Launtel launches 1 Gbps nbn service in Hobart

Tasmanian ISP Launtel has launched a new gigabit broadband service over the nbn in Hobart as part of plans to transform Tasmania into Australia's first gigabit state.

The Blue Ocean branded internet service offers 1 Gbps download and 400 Mbps upload speeds.

This equates to a download speed 10 times faster than any pure FTTP nbn connection available to businesses on the nbn in Hobart today, and 100 times faster than the national average broadband download speed of 10.1 Mbps.

Launtel launched gigabit nbn services in Launceston in May. Launtel CEO Michael Costigan said that for various political, economic and logistical reasons, Tasmania is likely to remain the only state in Australia with widely available gigabit connectivity for at least the next several years.

“Tasmania must seize this golden opportunity to claim what is effectively Australia’s version of Silicon Valley and become the nation’s point of contact for the other gigabit economies around the world,” he said.

Costigan said the company will pursue upgrading other areas of Tasmania including Burnie and Devonport to gigabit fibre.

“Tasmania has long relied on four mainstays of economic growth: forestry, mining, agriculture and tourism. The introduction of gigabit internet adds a new economic driver that offers high wage employment opportunities and environmentally friendly growth,” he said.

“It’s an industry that firmly places Tasmania at the forefront of the high-tech industry in Australia, and makes it the logical business location for Australian businesses wishing to interact on equal terms with other high-speed economies around the world.”

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