Vodafone has announced its intention to offer both personal and business fixed broadband by the end of 2017, to complement its mobile network services.
VHA CEO Iñaki Berroeta today announced the company’s intention to enter the home broadband market whilst speaking at the telecommunication industry’s premier annual address, the Charles Todd Oration in Sydney in which he said Vodafone’s broadband offering will be delivered via the National Broadband Network (NBN).
Mr Berroeta said of the announcement:
“We know that customers love data, with around 14,000 terabytes used on the Vodafone mobile network each month, and their appetite for fast data is continuing to grow. The NBN will allow us to deliver more data to our customers.
Not only are Australians consuming more and more data, they are increasingly using mobile and fixed broadband interchangeably. Consumers are converged, but the telco market isn’t and we want to change this. Customers want seamless connection, easy-to-understand plans and reliable service – and that’s the proposition we’ll be bringing to Australia.”
Mr Berroeta said the time was right for Vodafone to enter the home broadband market given Vodafone through its parent company VHA, have built consumer confidence back in its mobile network after suffering major network issues during 2009 and 2010:
“We have a strong 4G network which covers more than 22 million Australians and is enjoyed by 5.5 million customers, the NBN rollout is gaining momentum and there is strong consumer demand for continuous connectivity.
We’ve heard the message loud and clear, both from our existing customers and Australians who don’t currently have a service with us, that they want Vodafone to offer home and office fixed broadband as well as mobile.”
Vodafone’s specific pricing details won’t be released until early 2017, however comparison site WhistleOut’s Joe Hanlon had this to say on the announcement:
“While we don’t have plan details yet, Vodafone moving into the Australian home broadband market will almost certainly be a positive for consumers. In other markets where Vodafone provides fixed line broadband services, they’ve differentiated through competitive pricing, making a point of how much one can save by swapping from another provider.
We also wouldn’t be surprised to see discounts for bundling mobile together with broadband, as Vodafone offers in New Zealand.
2017 is going to big year in Australian broadband. The National Broadband Network is going to make it easier for new players to compete in the local broadband market. We also expect consumers to be more likely to consider changing providers when they change to an NBN plan. WhistleOut already tracks broadband plans for 38 local providers, and we expect to see this number grow over the next few years. For example, we already know that amaysim is planing to expand into the world of home broadband, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see other MVNOs follow suite.”
We will be keeping our eye out for further information about when Vodafone will enter the broadband market next year or the plan details but as soon as we hear anything, we will report it you immediately.
“We also wouldn’t be surprised to see discounts for bundling mobile together with broadband”
Is there some regulatory restriction that prevents this happening at present, because neither Telstra nor Optus seem to do very much in the way of bundling home and mobile offerings, despite having both available.
I know Optus give $10 per month off your mobile if you have broadband at home with them. Telstra doesn’t.