier group of exchanges that are currently still in “the business case phase.”

These exchanges are to be connected by the Internet Service Provider using the fibre backhaul from Aurora.

Netspace has “taken the decision to go live with ADSL2+ on the expectation that prices will begin to fall once the Basslink service comes online” said Matthew Phillips, the regulatory and carrier affairs manager for the ISP.

Any speculation that an agreement for wholesale capacity with Basslink had been pre-signed was strongly denied by Phillips.

He said “We took the decision over 12 months ago that the time was right to make [DSLAM] investment decisions [in Tasmania]. We’ve been waiting around for the Basslink service to become operational but it seemed to be a never-ending wait. We’ve taken the decision that we can’t hold off any longer.”

The use of Basslink as a diverse route for traffic on ADSL2+ between Tasmania and the mainland would be the most likely outcome for Netspace.

There has yet to be any kind of formal commitment from Netspace even though it has “utmost confidence” that Basslink will provide “a good alternative route” to Telstra when it is launched.

Phillip said “We’re very supportive of what Basslink is doing but we’re still in negotiations with them. I don’t see much advantage in signing up with them prior to the service becoming available. There’s no early bird discounts and I suspect the first few months could be a rocky road while they bed things down.”

Source – ITNews.com.au