Brisbane VoIP services to profit from broadband roll-out

VoIP services in Brisbane could be set to improve following the roll-out of fibre-optic broadband across the city.

Fibre-optic specialist i3 Group has signed a deal with the Brisbane City Council to begin deploying its super-fast broadband network through the region's sewer system.

Users will be able to access download speeds of up to 100Mbps, with VoIP solutions among a range of technologies which are set to benefit from the move.

Brisbane Lord Mayor Campbell Newman claimed the fibre-optic network would be in addition to the state-backed National Broadband Network (NBN).

He said: "We wish to have no disagreement with NBN. But as the Mayor of Brisbane, as a person who's serving one million people in this city, I want them to get this broadband service and this infrastructure now and I want it to happen as soon as possible."

Construction is due to begin in early 2011, with the service set to be rolled out to 500,000 local residents over the next four years.