The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has moved to take partial credit for a surge in digital subscriber line (DSL) take-up which has seen the technology poised to surpass cable as the pre-eminent broadband medium.

ACCC chairman, Professor Allan Fels, said yesterday at the release of statistics showing broadband take-up in Australia had risen 23 per cent in the July-September quarter, over the previous quarter, that DSL takeup had surged to within seven thousand connections of cable by September 2002.

"By September 2002, DSL had almost surpassed cable as the pre-eminent broadband technology, with 151,300 DSL services connected - of which 128,100 were asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) connections - compared to 158,200 cable services," Professor Fels said in a statement.

"The relatively faster growth of DSL services is not surprising," he said. "DSL services are more widely available than cable services.

"There is also more intense competition amongst DSL providers thanks to the ACCC's efforts to open up Telstra's local loop and ensure that appropriately priced and tailored wholesale ADSL services are made available to broadband providers".

Fels also reminded consumers of the ACCC's recent action in declaring "line sharing" services, which means they come under the ACCC's jurisdiction.

"Line sharing, also referred to as 'spectrum sharing', enables one telecommunications carrier to provide broadband services while another provides voice services, on the same telephone line, at the same time," said Fels. "Line sharing should ultimately lead to more competitive and innovative broadband service offerings being made available to consumers at lower prices."

He said the technique would allow broadband providers to deliver high-speed data services to consumers, "without needing to take on the responsibility and cost of providing voice services.

"It is crucial that new technologies and services are not driven by monopoly control of the local network, since competition by a wide range of players provides a superior way of meeting the new telecommunications needs of consumers and businesses".

The report showed that DSL connections increased from 111,800 subscribers at the end of June to 151,300 subscribers at the end of September, an increase of 35.3 percent.

Cable increased only 12.2 percent from 140,900 in the previous quarter.

The number of satellite broadband users increased from 9,000 to 11,900 over the June-September quarter.

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