NBN to Give Sky Muster Satellite Customers Uncapped Data

NBN to Give Sky Muster Satellite Customers Uncapped Data
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The company responsible for rolling out the National Broadband Network has today announced the launch of a Sky Muster Plus Premium satellite plan. It includes uncapped data usage and will be available to 400,000 homes/small businesses in regional parts of Australia.

NBN Co in February announced a trial that would give NBN Sky Muster Plus customers faster speeds and more unmetered data. That trial in April was expanded, with a total of 10,700 participants providing their feedback. Today, that trial has turned into a product.

“The new plan, named NBN Sky Muster Plus Premium, is the latest step in the evolution of the NBN satellite network and adds to the suite of existing NBN Sky Muster Plus plans,” the company said in a statement.

NBN Sky Muster Plus will include uncapped data usage (as in, unlimited) and the ability to “Burst Faster” – which is basically just NBN Co’s 25/5Mbps wholesale plan offering burst download speeds of up to 100Mbps (but only if network capacity is available and your internet-accessing kit is capable of it). Meanwhile, for wholesalers, it means the pricing is a little lower.

During the trial, NBN Co said the network remained robust “despite a significant increase in data usage during peak times, showcasing the desire for more data”. Customer feedback, the company said, indicated “positive shifts in sentiment, particularly regarding improvements in data allowance throughout, especially during peak usage periods”.

“Not having to worry about a monthly data allowance offers more flexibility in how and when people use their internet, and more time to do the things that matter most,” NBN Co’s ‘regional and remote’ chief development officer Gavin Williams said in a statement, alongside something or other about the satellite service helping people “thrive”.

The new offering follows NBN Co just last week facing questions from Senators concerned that its product was being slaughtered by Elon Musk’s Starlink. Williams said at the time he was hopeful this Premium offering would help secure customers for the Musk alternative.

What is Sky Muster?

Satellite NBN, or Sky Muster, is similar to Fixed Wireless in that it’s for rural areas that can’t connect to the NBN in any other way. However, it takes it a step further as it’s able to service remote areas that don’t have stable 4G access.

A satellite ground station sends the connection to a satellite, which sends it back down to a rooftop satellite on the premises.

NBN Sky Muster Plus

Both NBN Sky Muster, Plus, and now Premium provide access to broadband services via satellite. The first NBN Sky Muster satellite was launched in 2015. The NBN Sky Muster Plus satellite service launched in 2019. Today, we’ve got the addition of the NBN Sky Muster Plus Premium.

The key difference between the three tiers at a wholesale level is what online activity counts towards your monthly data allowance. ‘Plus’ allows data-free access to some basic online activities, including email, phone and computer updates, some text-based social media and messenger services and text-based web browsing, and 16-hours of free streaming and VPN use. Premium is uncapped data usage.

Existing (and new) NBN Sky Muster customers can upgrade to a NBN Sky Muster Plus Premium satellite service by calling their internet service provider.

NBN Sky Muster plans

NBN Sky Muster premium plans

The Australian government is providing $480 million towards the NBN Fixed Wireless and Satellite Upgrade Program.

This article has been updated since it was first published.


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