NBN puts blame on internet companies

AUSTRALIA’S National Broadband Network has rated itself a seven out of 10 for customer service and blamed individual internet providers for much of the “negative sentiment” around connecting to the $49 billion network.

The company revealed the score following pressure from an increasing number of frustrated users, and as it delivered its annual financial results, showing it had made the NBN available to 5.7 million premises by the end of the financial year.

Less than half of households and businesses that could connect to the NBN actually did so.

NBN Co chief executive Bill Morrow said the company almost doubled the number of premises able to connect to the NBN during the financial year, but recognised connecting customers to the network had not always been a satisfactory process.

He said the company could do more to ensure end users had a better experience, particularly when first connecting.

“When we look at the industry-wide satisfaction opinion scores, we can see that the vast majority of the 2.7 million users are OK but it is the minority expressing dissatisfaction that we, the industry, want to sort,” he said.

NBN Co also revealed most customers were still buying low-speed plans.

Complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman about the NBN more than doubled in the past six months of 2016.