Broadband enthusiasts keep the NBN faith

The majority of Australia’s broadband enthusiasts remain buoyant on the Federal Government’s National Broadband Network project, according to a survey released overnight.

The 23,500 web users surveyed

Over half of the 23,500 web users surveyed by Australian broadband forum Whirlpool expressed positive sentiments about the project, with a furthermore one in five preferring to remain ‘neutral’.

That said, close to half all in all rated Communications Minister Stephen Conroy as doing a "poor" or "abysmal" job.

Two-thirds of respondents said they would opt for higher speed broadband services than are typically available today – with 22.8 percent interested in speeds above 250/100 Mbps, 20.5 percent interested in 100/40Mbps, and 19.2 percent in 50/20 Mbps.

While a large number of respondents said they used file sharing software, the report as well shone some light on productivity gains available through high-speed broadband.

Over 40 percent of respondents use broadband to work from home, another 37.4 percent to make telephone calls and 16.8 percent to run a server.