3G shutdown waitlist farmers for starlink plummet service reliability: nff

The Congressional Committee is said to have experienced a decline in the reliability of mobile services by up to 70% following the recent closure of 3G networks.

This means that despite promises from major carriers, services will not be affected after the transition.

During a recent investigative hearing, Charles Thomas, acting CEO of the National Federation of Farmers (NFF), representing the farmers and the agriculture sector, discussed the significant decline in the quality of mobile and internet services in rural and local areas. . The past few months.

“Farmers report that the overall quality of service has reduced post-downs after maintenance, including more phones dropping, slower download speeds or the ability to access the internet at all. It includes not being able to do so,” he told the Rural and Regional Transport Referral Committee.

The acting CEO cited the example of a family running cattle surgery in Charter Towers, Queensland.

Thomas also cited the incident involving livestock and crop farmers in southern New South Wales.

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He further stated that the shutdown caused the loss of “accidental coverage” or bonus coverage. In this case, people say they have access to mobile and internet services despite not being within the telephone company’s original coverage map.

“In some cases, the overall property, which had almost reliable coverage, has turned into a black spot,” Thomas said.

Sean Cole, advocacy and rural manager for Graingrowers, representing Australia’s 15,000 grain farmers, said about 90% of its members were affected by the closure.

“The overwhelming majority of our growers reported that mobile coverage has decreased to various ranges as a result of the 3G shutdown. Our members have either a significant reduction in coverage or a complete power outage. I’m giving advice.”

Australia’s 3G shutdown

Australia’s 3G network has been shut down in phases following commercial decisions from major telecoms.

In the second half of 2023, Vodafone Australia, which accounts for 17% of the mobile phone market, became the first telephone company to cut off 3G networks.

This move was followed by Optus (29% share) and Telstra (43% share), citing the need to upgrade the speed and reliability of 4G and 5G networks.

By November 2024, Optus and Telstra had completely stopped their 3G service.

Poor service drives farmers to adopt Starlink

Amidst the poor service caused by the shutdown, Sean said farmers were “moving in large numbers” to Starlink – Elon Musk’s satellite internet service.

However, the manager noted that the approach had challenges.

“You’re actually on the Starlink waiting list in southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales,” he said.

“If it sells out, we’ll end up in a market situation where you don’t have telecommunications at any price.”

It has a major impact on farmers’ operations

Sean said the closure increased the inefficiency of daily agricultural activities relying on mobile coverage, affecting commercial and operational issues.

“Whether it’s software for tractors, grain marketing or accounting apps, it’s clear that grain regions are even more lagging behind 3G shutdowns compared to urban areas,” he said.

“Growers are unhappy with paying for services they don’t have access to.

“Many have invested heavily in workarounds at less useful costs. Many are at the end of the technological path in terms of possible solutions.”

Reflecting the sentiment, Thomas said NSW farmers must spend between $10,000 ($6,300 USD) and $20,000 to buy mobile signal boosters and upgrade farm equipment to deal with shutdowns I did.

“Farmers have no choice but to fork for expensive boosters and antennas,” he said.

“People who already had the right equipment have spent countless hours navigating complex software upgrades. Since then, many still have a very basic connectivity challenge. I’m doing it.”

Optus says the 3G transition is “very smooth”

Meanwhile, Optus’ new product director, Harvey Wright, told the committee that the company’s transition away from the 3G network is “very smooth.”

“We put our customers at the heart of the transition throughout the process, providing mitigation, providing awareness and providing options for our customers in terms of upgrade capabilities,” he said.

The manager explained that between April 2023 and April 2023, Optus had sent over 12.5 million messages and launched a national public awareness campaign to communicate with customers about the closure.

Additionally, Wright said Optus has offered a variety of offers, including free phones, low-cost phones, and $400 device discounts, allowing customers to move to 4G and 5G.

“Since the shutdown process began, Optus has provided customers with over 25,000 free mobile phones, offering discounts on multi-million dollar devices and low-cost plans,” he said.

The manager also noted that Optus has been closely monitoring customer feedback during the transition, finding that less than 1% of complaints received since September 2024 are related to the closure.

“We did everything we could to make sure that the transition was as smooth as possible for our consumers,” he said.

Meanwhile, Justin Lowe, executive director of Telstra, said her company has launched a dedicated 3G helpline to support customers who encounter problems during the transition.

She also added that between October 28th and December 20th, 2024, Telstra received approximately 1,700 complaints related to the 3G exit.

No reduction in mobile coverage: Optus

At the same time, Wright said he is confident that Optus has not reduced mobile coverage since the shutdown due to the company’s preparation efforts.

When asked about cases of farmers with mobile coverage issues, Optus representatives said network coverage is often not the cause of the problem.

“About three of the four coverage complaints are not actually network-related,” he said.

“There are other fields too. Just looking at some facts, the number of coverage complaints today is actually lower than before the network shutdown.”