From: Xplor Media [christangey@ozemail.com.au]
Sent: Sunday, 3 August 2003 3:51 PM
To: ECITA, Committee (SEN)
Subject: submission-broadband competition

The Secretary
ECITA
References Committee
Canberra ACT.


Michael,

I write briefly to take up your committee's invitation to submit a 
comment to the Broadband Competition Inquiry.

Basically, I would just like to address point (b).

As of today's date I still cannot access broadband at all. As an SME in 
Rural and Regional Australia working with high volume digital data 
(video) I could
benefit greatly from broadband by being able to service clients 
worldwide with virtually instantaneous 'file footage' delivery.

I simply cannot expand into this potentially lucrative foreign exchange 
sector as I cannot access broadband full-stop.

Even though I am in the town area of the modern outback centre of Alice 
Springs I am told the reasons for this are as follows:

1. I am more than 4km from a telephone exchange.

2. Even if distance didn't matter I have a split phone line (as opposed 
to copper pairs) which was Telstra' s choice not mine when I had the 
second business line installed.
They were fully aware that this was not broadband compatible but did 
not inform me of same.

3. No other service provider can offer broadband.

and my final option is

4. Satellite.  Telstra now informs me that even if I were to pay in 
excess of $1000 installation fee I could not access the service as my 
computer is an Apple mac and their satellite service is not mac 
compatible.

This, regardless of the fact that approximately 10% of people overall 
own these computers and a much higher percentage do so in my field of 
work.
Apple mac are the computer of choice in the Arts and graphics 
industries, and therefore industries that require large digital files 
to be both transmittable and receivable.

Telstra's service equity claim between city and bush has a particularly 
hollow ring to me, and this when they are under government control! I 
shudder to think how a private corporation would treat those of us in 
niche markets away from the east coast cities, not just now, but in the 
decades and centuries to come.

Once Telstra is privatised it is privatised forever.

Yours sincerely

Chris Tangey
August 3 2003

Alice Springs Film and Television
Australia

(incorporating XPLOR Media)
Australian Business Number 962 649 629 68

http://www.alicespringsfilmtv.com.au

+618 8953 2646 work
+618 8953 8866 fax
0409 0949 52      mobile
0147 166688       satellite