With the growing popularity of broadband services and internet use amongst consumers, businesses and retailers across Australia have realised the importance of having an online presence over recent years. For many businesses, having a nicely designed website that is easy to use and informative has become key to their success. This has become particularly important given the increasing popularity of online transactions and purchases over recent years.

However, although many businesses have now realised the importance of having an online presence many are failing to realise the importance of having a mobile friendly online presence. Mobile broadband and internet services are becoming more and more popular, which means that in order to remain competitive and provide consumers with greater access to their products and services, businesses need to also ensure that they are accessible on mobile devices.

A recent study was carried out by Ipsos Media, with the results showing that consumers in Australia lead the way when it comes to using smart phones as online shopping tools. The study revealed that most had used their phones to research a product or service and 30 percent had used them to buy something.

One official said: ”Retailers spend a lot of money on marketing to drive people into their stores, so to have them go online and change their minds once they’re in there means the walls of your stores are open … your sales staff aren’t the only ones talking to the customer, maybe it’s your competitors.”

Many areas across Australia are looking forward to the benefits that will come from being able to connect to the multi-billion dollar National Broadband Network, as it is rolled out across different parts of the country over the coming few years.

It has now been announced by the Minister for Broadband, Communications, and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, that homes and businesses on the Coffs Coast could switch to high speed broadband in just a year. He said that the first local customers could be connected to the NBN by around the middle of 2013, enabling them to enjoy much faster speeds and greater reliability.

In a recent speech, Conroy said: “For too long, people living in regional and rural Australia have had to put up with second-class telecommunications infrastructure. But thanks to the Gillard Government’s investment in the National Broadband Network, all Australians regardless of where they live will have access to fast, affordable, and reliable broadband.” He added: “Through the NBN, the government will also deliver uniform national wholesale pricing. This means that people living in and around Coffs Harbour, Taree, and Port Macquarie will pay the same prices for NBN services as people in Sydney, Newcastle, and Wollongong. This is a truly exciting time for broadband consumers in regional and rural Australia. Like water and electricity, the Gillard Government sees fast broadband as an essential utility that should be made available to all Australians.”

As most people are well aware, the National Broadband Network and the spokesperson for the Coalition, Malcolm Turnbull, do not mix. Turnbull has taken every opportunity to slate the National Broadband Network and the Gillard government’s investment into what members of the coalition have described as a ‘white elephant’.

Turnbull has recently taken yet another opportunity to slate the NBN, speaking at an international summit on broadband. In his speech he said that the NBN inhibited competition and he questioned claims that the NBN would increase innovation. He also promised that an Abbott government would ensure an open market and increased competition.

He also accused Labor of failing to use market forces, adding that competition was necessary to ensure improved services. He said: “Part of the problem we have in Australia is that too many people have become obsessed about pursuing the best theoretical technical broadband solution, rather than searching for the best practical solution to fit the unique needs of a market like Australia.”

He added: “On paper, one can see the benefits of the NBN rollout but the work is not being deployed on paper. It is being deployed in real streets and real front yards across the least suitable market in the world for (a fibre-to-the-premises) network deployment in which most people live in sprawling suburbs in detached homes.”

Many people of a certain age will remember the hassle and cost that was often involved in booking a holiday in the days before the Internet. Many people had to ring around travel agents or traipse from one agent to another to see what holidays were available and how much they would have to pay. Consumers had very little choice and control when it came to booking tailor made holidays.

However, over recent years holidaymakers have been able to benefit from the huge choice and value for money available online, with the ability to book both package deals or opt for individual flights, accommodation etc in order to ensure that the holiday they book fits in with their needs as well as their budget.

For Australians who have broadband access and are therefore able to get online quickly and easily whenever they want to, booking a holiday has become a breeze. These are the people who are most likely to be able to hunt out great deals on holidays all around the world, getting deals at affordable prices, benefiting from huge choice and being able to arrange tailor made holidays to fit in with their needs and preferences.

With the increasing popularity of booking holidays and travel online amongst savvy consumers, more and more online travel companies and comparison sites have sprung up over recent years, giving Australian internet users far greater choice and value when it comes to their travel arrangements.

According to recent reports, Luke Hartsuyker, the Nationals Member for Cowper and Shadow Minister for Regional Communications, has slated the Federal Government over plans to spend $20 million on advertising the National Broadband Network. The figure was announced in the recent budget with officials stating that it was to ‘improve public understanding, address misconceptions and provide updated information about the National Broadband Network.’

However, after the announcement of the proposed advertising spend, Hartsuyker branded it “a propaganda campaign” He said: “This $20 million is not for an information campaign, it’s for a political campaign. The fact that the Federal Government – and not NBN Co – is allocating the funds confirms that this marketing campaign is all about politics and little about providing genuine information. The Government knows that Australians are awake to the waste and mismanagement of the National Broadband Network.”

He added: “Regional Australia has been waiting for five years for Labor to address broadband black spots but the NBN is behind time, over budget and the take-up rates are appalling. In typical Labor style the Government response is to spend tens of millions of dollars to sell their political message. They are drowning under the weight of their carbon tax broken promise and no doubt Minister Conroy hopes this spin can create a welcome diversion.”

