Vodafone Australia is continuing its plans to launch fixed broadband services via the National Broadband Network (NBN) by asking for expressions of interest from consumers.
The mobile network operator launched its push to tackle the broadband resale market in October 2016 when it declared its intention to offer fixed broadband plans to consumer and business customers by the end of 2017.
As reported by ARN, the NBN is expected to give Vodafone the ability to deliver more data to fulfil high levels of customer demand, reflected by the 14,000 terabytes worth of usage on its mobile network each month.
Vodafone general manager of fixed, Matthew Lobb, said the timeline for a late 2017 rollout was still on track and the expressions of interest will allow interested customers to be the first to know where and when Vodafone’s fixed broadband offer will be available ahead of the launch.
“Since we announced in October last year that we’ll be launching fixed broadband, we’ve received significant interest from consumers who are looking for an alternative to the current fixed broadband incumbents,” he said.
“For those customers who pre-register with us, we’ll get in touch directly in the lead up to launch to find out more about their fixed broadband needs and how we can provide them with the best solution.
“We already have a strong 4G network which covers more than 22 million Australians and is enjoyed by 5.5 million customers, and Vodafone’s NBN Fixed Broadband will allow us to feed the growing appetite for data.
Lobb added that despite the potential of the NBN, many consumers had expressed dissatisfaction with their existing fixed broadband provider and the company believed it could provide a better service over the NBN.
“Vodafone’s aim is to provide exceptional customer service and care to ensure the best possible experience for all of our customers,” he said.
The request for expressions of interest comes after the company has completed two recent milestones in mobile coverage expansion.
The first came days before Vodafone’s statement on intention to tackle the fixed wireless market when the telco, in partnership with Nokia, conducted its first live public 5G demonstration. The tests produced speeds of up to 5Gbps, using 200 MHz of spectrum.
The second came in earlier this year when the telco launched the country’s first 4.5G precinct in Sydney’s Macquarie Park.
In addition, the telco launched a project in January 2017 with Ericsson and Cisco to deliver a network transformation project aimed at increasing network functionality, reduce opex and capex, deploy services faster, and improve customer experience.
“The new infrastructure opens the door to new business models and markets, such as Internet of Things for Vodafone – we are excited about the future prospects this partnership offers,” Vodafone chief technology officer, Kevin Millroy, said at the time.
