This is an excellent article. I worked in venture capital for 25 years (5000 business plans, 50 deals, 25 writeoffs) and we found the biggest problem with regional businesses was the lack of air links. As the businesses grow the need for face-to-face contact grows exponentially with prospects, suppliers, and financiers. In a global world, Australia's capital cities are far enough away as it is, so adding the extra problems of poor air schedules to regionals became to heavy to bear.

It would only take off if more businesses embraced teleconferencing and telecommunications more.
Then YES, and thank god.

great article, totally agree.

there is no way that spraying bandwidth will create oppotunities of it's own - a few new businesses may come of it, but that's all - the main reason to get bandwidth is to move data around, but then you get other issues, like security and IP issues

kh - it's not so much embracing teleconferencing .. it doesn't work for human networking interaction - a lot of time spent in business meetings is developing relationships, personally, with others.

you just can't do that with teleconferences .. they are great for impersonal exchanges of data .. but business does not just run on data exchange during meetings

you can't go have a cup of coffee, or a timeout, exchange personal data to find areas in common with colleagues, customers, suppliers

teleconferencing is great for one on one, but for group on group it does not work

most people are quite reserved in teleconferences with strangers, or when both sides have to work together to solve a problem, worse when it is adversarial

one place they work well, is if the 2 sides are from the same organization and know each other very well already (no risk to ego)

the major reason we do face to face, is to develop a relationship

I've worked for 20 years in industries that have had the capability, before the public had access even, and have never seen it work with any effect.

given a chance, people prefer to meet with people face to face

The key driver of decentralization would have to be removal of excise tax on fuel required to travel long distances in this vast country.
Gas should be made available to Australian motorists at the same price it is sold for when exported, said to be 3 to 5 cents per litre.

In other words an NBN will only help to save our cities if the outrageous cost of fuel is significantly reduced.

The NBN is just another expensive gimmick proposed by a government which is a prisoner of big business and totally bereft of any idea of how to tackle the immense problems which Australia faces.In fact,I doubt if the majority of either of the 2 major parties even have much idea that the problems exist.

Surely we have better things to do with $40 billion(+) than build a broadband network which will probably be obsolete anyway by the time it is finished.Anybody who really needs broadband outside of the major population centres can already access it via existing wireless or satellite services.If those services need to be subsidized for those who can't afford it then that is a far cheaper option.

Climate change,building a non polluting electricity generating system,defence and stabilizing population at present levels are far more important issues.

Mentality is the real problem in Australia, not technology !