Months on from the 3G shutdown, hundreds of Aussies can’t make a call
More than 80 days since the switch was flicked on Australia’s 3G phone network, hundreds of regional and rural residents remain without reliable mobile reception and things are starting to get heated.
Telecommunications giants Telstra and Optus commenced shutting down their 3G network at the end of October in an attempt to bolster their existing 4G and 5G offerings.
The companies promised that reception would not go backwards and that if anything, customers would enjoy better connectivity.
However, the ABC has heard from more than 100 people in regional and rural areas who claim their mobile connectivity has “fallen off a cliff” in the days and weeks since.
Damian Stock is a Gippsland beef producer and telecommunications consultant.
He said since the 3G switch-off, he was having “increased issues with 4G blackspots and phones falling into SOS mode”.
“And it’s not just me, the same story has been relayed to me by clients and friends.”
However, network providers are adamant there has been no change to coverage levels since the switch off.
Telstra and Optus switched off their 3G networks on October 28. (ABC Ballarat: Alexander Darling)
Complaints compounded
Mr Stock said his attempts to raise coverage concerns with Telstra had been ignored.
“A case manager rang me and basically intimated that myself and all of my clients must have the wrong devices and that it was basically our fault that things weren’t working properly,” he said.
“They said if I wasn’t happy with the service I was getting, I could cancel my contract and go and find another provider, which given the virtual monopoly Telstra has in regional and remote Australia, seemed to be in some ways tongue-in-cheek.”
Bruce Kreutzberger lives on a farm near Alma Park, in southern New South Wales.
He said he had been left with virtually no phone reception at his property since the 3G switch off and was forced to get creative if he wanted to make a call.
“I have to get in the ute and drive up onto the hill and go on the eastern side, so I am facing the Telstra tower,” he said.
At his house, there is no reception unless he scales a tower he built for a TV antenna.
“That tower is 13 metres tall and I have 4G signal right at the top of that tower, but there’s nothing down at ground level,” he said.
Bruce Kreutzberger says he now has virtually no phone reception at his property. (ABC News: Sarah Krieg)
Not the case
Telstra stated its wholesale mobile network coverage area reached more than 98.8 per cent of the Australian population with 4G or 5G and covered more than 1.7 million square kilometres.
Prior to the switch-off, Telstra repeatedly told the ABC it would not shut down the 3G network until it had secured equivalent 4G coverage.
More than 80 days since the shutdown, Telstra’s technology engagement and advancement executive, Channa Seneviratne, has stuck by that sentiment.
“We stand by that statement because what we’re saying is where we have a published coverage map that said there was 3G coverage, we have provided 4G coverage in accordance with that coverage map,” he said.
That was despite dozens of customers repeatedly telling the ABC they had 3G coverage, and now 4G was scant or non-existent.
Telstra continues to claim that 4G coverage is as comprehensive as that previously provided by 3G. (Supplied: Telstra)
Mr Seneviratne said Telstra acknowledged customers’ issues but denied 4G was providing inferior coverage to 3G.
“We are very confident from our maps and the testing we have done that we have provided that equivalent 4G coverage,” he said.
“What we need to understand is why is the service not working, and there are myriad technical reasons why that could be.”
Regulatory intervention
Federal Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said regulatory intervention was an option if carriers were not delivering the services they promised.
“The benefits of the 3G switchover is something the carriers have pushed and it is something they need to demonstrate happens in practice,” Ms Rowland said.
“There is a very key role for regulatory intervention if the carriers aren’t lifting their game.”
Michelle Rowland says regulatory intervention is an option if the carriers do not deliver what they promised. (ABC News: Matt Roberts)
Mr Kreutzberger said he hoped the issue would become political in the lead-up to the looming federal election.
“I think this whole thing needs to become a political issue — I think people in the bush need to start complaining and we need to get 3G back,” he said.
Searching for a phone signal is a daily struggle for Mr Kreutzberger. (ABC News: Sarah Krieg)
Ms Rowland urged affected customers to speak up.
“I would encourage anyone who considers that their coverage has been degraded to complain to their carrier in the first instance,” the communications minister said.
“If you are not satisfied with that, a complaint can be made to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman.”
