Presumably seeking to imbue its 4G coverage in Tasmania with a bit of Steppervescence, Vodafone’s communications nous sees it “investing $5 million in 18 new sites in Tasmania in 2017.”
Federal Minister for Regional Communications, the aptly named Nationals member Fiona Nash, was naturally the one to help Vodafone announce its cash for 18 sites getting improved 4G services in the Steppes and Ouse areas of of Tasmania.
We are told that new site at Steppes will step-up expanded 4G mobile coverage between Bothwell and Steppes State Reserve, and is just “one of the 18 new sites being built in Tasmania by Vodafone as part of the Federal Government’s Mobile Black Spot Program.”
Vodafone explains it is “rolling out 18 sites in Tasmania under the Mobile Black Spot Program at Apslawn, Bicheno, Bothwell, Brandum, Buckland, Goshen, Hamilton, Little Swanport, Miena, Okehampton Beach, Pyengana, Steppes, Swansea, Takone, Tarraleah, Verona Sands, Wayatinah and Yolla.”
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It means someone in Yolla will be able to holler over a 4G connection using VoIP to someone in Bothwell to see whether both are well, or whether someone will need to Takone for the team. Apps development at Apslawn may well now be in a position to take off, although app developers in Buckland may wonder whether devs in Apslawn are cutting their grass.
Of course, all of that in the previous sentence is just speculation, but with 4G coverage in those areas to come, Vodafone is clearly sending the right signal to those in covered the area with compatible 4G phones once the rollout is complete (details below).
However, to start with, we are told that the Steppes and Ouse areas have been “built under round one of the Mobile Black Spot Program,” with the new site to “deliver a total of 94.5 square kilometres of additional 4G mobile coverage to the region.”
This includes 8.5km of new handheld coverage on major transport routes, improving communications for travellers through regional Tasmania.
In addition, and separate to the Mobile Black Spot Program, Vodafone reports it has “switched on a network site in the Central Highlands town of Ouse. This will provide 83.5 square kilometres of additional coverage, including 29.1 kilometres of new coverage along major transport routes.”
Sounds like some very welcome nous by Vodafone for those in Ouse, who are surely glad that Vodafone is throwing coverage at all those Ouse houses.
Now, it’s important to note that this isn’t Vodafone’s first investment in the land down under’s land down under. The company proudly boasts it is “investing $28 million in total on new and upgraded sites in Tasmania between 2013 and the end of 2018.”
Indeed, by the end of next year, Vodafone says it “will have built 57 new sites in Tasmania in five years, including 17 new sites this year alone at a cost of around $5 million.”
The company says this coverage expansion “is the next step in Vodafone’s continued push to give people more mobile services choice across Australia, including in regional and rural areas,” and that “Vodafone is committed to investing in regional areas where it makes sense to do so, and is also pushing for regulatory arrangements that will deliver Australia’s best opportunity to drive mobile investment.”
Presumably the company wants to show that, while it would love to piggy back on the coverage of others, it is also willing to expand its own coverage, too.
To this point, Vodafone Regional Manager, Kevin Biles was careful to state that: “We know how important reliable mobile coverage is to regional Australia, and we’re very proud to be delivering expanded 4G services to people who live, work and travel through and around Steppes and Ouse through the Mobile Black Spot Program and our own standalone investment.
“The Mobile Black Spot Program is a fantastic initiative, and a great example of what industry and government can achieve when they work together for the benefit of regional customers.”
The National’s Nash, Minister for Regional Communications Fiona, noted “the Federal Government’s Mobile Black Spot Program would deliver 765 mobile phone towers covering some 4,400 coverage black spots across the nation, extending new and upgraded handheld coverage to 86,300 square kilometres of regional and remote Australia.”
Nash said: “I aim to help build the kinds of communities our children and grandchildren either want to stay in or come back to, and good telecommunications is a big part of that.”
Now, as Vodafone has indicated in its other recent announcements of expanded regional 4G coverage, its customers “won’t need to upgrade their smartphone.”
THat’s because “all the major smartphones already work on Vodafone’s low-band 4G 850MHz network, including the popular iPhone and Samsung Galaxy models.”
Of course, if your iPhone or Samsung is particularly old, that won’t be the case, but anything from the past several generations should have no issues, with the aforementioned Kevin Biles stating: ”This means that people in the area using Vodafone will see the 4G or LTE symbol on their phone more often.”
Vodafone expands that “low-band spectrum, such as 850MHz, is well suited to providing high quality indoor mobile coverage as the lower frequency signal penetrates buildings better than higher frequency signals. Low-band spectrum is also well suited to providing coverage over broad areas in regional Australia.”
As per usual, Vodafone is offering a 30 day network satisfaction guarantee in the hope that postpaid customers in the newly covered areas (and those yet to come) give the company a go in the areas they live, work, play and travel to and through, with a special deal of unlimited data the first month “to new customers who sign up to a selected 12 or 24 month phone plan.”
Biles added: “Our Network Satisfaction Guarantee is an invitation for Australians who may be feeling unsatisfied with their current provider to experience everything Vodafone has to offer.
“We continue to invest in our 4G network, which is performing better than ever as a result. Our Network Satisfaction Guarantee shows that we’re focused more than ever on our network performance. Our Network Satisfaction Guarantee lets people try it out for themselves without being locked in.”
So, if you’re in the relevant Tasmanian area(s), or plan to be there in the future, and you’re a Vodafone customer (or want to try out that 30 day network guarantee deal), then Vodafone would surely love you to pick up the phone, or to go and visit a Vodafone store somewhere near you, which would make Kevin Biles all smiles.
Vodafone’s interactive regional mobile investment map includes the locations and timings of the Mobile Black Spot Program sites in Tasmania.