What do you do if you need something? You jump online and search for it, right? And if you find it, perhaps you can download it or even pay for it and arrange delivery.

What if you need to send something? You can email it or you can upload it. If you need help, you can even just ask for it, and an AI assistant might do the work for you.

These simple, every-day experiences weren’t around only a few years ago, and they have not only changed the way we operate as individuals, but the way entire industries function. In truth, we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg.

As access to fast broadband increases across Australia, it’s driving forward the evolution of many industries and the way they operate at an unprecedented rate. Accessible, high speed internet is allowing us to connect with more devices, and through them to more industries, than ever before.

Previously, we’ve looked at how the construction, art, restaurant and music industries have changed. And we’ve also examined how connectivity has impacted the Fitness, Publishing, Health and Sport industries. But there are plenty more industries changing on the back of greater connectivity, such as…

Education

While the ability for students to use fast connectivity at their schools for homework and research is an important change, the real shift in the education industry is remote lessons. Prospective students can log in to online lessons.

These lessons can include high-definition video, large-sized workshopping files and real-time practicals. Plus, they can unfold in virtual classrooms where there is clear communication between students and the teacher.*

This is not only allowing rural Australians to receive the same depth of education as their urban peers, but also allowing do-it-yourself hobbyists and start-up professionals to self-teach from the comfort of their homes.

Delivery

At this point, it seems clear that the future of delivery is drones. At least, it is for many industries.

What’s not yet certain is when drone delivery will become commonplace. The service is reliant on connectivity, through which drones can be organised and controlled from a central location as deliveries are made to your home.

Elsewhere, we are already seeing much improved delivery tracking of parcels through traditional vehicle-based deliveries services. GPS technology connects customers to their delivery from the moment it leaves the warehouse.

Retail

The retail industry has been dramatically impacted by increased connectivity. We know just how integral online shopping has become to Australia’s purchasing habits – in fact, through 2016 Aussies spent around $21 billion in online retails stores.

When we’re in stores, comparisons, reviews and opinions from our friends on products are now available on-demand through the devices in our pockets.

But as access to the internet, such as services via the nbn™ network reaches more premises, arguably the biggest impact it has had on the retail industry is the ability to go Glocal.

Retailers are no longer rooted to their geographical location, and are able to not only find customers around the country, but export internationally. 

Transport

Few forces have been as disruptive to an industry as the arrival of Uber and services like it. This app-driven super company has changed the way many people around the world think about public transport.

It has ushered in an era of on-demand transport, where GPS technology combines with the powerful machine learning capabilities of Google Maps to give consumers a to-the-minute understanding of their transport situation.

Peer-driven, the review system keeps the process honest, with payments and directions all changing hands over the network.

We may even expect to see traditional public transport systems adopt some of this technology moving forward, with real-time tracking of capacity and arrival times across the services.

Real estate

Real estate agencies can offer high-definition imagery, video tours and even virtual reality experiences to potential home buyers or renters online. This means more customers can be reached, and from a wider area.

The holiday and short-term rental industry has also been greatly impacted by services like Airbnb, which have opened the door for landlords to self-manage their investment properties, and have instigated a short-term rent-on-demand economy.

* Your experience including the speeds actually achieved over the nbn™ network depends on the technology over which services are delivered to your premises and some factors outside our control like your equipment quality, software, broadband plans, signal reception and how your service provider designs its network.