This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/int/news/-/news/business-13884441

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 1 Version 2
Telstra, Optus in national broadband network deals Australia strikes broadband deal with Telstra and Optus
(about 1 hour later)
The Australian government has reached an agreement with two telecommunications companies to bring high-speed internet to most of the nation. Australia's two biggest telecoms companies have joined the government's A$36bn (£24bn) plan to roll-out high-speed internet across the country.
Telstra and Optus will close down their infrastructure and transfer customers to the national broadband network. Telstra and Optus will close down their infrastructure and transfer customers to the state-owned National Broadband Network Company (NBNC).
Telstra will make A$11bn ($11.6bn; £7.2bn) over decades. About 60% of households have broadband, but speeds are slow compared with many industrialised countries.
Australia's big distances and rough terrain mean high costs and slow internet speeds for many. The plan is to connect more than 90% of households to a super-fast network.
Optus, owned by Singapore Telecommunications, will make A$800m. The two telecoms companies already have extensive broadband operations, but the government said it would be more economical to bring all the parties together.
The deals are part of the government's plans to roll out a A$36bn national broadband network. Telstra estimates it could make about A$11bn over several decades from the new deal as it will earn revenues through disconnection payments as well a share of profits from the new network.
The project is led by the state-owned National Broadband Network Company. Optus, owned by Singapore Telecommunications, will make about A$800m.
The plan is to connect more than 90% of Australia's population to a fibre optic network that will be among the fastest in the world. "Two major telcos have now signed on with the NBNC and that will mean a very strong take up," said Australia's Treasurer Wayne Swan told reporters.
"This will, of course, completely change the market structure in Australia," he said.
Broadband speeds in Australia are below the OECD average at 32.4 megabits per second.
The slow speeds are blamed on the huge distances and rough terrain that makes connecting the towns and cities across the vast Outback an expensive investment.
Opposition
The aim is to deliver broadband speeds of 100 megabits per second to homes, schools and businesses.
Only a few countries, including South Korea, Japan, and Germany, currently achieve such speeds.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has made wiring-up the country with fibre optic cables a key policy platform.
But opposition parties have called the project a costly folly and promised to review the plans should they every get into government.
The deal still needs approval from a vote by Telstra shareholders on 18 October and clearance from the competition watchdog.