Why has a publicly-owned body like NBN Co been given the job of building the NBN instead of leaving the investment to the private sector?
NBN Co was devised to provide high-speed broadband services to all Australian homes and businesses. Its role is to build an integrated national broadband network providing fibre to 93 per cent of premises and wireless and satellite to the remaining seven per cent. Private companies need to make a commercial rate of return for their investors. In other words, private companies will only invest and build a network where they can make sufficient profits to satisfy shareholders. In a country as big as Australia there are many areas where it is not commercially attractive to build a network. The NBN will have national scale that will allow it to provide services to both profitable and high cost areas. NBN Co has developed a business case which indicates that it can build the network and still make an acceptable return on the government’s investment over the life of the network. Prior to setting up NBN Co the Government did extend a request for proposals to the private sector to build the NB
