1 March, 2010 - NBN creeps onto mainland
NBN Co reveals the first five sites on the Australian mainland to receive fibre-to-the-home connections, following an extension of the Tasmanian build to reach a third stage of release sites. The sites, each covering a rough area of 3000 premises each, would be constructed by five different companies to test different methods. The first of these sites, Armidale, is expected to go live later in April, 2011 with the remaining four set to switch by June.
The construction sites have hit several snags, however, with head of corporate services, Kevin Brown, confirming some of the sites had gone over budget on a contractual basis.
6 May, 2010 - Government releases implementation study
A $25 million implementation study of the NBN, co-authored by McKinsey & Co and KPMG, is released to the public by Senator Conroy following intense scrutiny over public disclosure of documents. The study is largely positive, but stresses it does not provide a cost-benefit analysis of the project as some had requested, and reveals a public funding peak of $26 billion. This is later reviewed by NBN Co to involve $27 billion of public funding from government with additional funding of approximately $9 billion from debt markets.
20 June, 2010 - NBN Co strikes $11 billion Telstra deal
In what is possibly the biggest milestone in the NBN and wider telco sector to date, NBN Co and Telstra sign a financial heads of agreement that would lead to a full migration of the incumbent telco’s copper and cable broadband customers onto the NBN as it is rolled out and provide NBN Co access to Telstra’s existing infrastructure. The Federal Government also agrees to pay Telstra $2 billion to relieve the telco of its universal service obligations, with plans to erect a USO Co that would provide those same services to the seven per cent of the population not covered by fibre technology.
The agreement would enable a cheaper construction cost at a faster pace for the national network, secure a Telstra agreement for structural separation and ultimately remove much of the copper wiring that had upheld the Australian telco sector for half a century. However, the agreement is yet to be approved by either the competition watchdog or Telstra’s shareholders, with the telco continuing to delay a vote citing the complexities of the arrangements and pending legislation. NBN Co has agreed to delay construction of the second release sites in anticipation of a final agreement.
12 August, 2010 - NBN officially launches in Tasmania
The first three sites to receive the NBN in Tasmania are officially launched, with approximately 4000 premises set to receive speeds over the fibre technology. The Federal Government later boasts the network is built at roughly ten per cent under the $37 million budget assigned to the aspect of the project. A take-up rate of about 15 per cent - some 575 premises - are reported to have signed up for services as of February 2011.
Internode, iiNet and iPrimus were first to offer services at the three sites, with Exetel, Telstra and Aurora Communications later joining.
21 August, 2010 - NBN hangs in the balance
The NBN played a key role in the 2010 Federal election, forming a major part of the Labor party’s continued commitment into a second term and providing a launchpad of attack for Liberal leader, Tony Abbott, and then shadow communications minister, Tony Smith. When an indecisive vote on election day raised prospects of a minority government, the NBN proved crucial to convincing three independent MPs and Greens MP, Adam Bandt, to side with Labor.
Two weeks later, independent MP Tony Windsor famously said: “you do it once, you do it right and you do it with fibre”.
14 September, 2010 - Turnbull appointed shadow comms minister
Former Liberal leader and staunch opponent to the NBN, Malcolm Turnbull, is appointed shadow communications minister in the new Liberal cabinet, providing one of the strongest and most fierce arguments against the NBN. With repeated cries of a cost-benefit analysis and heated arguments within Parliament as the result of a renewed motive to destroy the project, the new Liberal ministry becomes key to delaying and amending legislation.
26 November, 2010 - Telstra separation bill passes
Following year-long debate and numerous delays, the Federal Government passes its much-coveted Telstra separation bill. The bill comes at a cost though, with the government agreeing to demands from independent senator Nick Xenophon to release NBN Co’s 400-page business case, and submit the project to an annual review by a joint parliamentary committee and the Productivity Commission.
20 December, 2010 - NBN business case released
Despite numerous promises by Senator Conroy that the NBN business case would never see the light of day, a three-year corporate plan finally surfaces in the dying days of 2010. Among other things, the business plan confirms a drop in required equity for the project from the initial $43 billion to $35.7 billion, at a minimum wholesale cost of $24 per month for the most basic package on the network.
Numerous questions are left unanswered, however, including the possibility of volume pricing for large telcos (which Quigley later confirms was never considered) and the viability of equal wholesale pricing across fibre, wireless and satellite technologies.
Next: 2011