NEXTEP provides companies with virtual networks, so they have a direct broadband connection between various offices or major customers, enabling information to be sent without Internet rates being incurred.
-People had no idea about DSL when we launched a year ago," Johannessen told ZDNet Australia. -Now the whole industry is saying 'this is a serious productivity tool, not just fast downloads'." According to Johannessen, the cost of DSL will soon drop to around AU$60 a month, which is what a lot of people spend on dial-up.
-We'll see a take-off in the next three months big time, once people see how much they spend on dial-up."
According to Johannessen, the industry is getting the numbers it needs to be profitable. -It hasn't got critical mass yet, but Harvey Norman and Dick Smith are starting to sell it on the same model as mobile phones, in the next month or two."
-One of the major costs in the residential area is getting the customer connected, it's several hundred dollars," Johannessen said. He added that it is cheaper if the company already owns the customers, and the entry of OzEmail, with 500,000 customers on its database, would do a lot for the industry.
At the moment business is subsidising residential use, but Johannessen expects that to change. -There's a lot of force-feeding going on in the residential space, no-one's making any money out of it at the moment. At some point residential will use more resources than business and it will flip over."
-Since January the whole industry overall has doubled every month. By the end of the year we'll possibly have 50-60 percent of SMEs on broadband."
