Geelong businesses earmarked for cheaper, high-speed NBN

GEELONG will be among the first regional cities where business can get access to very high-speed broadband at a rEduced cost through an initiative from NBN Co.
Last month, the company in charge of rolling out the National Broadband Network (NBN) revealed Geelong and surrounds were in the first tranche of 130 NBN Business Fibre Zones.
According to the rollout map, the zone covers central Geelong, extends north to Corio (and the town of Lara), south to Grovedale and part of Waurn Ponds, and east to Newcomb.
Businesses in Business Fibre Zones will have access to reduced-price Enterprise Ethernet – NBN Co’s fastest wholesale product, with symmetrical upload and download speeds of up to 1 gigabyte per second.
“Having helped level the playing field for residential internet services with the rollout of the NBN network, we are now turning our attention to accessibility for our premium-grade business services, helping businesses in regional areas access the benefits of competition, enhanced broadband support services, and better wholesale nbn prices for the digital services they need to succeed,” NBN Co chief executive officer Stephen Rue said.
The Business Fibre Zones are among $4.5 billion in investment announced by NBN Co as part of its 2021 Corporate Plan, which was welcomed by federal Regional Communications Minister Mark Coulton.
He said the new initiatives would greatly boost the competitiveness of regional areas.
“This investment includes $3.5 billion that will be used to provide access on demand to super-fast broadband connectivity for people on NBN’s fixed line network.
“Almost 50 per cent of the Fibre to the Node (FTTN) premises that will benefit directly from this investment are in regional areas.
“Businesses in the Business Fibre Zones will have access to super-fast data speeds at CBD prices, and this will be particularly attractive for companies that are considering regional centres as a base for their business.”