Aussie appetite for fast broadband continues to grow

Australians downloaded enough content online content to fill more than 6.3 billion CDs or 2.8 trillion floppy disks over the past year according to new figures released today.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reports the average broadband downloads grew more than 33 per cent from December 2013 to December 2014. The latest stats reveal there are now 2.33 million people using an internet connection equal or faster than the maximum speeds available on ADSL2+ (24mbps or greater).

NBN Co’s network traffic report also shows growth in heavy internet usage with the average total end-user data consumption on services over the national broadband network now at 67 GB per month (download only) compared with the latest national average of 58 GB per month.

Tony Cross, NBN Co’s Principal Technology Officer said:

“These figures show our appetite for smart devices and online content continues to grow at an exponential rate. The NBN is designed to provide a fast and reliable broadband network to help Aussie households keep up with their insatiable demand for connectivity.”

“With access to fast broadband a family could be simultaneously streaming on-demand entertainment off multiple devices while still working from home using high-definition video conferencing, without worrying about lags or dropouts.”

NBN Co also today announced more than half a million new premises have been added to its national construction plan. The company aims to provide access to fast broadband for 8 million Australian homes and businesses by 2020.

Media enquiries:

Dan Chamberlain
M:0400 569 951
E:danchamberlain@nbnco.com.au

NBN Co Media Hotline
P: 02 9927 4200
E: media@nbnco.com.au

Summary of ABS Internet Activity, Australia, December 2014 report – (click here)

• The figures show Australia’s average broadband subscriber usage has grown from 45.6 GB per month in December 2013 to 58.0 GB per month in December 2014.
• 2.33 million people now use an internet connection equal or faster than the maximum speeds available on ADSL2+ (24Mbps or greater).

Summary of NBN Co network traffic report (31 December 2014):

• The average total data usage (upload and download) per end-user on services over the NBN is 83 GB per month.
• The average total download usage end-user on services over the NBN is 67 GB per month.
• The average total upload usage end-user on services over the NBN is 15 GB per month.
• The average wholesale download speed ordered by internet service providers is 33.6 Mbps.

Today’s figures follow other recent research showing increases in demand for smart devices and online content:

• There is an average of 8 connected devices per household in Australia, Telsyte Digital Consumer Study, 2015
• 25 per cent of Aussies now have a Smart TV with 71 per cent connected to the internet, Telsyte Digital Consumer Study, 2015
• The main device Australians use for streaming online video remains the computer (67 per cent), followed by smartphones (13 per cent), tablet (9 per cent) and others (11 per cent) which includes games consoles and Smart TVs, Telsyte Digital Consumer Study, 2015
• On average Australians spend 448 minutes (7hrs and 28 minutes) a month viewing streaming video such as catch-up TV as well as other content such as YouTube,  on PCs and laptops up from 352 minutes (or 5hrs 52 mins), Australian Multi-Screen Report, 2015
• In the past year, tablet use has grown to 2 hours and 3 minutes (up from 1 hour 47 minutes) while mobile video viewing rose to 2 hours 47 minutes on a smartphone (compared to 1 hour 56 minutes), Australian Multi-Screen Report, 2015
• An estimated 6.2 million adult Australians (35 per cent) used a communications application to either make phone or video calls, or send messages, ACMA Digital Lives Report, 2015
• Facebook, Skype, FaceTime, Viber and Apple iMessage are the top five communications applications Australians with Facebook and Skype reaching 69 per cent of users, followed by the video chat application FaceTime (46 per cent), ACMA Digital Lives Report, 2015
• Almost half (49 per cent) of Australians have used the internet to work away from the office, ACMA Digital Lives Report, 2015

Notes to editors:

• NBN Co average speeds are based on wholesale download speeds from Brownfields, New Developments and Fixed-Wireless services. Average data usage per end-user calculation based on a sample of services from leading Retail Service Providers (RSP) during December 2014.
• End user experience including the speeds actually achieved over the NBN depends on the technology over which services are delivered to the premises and some factors outside our control like your equipment quality, software, broadband plans and how the end user’s service provider designs its network.
• An average CD-RW can hold around 650mb of data http://sony.storagesupport.com/node/6179
• An average floppy disk can hold around 1.44mb of data http://www.unitarium.com/data

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