Since market liberalisation in 1999, the provision of telecommunications services, including broadband services, is primarily a matter for the service providers concerned who operate in a fully liberalised market, regulated by the independent regulator, the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg). Details of commercial services available in each County can be found on ComReg’s website, www.callcosts.ie,
Under EU rules, the State can only intervene to ensure access to broadband services in areas where the competitive market has failed to deliver such services, as in the case of the National Broadband Scheme (NBS). Broadband services under the NBS are available since October 2010 from the NBS service provider, “3”, to persons with a fixed residence or fixed business in all of the designated NBS Electoral Divisions. I can confirm that the address referred to in the question is covered under the NBS and therefore residents of the particular Electoral Division are eligible to receive a service under the Scheme.
In keeping with State Aid clearance for the Scheme, the broadband service contracted under the NBS is a basic affordable, scaleable product. The NBS mobile wireless service is required to offer minimum download and upload speeds of 2.3Mbps and 1.4Mbps respectively, subject to a maximum contention ratio of 18:1. The NBS satellite service, which is utilised in a small number of cases for technical reasons associated with the location of the premises, offers minimum download and upload speeds of 3.6Mbps and 384 kbps respectively, subject to a maximum contention ratio of 48:1.
As regards service quality, my Department has well-established monitoring arrangements in place to ensure that the NBS delivers the minimum specified service or better to all users. The NBS contract guarantees service levels and imposes a service credit regime on 3, with significant financial consequences in the event that minimum specification service levels are not met. The NBS contract also provides that where NBS customers do not receive the minimum guaranteed service, as set out in the terms and conditions of their contract, they are entitled to service rebates.
Should any NBS customer experience problems with the NBS service, they are advised to contact 3’s customer care centre, 24 hours a day 7 days a week, by phone at 1913 (free of charge), via email to nbssupport@three.ie or by post to 3 Customer Services, Hutchison 3G Ireland Limited, PO Box 333, Dublin 2. Additionally, a team of field engineers has been established to address NBS specific maintenance issues at customers’ premises.
My Department has a role where customers have fully utilised the established complaints process and consider that their complaint has not been resolved. My officials operate a dedicated NBS mailbox which NBS customers can contact by email at nationalbroadbandscheme@dcenr.gov.ie, with any comments or complaints they may have about their NBS service. My Department will then liaise with “3” personnel at its Head Office in Dublin to remedy any service performance issues. To date, my officials have not received any communication from the person to whom the Deputy refers.
With basic broadband available throughout the country, the Government, through the National Broadband Plan, which I published on 30th August last year, has recognised that the key imperative now is to ensure high speed broadband availability to all. This will require investment by the State in areas where there is no commercial market. Ireland is therefore moving to a new phase of public and private sector investment in broadband in Ireland which will see significantly improved speeds delivered across the country.
My Department will shortly embark on a formal mapping exercise to identify those areas where State intervention will be required to enable the delivery of high speed broadband services over the coming years in line with the commitments set out in the Plan. This exercise will inform an EU State Aids application in respect of the State-led intervention and is a necessary prerequisite for State Aids approval. Intensive technical, financial and legal preparations including stakeholder engagement will be ongoing throughout 2013 with a view to the launch of a procurement process in 2014.
Through the implementation of the National Broadband Plan, we are committed to increasing the availability of next generation speeds significantly throughout the country. This will ensure that citizens or businesses, wherever they are located, have a broadband connection which meets their needs to interact effectively with society and business in the digital environment.
