NBN goes live in Belmont

THE National Broadband Network (NBN) rollout in Geelong continues, with 5,700 premises in Belmont, Connewarre, Marshall, Mount Dundeed, Grovedale, Highton and Waurn Ponds now able to connect to the service.

NBN Co has reminded some towns in the Geelong region that they have less than three months before the NBN rollout is complete and the copper network is disconnected.

Once a suburb or town is declared “ready for service”, residents and businesses will receive a letter from NBN Co explaining that switching to the NBN is not automatic and people will need to order an NBN plan from a phone or internet provider.

The mostly fibre-to-the-node rollout of the NBN is taking over the existing copper phone lines, so people have 18 months to make the switch once the NBN network goes live in their area.

This deadline ends in about 11 weeks for some areas in Geelong, so residents and businesses in parts of Anglesea, Bells Beach, Jan Juc, Torquay, Ocean Grove, Clifton Springs, Curlewis, Drysdale, Indented Head and Portarlington have until February to order a NBN plan.

Corangamite federal member Sarah Henderson said more than 19,000 connections in the remaining parts of Belmont, Highton, Grovedale and Wandana Heights would be ready for service by the end of December or January, and the full rollout across Geelong would be complete by the end of next year.

Complaints by NBN customers about the speeds they are receiving have been on the rise, and NBN Co has urged homes and businesses to talk to their phone or internet provider about the speed tiers available in their area.

NBN Co spokesperson Kasey Ellison said people should ask about the actual speeds they can expect to experience, particularly during peak times such as evenings.

“When selecting a plan from a phone and internet provider, we ask that people keep in mind that 25 megabits per second (Mbps) download speed is considered where ‘fast’ broadband begins.

“Retail plans based on NBN’s wholesale 12/1 speed tier are likely to be comparable with the current ADSL service most people have.”

For more information, head to nbnco.com.au.