NBN Co awards transit tender to Visionstream
While Primus is set to offer calls
Network service provider, Visionstream, has secured a $AU19 million contract to supply NBN Co’s first stage transit network.
The transit network comprises rings of backbone fibre-optic cables that will connect NBN Co's central hub to the modern equivalent of telephone exchanges. Initial first stage sites are currently being prepped with construction slated to commence this month.
During the first stage of the deployment, NBN Co will construct 149 transit links connecting 168 fibre access nodes (FANs), of which 30 are also points of interconnect (PoI). The overall project involving 121 PoI is targeted for completion over the next three years. The network management layer connecting back to the Network Service Operation Centre (NSOC) is also expected to be completed in the same time frame.
Meanwhile, Primus has received the NBN Co green light to deliver fixed-line telephone services to customers on the network and is now fully accredited for both broadband and telephone services.
Primus Australia’s CEO, Tom Mazerski, said “we understand that customers on the NBN will have varying needs. The fact that we already have a voice network in place with many voice-only customers places us in a unique position to lead the way ensuring that under the NBN, voice consumers are treated fairly and responsibly.”
Primus plans to start trialling voice services via the NBN UNI-V ports. ®