It is undoubtedly one of the major issues faced by people right across the Border region.
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In the bigger regional centres and of course in the city, access to a decent internet service is taken for granted.
Put simply, many communities in this area live in an internet black spot, the dead zones that also cover their mobile phone coverage.
The problem in getting effective mobile and internet services is especially bad down the valleys of the North East.
For people in the big cities the issue is a non-event. Their only gripes are centred on the bang for their buck they might get from their providers’ plans – the size of their data allowance, or the number of free texts included.
Their mobile might drop out only when they head off on a weekend away in the country, or hit a rare black spot on the Melbourne to Sydney Hume Highway drive. And of course the broadband will still be working quite OK when they get home
But for country people, it’s a real bugbear. And the problems are not about getting the app downloads they fancy, though they also should not have to be left out of the loop on that front.
It can be far more serious.
One of the most pressing issues is in time of disaster, especially during the bushfire season.
A black spot can clearly end up being the difference between life and death, between getting that emergency call out or being able to log-on to the CFA website for the latest updates.
And decent mobile phone and internet coverage clearly makes a huge difference for business, in being able to connect easily with customers.
It’s a heartening step then to see the visit to areas such as Bethanga and Granya on Monday by the National Broadband Network Sky Muster satellite service.
The truck has been used to show people just how easy it is to connect to the Wi-Fi hotspot service, which has been in use since April.
Hotel Granya manager Mick Fabik summed it up best when he pointed out just how hard it is to provide free Wi-Fi for backpackers.
The satellite service will also be a great boon for students doing online courses.
We urge people to find out about the service when the road show makes a visit to their nearest town.