The NBN’s role as Communications Infrastructure and its surrounding Media Ecology

Huy Do
Huy Do
Sep 9, 2018 · 2 min read

Communications infrastructure can be understood as basic systems and facilities built to support and enhance the effectiveness communication technologies, and ultimately, the transmission of information. In the media ecology, communications infrastructure plays a vital role, acting as the backbone, allowing different elements within the ecology to connect and interact.

Let’s look at the NBN as an example, it is expected to “foster productivity and provide a platform for innovation in order to deliver economic and social benefits for all Australians”, as stated by Malcolm Turnbull in his Statement of Expectation to NBN Co. However, a large number of conversations surrounding the NBN has either been about its huge cost, which called for multiple project redesigns, or complaints of service quality, which originated from cost cutting adjustments.

An ABC Four Corner investigation revealed that the mix of old and new technology in order to speed up and cheapen the rollout process has turned the NBN into a lottery. Customers are not receiving the same connection, even when they are paying the same price (Thompson, 2017). In rural areas where people are connecting to the NBN via satellites, some have had to turn their daily routine up-side-down to keep up with both their work and the inconsistent internet connection (Wilken et al. 2014).

By the constant stream of complaints and disappointments towards the NBN, it would seem that the network is not achieving what it was set out to do. However, could this be a case of expectation mismatch rather than the failure of the NBN? The infrastructure has in fact provided, though inconsistent, connection for people in rural areas, it has also been beneficial for people in regional areas (Wilken et al. 2014), and the fibre technology at its core will improve baseline connection speed for every user. To a certain degree, the NBN has successfully brought “social benefits” for the people who have access to the network.

Still, delivering “social benefits” is just half of the equation. The “economic benefits” half has proven to be much more challenging to deliver, given the number of stakeholders involved, each with their own definition of “economic benefits”, which in some cases contradicts one another (e.g., internet service providers’ aim to maximize profit versus users’ preference towards a lower price).

It is exactly through these controversies that we can have a clearer sense of the complex media ecology surrounding communications infrastructure, and how a change in one element can affect all other elements in the ecology.


REFERENCES

NBN Co 2016, Statement of Expectations, NBN Co, viewed 17 August 2018,
https://www1.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/2018/documents/Policies/soe-shareholder-minister-letter.pdf

Thompson, G 2017, ‘What’s wrong with the NBN?’, ABC, 23 October 2017, viewed 18 August 2018,
http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/whats-wrong-with-the-nbn/9077900

Wilken, R, Nansen, B, Kennedy, J, Gibbs, M, Arnold, M 2014, ‘NBN benefits regional centres, but rural Australia is still left wanting’, The Conversation, viewed 15 August 2018,
https://theconversation.com/nbn-benefits-regional-centres-but-rural-australia-is-still-left-wanting-34532

    Huy Do

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    Huy Do