Should you use an NBN Connection for your Business?

To say the NBN network is having a difficult birth is an under-statement, complaints of low speeds and drop outs especially at peak times from the early evening is making choosing a provider a real hit and miss exercise.

NBN is a broadband internet connection designed to replace ADSL and normal phone lines into Australian homes.  It’s not crazy to assume some businesses will look to adopt an NBN connection especially if they are already using an ADSL connection or feel they are paying over the odds for a 10 mbps midband Ethernet connection or similar.

But should you?

We always advise if – your premises is in a fibre/midband capable area and if – You can afford said connection, then you should get one.   These types of connections are 1:1 contention meaning if you are paying for 10, 20, 30 Mbps then that’s what you will get.  No sharing of that 10Mbps, no slowdowns at peak times and a proper SLA with time to fix guarantees including a Doller value refund if breached.

Job done… well not always.

Fibre is usually only available in metropolitan areas, midband Ethernet depends on area as well but because it uses copper the distance from the exchange and availability at the exchange mean this is also not always available.  Both connections have a fairly high cost at around $400 – $500 per month and if you don’t want to be locked into a 3 year contract there will be a significant install cost as well.

So let’s get NBN… maybe, with some caveats.

If you only have ADSL you will have to think about replacing it with something, once NBN is available in your area ADSL and Phone lines will be switched off within 2 years.  There are (almost) no exceptions.  Going from ADSL to NBN will (probably) be a better experience.

Here’s the caveats

1. Do not cancel your existing connection, no matter what it is. New internet connections, NBN, Fibre, whatever can take months for the install to be finalised. I have heard of NBN’s taking over 3 months to be fully provisioned.
2. 4G backup connection is an option if the NBN install disconnects existing ADSL connections, yup I have seen this happen 5 times already. Telstra, Optus, Vivid all provide 4G internet connections.
3. For an NBN connection do not lock into a 12 month contract, if it’s unreliable you can easily change provider at a months’ notice, or look at other options.
4. Don’t believe any ISP that says you must roll over to their NBN. You don’t, check out the other players in the market.
5. iiNet and TPG are top rated NBN providers including Business Plans. Make sure you select business plan as they come with a Static IP address needed for mail servers and VPN’s.
6. Dont forget about your phones lines, its not just standard phone lines that will be disconnected along with the ADSL. ISDN/ISDN2 also may be disconnected.  Check out our IP PBX solution
7. Fully flesh out the other non NBN options, get service requests done, check the pricing, check the speeds and how this aligns with your I.T.’s business strategy.  If Cloud is part of that strategy NBN may not be the best option for your business.

Well should you?

In some circumstances yes you should.  NBN should be a step up from ADSL if you are mindful of the points raised above.

Some companies will have little choice but to get an NBN connection due to geographic position or from a financial point of view.  Others will have a choice and will need to think about what they are trying to achieve as part of the overall IT strategy, i.e. Remote access, Cloud servers, Cloud backups, mobile work force etc.

In any event we are here to assist you and your business in any way we can, please get in touch – 1300 787 429

Thanks for reading

Rob Corcoran

Austin Technology