The TelstraClear UFB Interview - The UFB Network NZ Already Has
TelstraClear CEO Dr Allan Freeth Talks Ultra Fast Broadband Part 1
Interview by Alastair Thompson
Filming and editing by Selwyn Manning
In recent weeks TelstraClear CEO Dr Allan Freeth has been at the sharp end of a united telecommunications industry campaign against legislation to enable Ultra Fast Broadband which is currently proceeding through Parliament.
Dr Freeth has said the planned government reforms will hand Telecom a monopoly in New Zealand telecommunications in a manner which will likely stifle investment and innovation for at least the next decade and lead to a third world telecommunications system.
At Dr Freeth's invitation Scoop's Alastair Thompson and Selwyn Manning interviewed the TelstraClear CEO in depth about his company's views on the future of telecommunications in New Zealand - and the role of TelstraClear in that future.
As the debate about ultra fast broadband can be a little confusing and often clouded in jargo the extended interview format is intended to tease out the issues around how UFB is used in practice and how the plans of the Government will likely impact on these at a consumer level.
For additional
background see:
- TelstraClear: Ultra Fast Broadband (UFB)
Legislation and TelstraClear
- Technical background presentation on the
TelstraClear HFC Cable network in Wellington and
Christchurch (.pdf)
- TelstraClear Corporate Overview
(.pdf)
- Video - TelstraClear Real World
Traceroute - From Scoop Home To Scoop
HQ
In part 1a of the extended interview with Dr Freeth:
- We
receive an introduction to the $2 billion TelstraClear
network in New Zealand. The two main elements to this
are the HFC coaxial cable networks
in Wellington and Christchurch and a fibre backbone
network around the whole country.
- Dr Freeth explains
how the network came into being, what its capabilities are,
and what services are sold over it.
- The interview then
turns to discuss the ultrafast "Warpspeed" 100mbs DOCSIS3
technology that now stands behind the TelstraClear cable
network, and which is capable of delivering ultra fast
broadband to homes in Wellington and Christchurch
today.
- Dr Freeth begins by discussing the NZ internet
connections to the outside world - Australia and the United
States - and what implications capacity constraints on these
networks have on pricing and availability in NZ.
- Dr
Freeth concludes by explaining why the constraints on
overseas connectivity result in low data caps for New
Zealand customers - and how in many respects these are more
of an issue to customers in NZ than speed at
present.
In part 1b of the extended interview with Dr Freeth:
- The
discussion about overseas connectivity continues:
- Dr
Freeth declines to speculate on why the cost and capacity on
the Southern Cross Cable is so constrained and explains how
issues of network traffic growth are considered by network
operators;
- Discussion then turns to the issue of where
most content used by residential customers originates - i.e.
overseas - and to the policies and practices of the
multinationals whose content forms the bulk of traffic over
the NZ residential network.
- Dr Freeth says that issues
around the delivery of content are ones which need to be
worked through by the industy and that there are technical
solutions available if the will is there.
- He also
addresses the issue of whether regulation might be required
over the Southern Cross Cable connection to the outside
world.
- The issue of IPTV content is then discussed and
Dr Freeth explains the content use patterns of his teenage
children which do not significantly involve IPTV in the
traditional sense.
(Continuing….)
In Part 2 of the TelstraClear CEO Interview Dr Allan Freeth and Alastair Thompson will discuss how the Government's intended UFB initiative is most likely to assist to get New Zealanders to the internet traffic jam faster, and how it runs a risk of stifling innovation and investment in New Zealand telecommunications.