Who still thinks this is a good idea especially when there are...

Who still thinks this is a good idea especially when there are alternatives at much lower cost.

From "the Australian" business section by Ed Logue AAP

LABOR'S national broadband network (NBN) strategy has been branded the "most extreme" example of government intervention in high speed broadband planning in the world.

A report by the UK-based Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) makes the claim based on the amount of money being spent on the national network, saying such expenditure is linked to greater government intervention in owning and operating broadband networks, thereby reducing competition.

Australia's NBN was the "outstanding example of extreme government intervention" because authorities had taken control to develop and operate a fibre-to-the-home network, it said in the 80-page quarterly report on worldwide broadband plans.

"At the far end of this range of intervention is Australia, which has both the highest level of total public funds pledged, $27.1 billion, and the highest level of public spending per household, due to the government's plan to create, own and operate an ultra-fast fibre network in virtually all parts of the country," the EIU said.


"There will be no infrastructure based competition, with NBN Co acting as both passive and active network operator in both urban and rural areas.

Australia's plan was also the most expensive in the world to implement, with the cost of providing broadband per household at $3455, followed by Gulf state of Qatar at $2299 and Greece at $1167.

For the US and UK the cost per household was estimated at $159 and $57, respectively.

Opposition communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull said Australia's NBN was the "telecommunication's version of Cuba" due to its reliance on the government to provide the necessary infrastructure.

"Cuba is the last communist state ... I stand corrected, there is North Korea too," Mr Turnbull said.

Mr Turnbull, who has just returned from Europe, said he had met people in the telecommunications industry who thought Australia's NBN plan was "completely crazy".

NBN Co was created by the government in 2009 to build a fibre optic cable network to 93 per cent of homes and businesses across Australia, with the rest to be provided by fixed wireless and satellite technology by 2021.

The government's approach eliminated infrastructure-based competition, the EIU said.

"This is in strong contrast to countries such as Denmark and Switzerland, whose governments prefer to facilitate competitive market driven-market rollout of technology-neutral solutions through regulation and industry facilitation," it added.

The EIU also forecast the cost of the NBN at 6.34 per cent of annual government budget revenue, followed by Greece at 2.44 per cent.

Only nine of 33 governments were planning to spend more than one per cent of annual fiscal revenue for their broadband proposals.

Australia was also ranked eight of 13 nations on the EIU's government broadband index, which assessed planning to deliver high-end speed, universal speed, rollout timeframe, cost and regulatory provisions.

Singapore ranked first, with South Korea and Japan equal second.

The report by the EIU, a specialist publisher which is part of The Economist Group, was released today.