Telstra to construct and manage NBN’s HFC network

A man and power lines are reflected in a Telstra poster adorning a public telephone in Sydney, Australia, August 13, 2015. Australian telecoms giant Telstra Corp Ltd on Thursday posted a 1 percent slide in full-year net profit, in line with expectations, and forecast modest earnings growth in the current year. Reuters/David Gray

Telecom company Telstra recently announced that it has agreed to a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the National Broadband Network and hence will now be responsible for managing and designing NBN’s hybrid fibre-coaxial (HFC) network.

The agreement will allow both Telstra and NBN to negotiate and finalise the procurement and construction works conducted by the telecom’s HFC network. The contract is expected to complete in 2016. The announcement also advocated Telstra’s early works to support the construction of the NBN network in general.

The implementation will prompt preparation of exchange locations for Telstra and NBN, along with implementation of HFC planning and design strategies. The deal also allows Telstra to update HFC to a more feasible network version, which would include DOCSIS 3.1 technology to deliver a speed of up to 1 Gbps to users.

NBN’s public affairs manager Tony Brown called the MoU as “the final piece of the puzzle for fixed broadband.” The agreement has been signed to make broadband network available in the most cost-effective and time-efficient manner. He also said that building the HFC network separately would have been difficult for both NBN and Telstra with disrupted node splits. Hence, coordinating mutually would offer subscribers the best Internet services without disturbances.

“The NBN team is gearing for the next stage of exponential growth, building on the now 1.7 million premises ready for services and the 700,000 homes and businesses that are actively using the NBN network,” NBN CEO Bill Morrow said in a press statement. He added that in 2015, NBN’s relations with the industry has improved via collaborations and competitiveness.

Meanwhile, Telstra Chief Executive Officer Andrew Penn stated via a press release that he was “delighted” by the agreement. “I am delighted that we have an opportunity to support NBN by leveraging Telstra’s knowledge and experience in network design and construction management, as well as continued maintenance. We have said all along that we are committed to providing whatever commercial services NBN needs to meet its business objectives.”

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