Is Your Business Ready for the
NBN?

The NBN network has seen a lot of negative publicity over the past few years.
However, with experienced consultants and the right systems in place, the NBN is
an immensely powerful business tool, delivering far superior telecommunications at
greatly reduced costs. The NBN is now available in many areas across NSW, with the
remainder scheduled over the next 12-24 months. Southern Computer Co can help
your businesses prepare for a seamless transition to the modern world of
telecommunications.

The Myths

To get the best result from the NBN, it‘s important to understand a few of the basic
inner workings:

1. Telstra owns no part of the NBN. All retail service providers on the NBN are on a level playing field.
2. You get what you pay for with internet plans on the NBN. Budget providers buy less
   bandwidth from NBN to keep their costs down, and this causes big problems for users at peak times. Cheaper providers also cut corners with their own internal networking infrastructure and international link capacity.
3. Choosing a reputable provider will avoid most of the problems seen by others on the
   NBN. Our preferences are Internode, Telstra and Skymesh.
4. The technology you use to connect to the NBN – i.e. full Fibre to the Premises
   (FTTP), Fibre to the Node (FTTN), Fixed Wireless, etc. – has less of an overall impact than the plans and provider you choose.
5. You will lose your fixed Telstra landlines 18 months after the NBN becomes available
   in your area (unless you’re connected via fixed wireless NBN). This is a good thing –
   telephone services delivered via the NBN are far superior in voice quality, more
   flexible and are far cheaper.
6. You have choices! Phone numbers, including 1800 and Fax numbers, can be ported
   to your provider of choice. Don’t be pressured to stay with your current provider.
7. “Hosted PBX” phone systems, as offered by Commander, iinet and others, may seem cheaper up front, but are far more expensive in the long term. For example – you may save $3,000-$4,000 up front on a budget phone system for 6-8 users, but the ongoing cost of a hosted phone system is typically $45 per user per month – or $3,780 per year for a system with 7 handsets.Over 5 years the total operating cost of the hosted system is $18,900. As you can clearly see, the $4000 inital capital cost of an in-house phone system with no ongoing fees is a sound investment.

Moving to the NBN the Right Way

Moving to the NBN can be tricky, with many things to consider. For example:

1. Do you have facilities which rely on fixed landlines for service, such as EFTPOS,
   back-to-base alarm systems, emergency lift phones, etc?
2. Which NBN technology are you connecting with? In general, you will lose a phone
   line to establish a Fibre to the Node (FTTN) connection, but not with other NBN
   technologies.
3. Are your internal telecoms systems compatible with NBN, such as phone systems
   and internet routers/firewalls? (If you have installed a phone system and network
   equipment from Southern Computer Co the answer is YES!)

To ensure a seamless transition to the NBN we suggest taking the following steps:

1. Engage an experienced and independent consultant (like Southern Computer Co) to
   ensure your requirements will be met in the most cost-effective manner.
2. Bring your internal business technology up to date well in advance of ordering NBN
   services. All phone systems installed by Southern Computer Co are 100% NBN
   compatible.
3. Make alternate arrangements for services which rely on fixed landlines, such as Fax,
   EFTPOS and alarm systems. Southern Computer Co can assist with these changes.
4. Check for contracts and terms with your existing provider for ADSL internet and
   phone line services.
5. Remember that fixed landline services will be shut down 18 months after the NBN
   becomes available in your area, so don’t leave the switch to the last minute!

Our Story

Southern Computer Co moved to the NBN in early 2016 via fixed wireless
connection. We have halved our monthly telecomms expenses, while enjoying great
internet speeds and far more reliable services, as illustrated in the table below.