DISTANCE LEARNING GIVEN A BOOST WITH NSW GOVERNMENT AND OPTUS SATELLITE DEAL

Optus has signed a five-year contract estimated at $15 million with the NSW Department of Education and Communities to deliver an enhanced satellite service to improve the distance learning experience for the state’s most remote students.

The enhanced satellite solution will improve internet access and support a range of new services such as two-way video conferencing and interactive media applications to enrich the learning experience for remote students.

Optus will significantly upgrade the existing satellite technology platform to almost double the amount of satellite bandwidth available to schools and increase upload and download internet speeds by up to ten-fold.

Optus’ satellite service will cover NSW public schools that cannot be serviced by fibre under the Department’s Connected Classrooms Program, which aims to give all schools and TAFE campuses access to high-speed broadband.

The enhanced satellite service will benefit students at the 22 schools, six TAFE campuses and 165 homesteads currently enrolled in the Department’s distance education program.

NSW Minister for Education, Adrian Piccoli said, “The introduction of the enhanced satellite service will provide our most isolated schools and students with opportunities to connect and collaborate like never before. It will give them a chance to share in the educational benefits of contemporary web-based tools and give us a chance to close the gap that currently exists between the city and the bush. Optus was chosen for the project based on its capacity to deliver a secure, flexible and cost effective two way satellite service that supports educational delivery.”

Optus has a long history of working with the NSW Government to deliver interactive distance learning, having first launched broadband satellite services in 2001.

Paul Sheridan, Director of Optus Satellite said, “We’re proud of our role in helping to make a difference to the learning experience of students in the most remote communities across Australia via our satellite capabilities.

“We have worked closely with the NSW Government over the last ten years to deliver School of the Air services, with this project representing the third major upgrade to telecommunications infrastructure. The enhanced Optus satellite solution will improve internet access to schools and homesteads to ensure remote students can enjoy a rich learning experience and access the latest multimedia applications and video conferencing technologies.”

Optus will upgrade each of the nominated remote satellite sites over the coming months, with the project scheduled for completion by October.

As a leading provider of satellite services, Optus has five satellites currently in orbit, with a new satellite, Optus 10, scheduled for launch in 2013.