There’s been a lot of talk recently about broadband in Tasmania. Unfortunately, much of this commentary is uninformed, biased or presented by companies pursuing their own self serving commercial interests.

From Telstra’s perspective we are extremely proud of our on-going commitment to Tasmania. In fact, we have been part of the local community for over 100 years and every week we contribute millions to the local economy.

While our competitors continue to look for a free ride, we’ve got on with the job. This includes investing $50 million of our shareholder’s money to lay two fibre optic cables across Bass Strait to provide Tasmanians with reliable Internet connectivity. This considerable investment was made without any government prompting or handouts.

Regrettably, Telstra is sometimes criticised for having an Internet monopoly in the state, as until recently, it was the only company to offer Internet carriage, or backhaul, across Bass Strait.

So while it’s convenient for some parties to shift the spotlight on to Telstra, the real questions should be asked of other Internet Service Providers, who refuse to invest their own money in Internet infrastructure.

There’s also the accusation that Tasmanians pay more for their Internet, when the truth of the matter is quite different. The fact is that customers pay exactly the same for their BigPond Internet service in Tasmania as they would in any other part of Australia.

This type of misinformation is a constant source of frustration for the Telstra Country Wide team in Tasmania. So in response, they have put together their own short video in an effort to expose some of the myths for what they truly are. In short, they want to separate the Internet fact from the fiction.

Watch the video: