ABOUT THE REPORT

The Regional Digital Strategy - "Making Connections, Filling the Gaps - Towards a Digital Region" was commissioned by Regional Development Australia Mid North Coast (RDA MNC), an Australian Government initiative, that brings together all levels of government to enhance the growth and development of regional Australia. This report is available for comment - until Friday 16 December 2011. Comments will be collated and published as an appendix.

The Report was prepared with the assistance of the NSW Government through the Department of Trade and Investment, Regional Infrastructure and Services.



EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The aim of the strategy is to exploit three key linked opportunities in the region:

• the advent of high speed broadband
• the fast-growing shift to online public services and engagement with citizens, at local government, federal and state level
• the emergence of a digital economy and clusters of manufacturing, creative, health and knowledge based industries in the region

High Speed Broadband and The National Broadband Network initiative - a potential game-changer for regional Australia - can be a catalyst for all these and for the greater diversification of the economy, if we are organised and cooperate to exploit the opportunity. The strategy guides RDA MNC and partners on the actions to be taken to progress these aims.

RDA MNC role

RDA MNC can play an important role in this process by:

• helping to identify best practice, promote knowledge sharing and provide opportunities for learning
• linking and coordinating partner initiatives
• supporting effective business engagement with SMEs
• assisting partners to overcome any digital divides or exclusion in the region
• creating appropriate structures or tools to fill what gaps there may be in high speed broadband supply and demand in the region
• mobilising resources for key initiatives

Key Issues

To progress the strategy a number of workshops were held throughout the region. Certain key issues were identified by participants. They were later validated by online dialogue. They were:

• Clarifying the NBN implementation roadmap and timetable.
• Managing and bridging the supply and demand gap until full NBN deployment.
• A digital strategy and better coordination are vital.
• A strategy for the whole region not just the test sites for early NBN roll-out.
• A strategy for digitizing services and engagement with citizens - with the NBN as a catalyst.
• A strategy for using existing publicly owned fibre capacity more broadly and imaginatively.
• A strategy also for consumer aggregation to bridge the gap.
• A strategy with a key role for Local Government.
• A knowledge sharing/ business support strategy for Small-Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs)
• A strategy for all - digital inclusion a priority.

Filling the gaps

A key concern of workshop stakeholders was what RDA MNC calls 'the gap'. There was enthusiasm for the NBN - and a hunger for bandwidth and speed - but what to do in the interim until it becomes ubiquitous?

The gap takes many forms. Already there has been a long gap between the announcement that the NBN was coming to the region and the identification of the locations for test sites and the roll-out programme. There are still gaps in knowledge as to when and where the roll-out will take place.

There is a gap between what stakeholders told us they needed - fast, efficient, accessible and affordable broadband - and what many of them receive currently and are likely to receive for some time.

Supply Gap

There is thus a 'supply gap'. Even if implementation goes well, some areas and users will not be able to access the NBN for up to a decade. That supply gap needs to be filled by a range of initiatives which deliver faster speeds, better service and affordable access sooner rather than later.

The strategy supports an RDA MNC role in working with partners to identify the best solutions to these challenges - including brokering potential 'broadband aggregations' where public bodies club together to procure more cost-effectively from existing internet service providers (IPSs) in the region.

Some innovative councils like Coffs Harbour, the beach-head for the arrival of the NBN in the region, have also created their own fibre infrastructure which they lease to ISPs. Many public bodies in the region - universities, schools, TAFE, healthcare providers - have a fibre optic infrastructure which could be more effectively utilised and shared as part of the strategy.

Demand Gap

There is also a 'demand gap' which comes with a warning. As one workshop participant put it: 'an un-motivated, uninformed and untrained market will exhibit a low demand for the NBN.' Many still use dial-up and only 10% of subscribers currently pay for what faster broadband there is. Surveys find an under and limited exploitation of current potential offered by existing broadband services. The 'demand gap' needs to be filled by initiatives which raise understanding and provide demonstration of what this technology can do.

The shift to online public services will drive some of this demand and the strategy suggests creating a Regional Digital Partnership to bring all tiers of government together around this agenda. Such an initiative would be timely in New South Wales given the announcement of a State digital economy initiative and the opportunities for digital delivery afforded by the new NSW 2021 Plan.

But concerted action is also required from Not for Profit organisations in the area to digitise services. They must also ensure that their clients and staff have the knowledge, skills and confidence required to access and use digital technologies. The strategy identifies skills development, digital inclusion and business support initiatives as being imperative in raising demand and capacity to exploit the new technologies.

Conclusion

The Mid North Coast region has a game-changing opportunity

• to raise GDP
• change market perceptions of the area
• transform public services
• up-skill and strengthen local communities; and
• reinforce an emerging digital economy.

High speed broadband will be a catalyst for change, providing the tools to enable this - and more. But coordination and a strategy are required to turn an infrastructure project - a network - into a wider set of positive outcomes for the region: that networked society and economy which are the real prize of this initiative and the real aim of policy.

Making the Connections will help guide RDA MNC and partners to achieve these aims locally - and to make the region an exemplar for Australia on how to maximise the benefits of high speed broadband.