Helen Coonan (NSW, Liberal Party, Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts) Share this | Hansard source

So that is $42 for up to 12 megabits; and for 12 megabits it is $60, if my memory serves me correctly. Whether individual users will need to update their modem will depend on the equipment they are using now and the type of service they purchase, as you would expect. Users of the new WiMAX network will most likely be required to have some specific equipment. OPEL has indicated that WiMAX equipment will not cost what Senator Moore is claiming but rather in the range of $150 to $250 including an external antenna and customer premises equipment. OPEL obviously has to advise what specific prices will be because it will need to undertake a tender and test its market for suppliers. Considering the size of the project, which is to roll out a world-class new wholesale network across Australia that will deliver affordable metro-comparable broadband to 99 per cent of Australians at 12 megabits per minute by 2009, it is anticipated that it will be able to negotiate considerable savings even on these quoted prices.

Any cost savings achieved through the tender process may be directed towards either extending its network coverage or improving service outcomes for the benefit of end users. Individual retail prices, of course, will be set by the companies which will have access to this network. Anyone can have access to it at parity prices right across the network, but obviously they will sell their services over the OPEL network for the individual retail prices they set. For instance, Elders has indicated that it will sell broadband services for around $35 for entry-level services ranging up to $60 for 12-megabit services.

We are certain that we will be able to offer metro-comparable prices. This stands in stark contrast to the Labor Party, which has only issued a press release and has never even mentioned a price, let alone a metro-comparable price. It is a complete and utter gap in the Labor Party’s policy press release. It has not even mentioned where its alleged rollout of fibre will go, let alone at what price it will go for.