NBN gets nod to buy Optus HFC network and expands footprint

The NBN has shifted gears with a green light from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to allow the company to buy Optus’ broadband network and TV for $800 million.

 Under a revised agreement, NBN will progressively take ownership of the Optus HFC network and plans to connect 4 million homes and businesses with high speed broadband.

The regulatory approval has arrived just two months after the ACCC approved NBN’s takeover of Telstra’s copper and HFC networks.

The rollout has already begun in Australia’s regional areas with NBN’s next-generation 5G technology, promising 10 gigabit per second downloads speeds with “near-zero’ signal lower lag time.

NBN estimates the network will reach 1.9 million homes and businesses nationwide by mid-2016.
In the meantime, Optus customers on the HFC network will be migrated to NBN services as both companies continue to share bandwidth on the network over the next 15 years.

According to its latest results and rollout update, the number of premises connected to the NBN network and ready for service had jumped to 1.2 million from 553,000 while the number connected services had grown from 210,000 to 486,000.

In late August, NBN released its results for FY15 reporting that in the last 12 months to June 30, it had grown revenue to AU$161 million, from AU$60 million last year.

Despite  posting  a AU$1.5 billion loss, NBN claimed that it had met significant milestones and its full-year targets, as well as stating that its rollout is gaining momentum.