Overview

The Current Scene

The general term “broadband” is becoming pretty familiar to most people. Whether it comes from seeing constant images of animated flightless birds in flashy TV ads, or the piece of junk mail that falls out of the middle of the Herald four times a week, we seem to be bombarded with advertising about the various new packages available. The advertising though tends to focus on the actual packages available (often advertising the cheapest possible package of course) rather than providing much detail about the substantial benefits available.

So apart from expecting better speeds compared to dial-up access, consumers have not necessarily grasped how this translates into improving their internet experience. This is expected to change quickly with better education and increased awareness of comparative cost benefits compared to dial-up. Word-of-mouth will also be a factor – have you ever heard of a broadband user who wishes they could go back to dial-up?

Preparing For The Future

While the take-up of broadband in the Hunter is unlikely to be rapid, as infrastructure upgrades are still required, it should be reasonably widespread and standard in a relatively short space of time. Those that are best prepared now will be the ones ready to benefit later.

Businesses in particular need to position themselves to take advantage of the opportunities that a broadband platform can provide in developing or expanding their operations. Being located in a so called ‘regional’ area need not be a disadvantage. Broadband allows businesses to compete on a level playing field with any national or international enterprise.

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