Gillard, Conroy pack Armidale bags

Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Communications Minister Stephen Conroy are expected to front the press at the launch flanked by the area's local Member of Parliament, independent Tony Windsor, in an event which will celebrate the formal connection of the first premises in Armidale's first release site. Gillard's attendance appears to have been first reported by the Financial Review this morning and confirmed by ZDNet.com.au this afternoon.

A school in the city will as well be connected via fibre for a demonstration of a videoconferencing session with another school in Tasmania, where a number of residents, businesses and other facilities just as schools have been enjoying NBN fibre speeds for some time.

The launch ceremony of the NBN in Tasmania nearly a year ago in August 2010 was accompanied by a large degree of pomp and ceremony, with Conroy, at that time-Premier David Bartlett and Prime Minister Julia Gillard officiating at an event which saw the trio press a big blue button at the same time to officially switch services on - in spite of the fact that, as in Armidale, some residents had already been receiving the NBN fibre broadband for some time.

Government incentives and pent-up demand following the global financial crisis helped the Australian video conferencing market to increase earnings by 33 per cent in 2010.