With more than one million households and businesses expected to move to the NBN this year, Telstra has announced a new approach to help give customers the best experience on the new network.
Over the next few months, more than 850,000 Telstra home and small business bundles will have their NBN speed tier upgraded to Standard Plus at no additional cost.
In addition, all customers taking up Telstra’s new $79 and above NBN home and small business bundles will have the Standard Plus speed tier included in their plan.
Jana Kotatko, Head of Fixed Products at Telstra, said the speed boost would improve the broadband experience for almost half a million homes and businesses.
“As the popularity of streaming content like Foxtel Now and Netflix continues to grow, we’re seeing data on our fixed network increase by about 40% each year. With increased speeds, our customers will have the freedom to stream in 4K or HD on multiple devices without buffering or interruptions,” Ms Kotatko said.
Ms Kotatko said a Telstra Smart Modem with the latest WiFi technology and 4G mobile backup would also be included for all new customers singing up to a home internet bundle.
“We know moving can be a stressful time and getting utilities and internet connected can be an extra hassle. to help make the move smoother, we’re providing a Smart Modem to all our customers who are moving house so they can immediately get connected via the mobile network while they wait for their fixed service to be connected,” said Ms Kotatko.
“When customers move to the NBN there can sometimes be a period of downtime while the switchover occurs. Being able to stay connected over the mobile network during this time will greatly improve the experience for our customers making the transition to the new network.”
The speed upgrades and Telstra Smart Modem rollout follow Telstra’s move to provide customers with typical minimum evening speeds well above the ACCC guidelines of 60% the maximum speed during peak times.
“Broadband performance can be impacted by a number of factors. Some of these are managed by retail service providers like Telstra, and others are controlled by NBN Co. We want to help customers understand this and provide them with all the right ingredients to make sure their in-home connection is as strong as it can be. Giving more customers the Smart Modem, along with increasing their NBN speed tier and the ongoing focus on providing the best speeds possible are all part of the way we’re helping customers make the most of their broadband service,” added Ms Kotatko.
