Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

Voice-only services are now available over the NBN. Last week, launching their fibre phone on the NBN service, Internode said:

From the customer's perspective it's exactly the same as a regular landline. They just plug in their existing phone handset and start to make calls.

This service has a monthly rental of $29.95, less than the $33.95 for Telstra's HomeLine Plus. More significantly, the Internode plan charges 18c for untimed calls to any standard fixed line phone in Australia. Using a standard telephone, voice-only customers on the NBN can say goodbye to STD charges forever. Anyone genuinely concerned about regional Australia should be backing the Gillard government's NBN. Those in that corner down there should hang their heads. You are a disgrace when it comes to representing regional Australia. (Time expired)