Farmers are calling for the National Broadband Network to roll out more fixed wireless services in remote and regional areas, with many fearing they will be limited to satellite internet access.
Outside of fibre cable or access through a phone line, the NBN offers fixed wireless internet to those living within 14 kilometres of a tower and internet via a satellite for those living further away.
Poor internet coverage has plagued regional and remote communities for years, and the NBN has promised to give them access to fast and reliable connections.
"We call it a data drought because we can't access enough data to have the same sort of comparable service that people in urban areas can," Georgie Somerset, who runs a property at Kingaroy in south-east Queensland, said.
The technical and topographical limitations of the fixed wireless technology mean for some farmers and agribusinesses, satellite is the only option.
"The satellite should be there for people as a last resort, who are truly isolated," Ms Somerset said.
"There's about 3 per cent of the Australian population, who are truly isolated and have no other option."
These sentiments were echoed by Anna Shaw, whose family runs a farm west of Orange, in central-western New South Wales.
She can see a tower from her house but is 800 metres outside the NBN's boundary, so she does not qualify for fixed wireless.
"I was thinking, what about the people who live in remote communities?" Ms Shaw said.
"I'm being offered this inferior product
No comments:
Post a Comment