He also said that he was keen to know why the government was spending so much money on advertising the NBN when it was being offered through the country’s biggest and best known providers.

Over recent years more and more of us have come to rely on broadband services for both business and pleasure. Many of us who have broadband at home would be lost without it and many people cannot imagine having to try and get by without having broadband at home.

However, in a shock admission recently, one big name in the world of technology has admitted that he actually doesn’t have broadband at home. The co-founder of Apple, Steve Wozniak, who founded the technology giant alongside the late Steve Jobs, admitted to a shocked forum recently that he has no broadband connection at his home in Los Gatos, California.

To the surprise of forum members, he admitted: “I don’t have broadband at my home. I, Steve Wozniak, don’t have broadband at my home.” He had been asked a question about the $36 billion National Broadband Network in Australia when he made his admission.

He explained: “I live one kilometre out of the main part of town. Broadband is a monopoly in my town – that means you can get it from a cable company, but I don’t have cable. There are 50 companies that want to sell me DSL, but they’ve all got to go through the Horizon wires – the local phone company – and I’ve got one of the two worst Horizons in the country. And so I can’t get broadband in my house.”

Satellite is one of the methods that is to be used to ensure that residents and businesses in Australia – particularly those in rural and hard to reach areas – are able to access reliable broadband services over the coming few years. In order to deliver these services ten towns across Australia have been selected to be host to satellite ground stations, which will act as ‘essential satellite gateways’.

One of the towns to be selected to be a host for one of these satellite ground stations is the town or Bourke in New South Wales. This ground station will help to ensure that between 15,000 and 20,000 Australian homes, businesses and farms are provided with reliable broadband with speeds of up to 12Mbps.

In a recent announcement, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy said: “This ground station will act as an essential satellite gateway, helping deliver fast broadband to rural and remote communities across Australia.” He added that regional and rural Australia was a priority when it came to the NBN rollout.

By 2021the NBN will provide 93 percent of homes across Australia with fibre based broadband services. Of the remaining 7 percent, 4 percent are set to be served by fixed wireless services and the last 3 percent will be served by satellite services.

With so many people across Australia having broadband access and the Internet becoming such an integral part of people’s everyday lives, businesses have quickly realised the importance of the Internet and how it can play a huge role in terms of the success of their business.

With this in mind, it seems that more and more companies are now deciding to invest more money in online advertising, having realised the benefits that this can have when it comes to the success of the business. In addition to reaching a wider audience and allowing for targeted advertising, it can also help to increase sales and revenue significantly.

In the first quarter of this year, online advertising spend is said to have increased by 19 percent year on year according to the IAB Australia and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Similar increases are expected moving forward, with more and more companies investing more time and money in advertising online.

Paul Fisher, the chief executive of IAB Australia, said: “There is no doubt that online advertising in on track to surpass $3bn and 20% share of all advertising this calendar year. It’s quite possible that we’ll reach that milestone this financial year thanks to increased consumer confidence sparked by further interest rate cuts, which we believe will support continued growth in online advertising in key sectors.”

There is no doubt that having access to reliable broadband and high speed internet has changed our lives for the better in many ways. However, there are also risks associated with having such easy access to this sort of technology, particularly when it comes to households with kids who have easy and regular access to the Internet.

There is said to be growing concern amongst parents and authorities with regards to the risk of kids accessing content that is not appropriate using their home computers or even using smart phones, which many kids seem to have these days. One of the concerns that have been raised by officials from Adelaide University is not just in relation to kids accessing specific inappropriate sites but also the risk of viewing inappropriate content on popular sites such as You Tube.

Parents are now being urged to take action to try and reduce the risk of their kids accessing inappropriate sites and content via their computers and smart phones. Some have suggested that parents take the time to check the history on their kids’ internet surfing to see what sites they are using. In addition to monitoring kids, parents are being urged to educate their kids about sites.

Parents may also want to look into restrictive measures that are available to them so that they are able to restrict the type of content that their kids are able to access, such as parental locks.

Acting on behalf of the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, Amanda Rishworth MP, Member for Kingston, recently launched the first South Australian Digital Hub and Digital Enterprise programs in Willunga.

A number of companies and agencies have been involved in the Australian Government’s Digital Enterprise program. This includes the City of Onkaparinga, in partnership with the Willunga Business and Tourism Association, the Southern Success Business Enterprise Centre and the Onkaparinga Exporters Club.

The programs hope to achieve a number of important objectives, which includes the provision of support and mentoring, workshops, and structure services to provide not for profits and small businesses in the area with details on how to make the most of the National Broadband Network.

Conroy stated: “The NBN will deliver tremendous economic benefits to Australia through increased productivity, greater employment opportunities, and better access to information and services. Willunga’s digital hub will ensure local homes and businesses make the most of what the NBN offers.”

Rishworth added: “I’m thrilled to launch these fantastic new services. By utilising the high speed broadband available through the NBN the City of Onkaparinga can implement an online process for the lodgement, assessment and enforcement of development applications. Interactive high-definition videoconferencing sessions between residents and council planning, building and compliance officers will now be possible, resulting in a more effective and efficient planning process.”