NBN Co refrains from disclosing specific public targets for the number of premises to be upgraded to full fiber in FY24. While emphasizing the importance of take-up in its first service improvement plan, the company’s report does not outline numerical objectives for the ‘fibre connect’ program. The absence of a specified target raises questions about ongoing transparency in reporting such metrics.
Key Points:
Missing Take-Up Targets:
- NBN Co does not set a public target for the number of premises it aims to upgrade to full fiber in the fiscal year 2024.
- The service improvement plan does not include specific numerical targets for upgrades, focusing instead on the number of premises eligible for upgrades.
Importance of Take-Up:
- NBN Co acknowledges the fundamental importance of user migration from the existing copper network to the upgraded full fiber network for realizing service experience benefits.
- Take-up is considered crucial, but the company seems to partially dissociate itself from setting a specific target due to its dependence on Retail Service Providers (RSPs) actively promoting and facilitating migrations.
Collaboration with RSPs:
Activations depend on RSPs actively promoting upgrades and effectively marketing them to end-users.
NBN Co is working closely with RSPs to promote a faster and positive service experience for users migrating to full fiber technology.
IT System Changes:
Backend IT work is planned to facilitate easier take-up for RSPs to sell and for end-users to identify available options.NBN Co aims to make IT system changes to release eligible full fiber upgrade locations to the public and improve RSP visibility of locations with new technologies.
Future Service Standard Improvements:
NBN Co associates future service standard improvements with having more of its network operating on full fiber.The upgrade work is anticipated to take several years to complete, and limited commitments are made to interim standards due to cost considerations on copper portions of the network.
NBN Co’s decision not to disclose specific targets for FY24 fiber upgrades raises concerns about ongoing transparency. The company emphasizes the collaborative role of RSPs in promoting and facilitating migrations, signaling a strategic focus on industry partnerships to drive user adoption of full fiber technology. The future trajectory of service standards is closely tied to the progress of the extensive network upgrade.