New report addresses digital divide in New South Wales

Dylan Crismale - Digital Content Editor

Last updated 17 April 2024

Communication towers on Mount Canobolas in the New South Wales regional town of Orange

The Connectivity Innovation Network (CIN) has today released its first whitepaper, 'Towards Ubiquitous Connectivity in Australia' which examines the challenges facing Australia in an ever-changing technological landscape.

It describes 'ubiquitous connectivity' as the state where every individual, community and industry has access to high-quality digital services on an ongoing basis regardless of population density or geographic location.

The report has outlined four key recommendations for the NSW government including:

Support for the continuation of public and private partnership models to invest in local technology innovations
Leveraging local universities' research capabilities to nurture the growth of local industry. This includes solutions for providing critical connectivity for first responders and communities during and after disasters, as well as early detection of seismic events, extreme weather conditions, and wildfires
A prioritisation of digital inclusion and accessibility for everyone. This includes expanding infrastructure and ensuring the benefits of advancements are enjoyed by those in rural and remote areas and disadvantaged communities equally
Continued monitoring, and re-evaluation of strategies to keep up with rapid changes

The report emphasises the potential use of emerging technologies such as Low Earth Orbit (LEO) Satellites (like Starlink), Higher Altitude Platform Stations (HAPS) and the future 6G standard for wireless communications which will eventually replace 5G.

As part of their research, the authors examined the NSW Digital Connectivity Index, developed by the NSW Telco Authority (NSWTA). The index is a measure of the quality of digital connectivity in a particular area of NSW. It evaluates criteria such as access, affordability and demographics to provide a score at both suburb and Local Government Area levels. The current overall index score for NSW is 55 with an average of 64 in metro suburbs and just 16 in regional suburbs.

Co-author of the paper and CIN Director, Dr Ian Oppermann said "We aim to use the release of the whitepaper to help steer the development of innovative solutions towards ubiquitous connectivity, where devices are seamlessly connected, able to process data without interruption and are accessible by everyone on any device in any location and in any format."

The CIN was founded in 2021 and is funded by the NSWTA. It brings together experts from business, academia and government to address connectivity challenges in NSW that arise from the state's large size, unique topography and smaller population in regional and remote areas.

The CINs recommendations will next be considered by the NSWTA for implementation.

Dylan Crismale

Digital Content Editor

Dylan Crismale is a Digital Content Editor at WhistleOut, has been writing for almost a decade across a variety of Australian publications. He previously worked as a writer at Finder covering energy, internet and mobile plans. Dylan is passionate about finding the best deals to save people money and educating people about tech. When he's not sat at his desk Dylan loves working out, bingeing TV and hanging out with friends.

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