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freitasm

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#16136 26-Sep-2007 10:02
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Defining a Broadband Aspiration (pdf link):


The New Zealand Institute has identified national economic benefits from broadband in the range of $2.7-4.4 billion per year with further upside potential possible.

Capturing many of these economic benefits increasingly requires high speeds and so New Zealand’s policy focus should shift from encouraging penetration to increasing the speed of the network. This means investing in a fibre network.

There is a significant cost to waiting. The longer that New Zealand waits, the more economic value it will forego and so New Zealand should approach the investment in fibre with urgency.


Also another read, Securing Our Digital Trade Routes.




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coffeebaron
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  #88159 26-Sep-2007 12:19
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Hmmm, too much reading for me. Just plant the fibre!!




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JonC
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  #88171 26-Sep-2007 13:33
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For those who don't have the time to read "Securing Our Digital Trade Routes", essentially he's saying the government (via an SOE) should build a fibre network backbone connecting all NZ cities. Local networks would then be the responsibility of local government or any other operator wanting to interconnect.

All charges for interconnect, etc would be cost + 10% - meaning a fair playing field for all players.

He also wants the government to build another undersea fibre connection (to Australia?).

All in all, I think it's a good idea. Initially I thought his idea that international transit should be more expensive was a step backwards. But his example of Radio NZ basing its servers in the US because it's cheaper than paying for local transit was a surprise to me. How can it be cheaper to host a server in the US when 70% of the traffic is coming straight back to NZ? Crazy stuff.



sudo
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  #88178 26-Sep-2007 14:13
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The govt should join the Google led push to lay cables across the pacific (http://www.commsday.com/node/186)



JonC
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  #88179 26-Sep-2007 14:21
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Certainly that new cable being laid by Google and others might provide competition to the SCC from Australia, but it's not coming to NZ.

I guess NZ wins on any improvement in Australia's connectivity, though.  And, you're right - the NZ govt would be silly to lay their own cable, doing it in a consortium like Google, is the way to go.





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  #88203 26-Sep-2007 18:51
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I personally don't see how cost+10% will help anyone.  Who decides what the costs are?

Let's play a game.

You say, cost+10%.

I say, cool. ROI of 10% is wicked awesome!  I'll hire 10 more people and put them to work.  That'll be 150k/person (pretty standard Loaded Labour Cost) +10%.

You say, sweet, better service.

I say, wow, you bought that?  I'll hire 1000 more people and put them to work.  That'll be 150k/person +10%

You say, WTF!

I'll read the PDF and see if it has more explanation. :)




JonC
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  #88205 26-Sep-2007 19:43
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It's government - so presumably the costs would be public information.



jpollock
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  #88221 26-Sep-2007 21:47
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It didn't make any difference to NZ Post, Telecom or NZ Rail before privatisation, why should it make a difference here?

Also, I'm pretty sure that SOEs don't report much other than the bottom line to the Govt. 

There's no incentive to not hire a person, and all the incentive in the world _to_ hire them.

Additionally, we're already in a market that has cost+ regulation, and it isn't working.  So, why will this new method work better?

However, I've still got to read report, so I'll sign off until I do. :)





 
 
 

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KiwiOverseas66
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  #88226 26-Sep-2007 23:11
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Interesting document.  While I don't necessarily agree with all their assertions - I like the overall message that NZ should be concentrating on fibre as opposed to copper based DSL.  IMHO It also highlights, in a round about way, one of the dangers of a govt run policy in this area - the Govt will always be planning for yesterday.

One of the biggest reservations I've always had about Govt policy in this area is its obsessive focus on copper DSL - which has subsequently lead to a single issue policy.  Every egg we have is in the "improving our ranking in the OECD" basket. Its the latest international pissing contest.  After WW1 - a nations economic ranking was measured by the number of ship yards you had. After WW2, it was the number of car assembly plants.  Now - its the number of DSL connection to the internet. As such - NZ policy is centred almost exclusively on getting more DSL, to the exclusion of almost everything else.  Good politics, but lousy network planning.

Also - I think there is a basic flaw in the way the numbers are counted (some one correct me if I'm wrong on this).  The OECD figures only count broadband connections to the internet - it doesn't count private IP connections used for networking. Is this still the case?

Back in NZ I looked after 5 organisation that between them had 1100 broadband connections used for private networking. None of them connected to the internet - so none of them are counted by the OECD. These are typical corporate networks used for transactions, internal traffic, etc. Its a sure sign that the reports and assessments on broadband usage in NZ are not written by people in the industry - as they don't even know these types of networks exist, let alone the economic impact it has.

