Australia counts the cost of broadband blunders

In some upside-down logic from the land of down under, Australian consumers have been able to upgrade their broadband internet access to the latest fibre-optic lines, only to receive slower speeds than over ageing copper wires. Such experiences are the absurd result of a grandiose government plan to bankroll what was supposed to be the world’s most advanced broadband network, called NBN. It has backfired spectacularly, triggering a vicious round of political and industry backbiting about who is to blame and sending a warning round the world to governments looking to boost their economies with next-generation networks. However, they have a long way to go to match Australia’s heavy-handed political intervention in the telecoms markets, according to industry experts. About A$30 billion ($23 billion) of a projected A$49 billion investment has already been spent on upgrading the country’s telecoms network, but Malcolm Turnbull, the prime minister and former broadband minister, has now questioned whether the taxpayer will see a return on the massive investment.