Michelle Rowland (Greenway, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Communications) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. Yesterday, when speaking about the chaotic HFC rollout of his second-rate NBN, the Prime Minister said some customers were getting a poor experience. With internet problems now the largest source of new complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, does the Prime Minister know how many customers on his second-rate NBN are having a poor experience, or is he so out of touch that he doesn't care?

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The last information I had from the NBN was that there are about 350,000 people connected to the NBN via hybrid fibre coaxial networks—via HFC networks. The company have advised me that around 20 per cent of them are not getting a satisfactory performance and that is why they've put the rollout on hold, so the technical issues can be addressed. I can explain to honourable members precisely what is going on. They are going to improve the experience by upgrading physical infrastructure, such as replacing the taps that connect the network to individual premises. Once that has been done for existing customers in areas that are ready for service, NBN will upgrade all remaining rollout areas. They expect that this will delay the further HFC rollout by about six months.

What you've got to remember about HFC is that the people on the Telstra HFC network, which is what the NBN is taking over, already have very good broadband; in fact, prior to the NBN's rollout they would have had some of the best fixed-line broadband in the country. So they're not waiting for broadband. They've got good broadband, and the important point the NBN is seeking to ensure is that, as their parts of the network get connected to the NBN, their broadband experience improves. That is what is going on.

The savings, obviously, of using the existing HFC network are enormous. That's one of the reasons why. As the minister said a moment ago, the project can be completed six to eight years sooner and about $30 billion more cheaply. HFC is a technology that is used by hundreds of millions of people around the world for high-speed broadband, particularly in North America. There are some technical issues. The NBN is dealing with them and will address them. As I said, the company has said it will delay the connection of HFC customers to NBN by about six months. This is putting customers first. This is not going to prevent the company meeting their completion date by 2020, so they assure us.