Some of the questionable assertion?

1)Telepresence. The idea that traditional sales processes can be replaced by broadband is stretching it a bit. At the top end, no one is going to buy multi million dollar services by clicking a box saying "spend here". Numerous marketing studies will also tell you internet portals augment traditional sales activities - but don't replace it entirely.

2)Associated infrastructure. The document talks about the benefits to be gained for organisations in terms of data storage, transfer, etc.  Not sure if the cost of this additional infrastructure has been factored in?

3) Digital Media. Agree with this one.  Interesting, however, the way the report quotes the NZ Film Production House.  Anyone here worked with this dude? He'll run for parliament one day!. They're a very small outfit and want LOTR services, but without the associated budget.  Also the price quoted of $95 per gig is horrendously out of date.  Wonder how deeply the NZ institute researched this one? (funnily enough there is no mention at all of the network services used for LOTR).

4)Remote working.  This one has been around for ages, and has more to do with corporate attitude than network.  Those companies that see RAS as a benefit already use it.  Some industries, like the legal fraternity, have it as part of their salary package to attract and retain highly paid staff.  Other industries want to see bums in seats.

5)Better health care.  Hmmm.......technology as prescribed by a DHB!  Anyone want to comment on that one! I could - but that's a whole separate thread.

So overall - an interesting piece.  Abit of FUD here and there - but not bad. Of course - all the above is my humble opinion - and what the hell do I know :-)

JonC
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  #88253 27-Sep-2007 09:24
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jpollock: It didn't make any difference to NZ Post, Telecom or NZ Rail before privatisation, why should it make a difference here?

Also, I'm pretty sure that SOEs don't report much other than the bottom line to the Govt.

There's no incentive to not hire a person, and all the incentive in the world _to_ hire them.

Additionally, we're already in a market that has cost+ regulation, and it isn't working. So, why will this new method work better?

However, I've still got to read report, so I'll sign off until I do. :)



Yeah - when the government take over something like this, you're right - there's always the possibility of all the money disappearing down a big bureaucratic blackhole.

I still like the roading analogy, though.  Should be a similar setup for the fibre backbone to the way roads are built and maintained.  As long as there's transparency and an open way for people to have their say on how it's managed, it should be OK.  As to whether we can trust politicians to set this up right, well that's another matter...



KiwiOverseas66
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  #88344 27-Sep-2007 16:55
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I still like the roading analogy, though. Should be a similar setup for the fibre backbone to the way roads are built and maintained. As long as there's transparency and an open way for people to have their say on how it's managed, it should be OK. As to whether we can trust politicians to set this up right, well that's another matter...


sorry for jumping in on the end of your post, but possibly the roading analogy also gives an indication as to where government policy can go wrong.  At present the Govt is responsible for funding, building, operating, and maintaining all roads in NZ.  So despite the high level of petrol tax out there - there is a drastic shortage of funds for new roading projects, highway blackspots proliferate throughout NZ, Auckland continues to grind to a halt twice a day, and we end up with a completely bureaucratic inertia (i.e - transmission gully for eg) in deciding how to move the roading system forward. And its not as if the roading system has ever been in private ownership, allowed to run down while profits were flogged off.  The roads have always been in govt hands - and the result has been.....nothing.  I wonder how many countries in the top quarter of the OECD still have round abouts, traffic lights, stop signs, and single lane bridges on their equivalent of state highway 1?

Public ownership of infrastructure of national importance is not necessarily a bad thing - I'm just not sure the govt has enough money to do anything with it (If the national power grid and state highway one are anything to go by).  At the end of the day - the infrastructure will only be of any use if its works.  If we end up with the network equivalent of state highway 1 because that's what the govt can afford and what they are experienced in planning for - ouch!

JonC
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  #88346 27-Sep-2007 17:09
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That's where toll-roads come in (and the metaphorical equivalent in fibre).  Not something the govt is too keen on now, but...



KiwiOverseas66
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  #88351 27-Sep-2007 17:16
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JonC: That's where toll-roads come in (and the metaphorical equivalent in fibre). Not something the govt is too keen on now, but...


haha....you bet!  But the governments gotta do it.  I don't know about roads, but technology is cash hungry and IMHO only the private sector can supply that kind of cash and make sure its accounted for.....

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  #88354 27-Sep-2007 17:24
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Interesting read, similar to what IPENZ (Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand) suggested here (pdf), about the Telecommunications Amendment Bill 2006. The question is who is going to invest in a fiber network?






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