While we patiently await the first three-year rollout plan for the National Broadband Network (NBN) to be released in coming weeks, I have stumbled across a document on the NBN website that has apparently been around since October, but which I haven’t seen before.
Maybe I wasn’t looking hard enough?
Doesn’t matter.
It is an interesting document that details the rollout plan for the NBN’s Points of Interconnect (POIs).
Not the fibre – just the infrastructure the fibre ultimately connects to. It makes interesting reading, particularly if you understand a bit about networking and project planning.
| Points Of Interconnect Rollout Plan |
It details approximate dates that access seekers – (ie: Retail Service Providers (RSPs)) – will be given access to almost complete POIs, so they can be ready to switch customers on when the POI is commissioned, seemingly only a few weeks later.
Obviously, POIs to service the already announced fibre rollout sites are high on the list – (as these need to be completed first) – however the interesting part is the POIs that are listed that are not associated with announced fibre rollout sites.
Now, don’t get too excited just yet if you are dying to have your slice of NBN action, as I must point out that POIs will have to be ready for fibre rollouts in greenfields estates that are not built by NBN Co, but become owned by NBN Co after commissioning in those estates.
Logically however, if a POI is built in an area on a schedule primarily for greenfields estates in that area, the mere existence of the POI in that area must make it far more likely that NBN Co will look at those areas favourably when planning schedules for the brownfields rollout in those areas.
Again – don’t forget – just because your area is high up on this list, doesn’t mean mass brownfields rollout in your area is imminent.
However, if your area is not high up on this list, I don’t think it is unreasonable to suggest you will probably be waiting a little longer than the areas higher on the list.
As for what it means for your area, you can make of this what you will.
(UPDATE 20/01/2012 10:23): For those who have asked – (and there’s been a few of you) – the double asterisk against some POI sites listed in this document indicate POIs that will be built as brand new facilities by NBN Co, rather than inside an existing Telstra exchange. Also, despite Queanbeyan being in NSW but the POI there being listed as serving the ACT, it will primarily be serving the ACT, so this is not an error. Thanks to Brad Sprigg for the information via the ACCC website.