Internode spends $10m on 57 exchange broadband expansion

ISP Internode has announced a $10 million network expansion plan that will nearly double the capacity of its ADSL2+ broadband coverage over the next 12 months.

Internode will install ADSL2+ broadband equipment at 57 new telephone exchanges nationally and expand capacity at 115 telephone exchanges where its equipment is already installed.

Internode operates more than 50,000 of its own ADSL2+ broadband ports at 120 telephone exchanges and this project will increase that to nearly 100,000, according to the company.

More than half of the new exchanges are located in Victoria, but Tasmania is set to benefit as DSLAMs (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer) will be installed at an additional 10 telephone exchanges, up from the present two exchanges in the state.

Internode CEO Patrick Tapper said the $10 million investment was to meet Internode’s needs for the next three or four years.

“This is to both meet the needs of our growing customer base and to avoid the logjam that occurs when we and other ISPs want to install equipment in telephone exchanges run by Telstra,” Tapper said.

Internode offers ADSL2+ broadband services nationally through wholesale access agreements with Telstra and Optus, but the company will continue installing its own broadband equipment.

Tapper said the federal government’s abandonment of the fibre-to-the-node network had cleared the way for Internode to make this major investment.

“By removing the disruptive threat of the FTTN, we can proceed with a major investment that will pay its way over several years,” he said.

“Internode is committed to building its own roads, so we can guarantee the quality of service we deliver and avoid being held back by the speed bumps that other companies might impose on their networks,” he said.

The exchange selection process is based on customer demand to achieve “strategic objectives”.

“We’ve also selected a number of strategic locations that we see as a good place to be in the future,” he said, adding Tasmania is “a great example” of this.

“With the imminent availability of the Basslink fibre cable and the federal government’s plan to roll out fibre first to Tasmania, this a good place for us to build.”

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