Critical.
Authoritative.
Strategic.
Subscribe to CIO Magazine »

High speed adult content may drive NBN uptake

Application and content developer, The Project Factory, argues adult content will be one of the main reasons consumers will turn to the NBN

While the Federal Government has extolled the virtues of the National Broadband Network (NBN) in delivering e-health and government agency services to every Australian, adult content will be the major driver of consumer adoption, according to content and applications developer, The Project Factory.

According to The Project Factory director, Jennifer Wilson, education and health dominated public discussion of the NBN; however, personal entertainment, including adult content, lead private discussions.

"The single most important factor is the porn factor because pornography has always been at the cutting edge of technology," Wilson said. "If we cannot get porn on the NBN than we will have trouble getting consumer acceptance and uptake."

Speaking at an Australian Computer Society (ACS) forum in Sydney, Wilson acknowledged that children needed to be protected from adult content but backed the idea of pornography on the NBN because it had always stimulated digital growth in many forms.

For example, the industry was an early adopter of e-commerce and helped to decide the Blu-Ray versus HD format wars.

"The main reason Blu-Ray took off was because the adult entertainment industry chose the format over HD," Wilson said. "No one is going to install the NBN on the basis that one day they might need e-health services but they will use that as a justification for getting the service in order to download movies and watch TV."

Independent telecommunications analyst, Paul Budde, agreed with Wilson's assessments, stating that the adult industry had always been a driver of new technology.

With regard to the NBN, Budde said consumers would be more likely to use the service if it meant faster access to adult content. However, as the NBN is government owned, there may be the risk of censorship by what Budde termed, "conservative elements", in the federal government.

"Politicians from both Labor and the Liberals would say 'no you can't do that'," he said. "We are not that enlightened yet and there will be a tough battle to make that change."

Wilson also said that for her Sydney-based business, which specialises in the development of games and phone applications, bigger pipes would allow the company to deliver more multi-media content.

"I know from experience that consumers want faster download rates and more data but the more you give them the more they will use. We keep making games, applications that are bigger and shiner."

According to Wilson's research, Allen Consulting estimated a saving of $2.4 billion per annum through timesaving activities once the NBN was completed.

The report also highlighted benefits that Wilson claimed most people would take advantage of such as access to social networking, media, entertainment and professional services as well as inclusion and engagement in the online community.

"What we are doing with the NBN is audacious and exciting but if we can't give the consumers what they want than it is not going to work."

Follow Hamish Barwick on Twitter: @HamishBarwick

Follow Computerworld Australia on Twitter: @ComputerworldAU

Join the CIO Australia group on LinkedIn. The group is open to CIOs, IT Directors, COOs, CTOs and senior IT managers.

More about: ACS, Australian Computer Society, etwork, Federal Government
References show all

Comments

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
Users posting comments agree to the CIO comments policy.
Login or register to link comments to your user profile, or you may also post a comment without being logged in.
Related Coverage
Related Whitepapers
Latest Stories
Community Comments
Tags: adult content, NBN, paul budde
Latest Blog Posts
Whitepapers
  • Get the Whole Picture Why Most Organizations Miss User Response Monitoring—and What to Do About It
    You can be armed with vast amounts of performance metrics, but if you don’t know what users are actually experiencing, you don’t have the real performance picture. While this measure is critical, it is one many organizations fail to consistently capture. This guide looks at the challenges of user response monitoring, and it shows how you can overcome these challenges and start to get a real handle on your infrastructure performance and how it impacts your users’ experience.
    Learn more »
  • Disciplined Agile Delivery: An Introduction
    This evaluation guide is designed to help you choose the best tool to support your current Agile projects, while protecting your investment as your team, needs and agile maturity grow.
    Learn more »
  • HP Security Action Plan for Enterprise Printing and Imaging
    Security is a part of how we work. When you walk through the front door of your office every morning, you probably pass a level of security. At your desk, it’s likely you log in to your computer and access files over a secure server. From security badges and ID cards to network firewalls and software security, it may seem like your organisation has taken every measure to protect its property, people and data. This action plan outlines a step-by-step approach to help you develop a plan that improves the security of your printing and imaging environment and boosts your business.
    Learn more »
All whitepapers
rhs_login_lockGet exclusive access to Invitation only events CIO, reports & analysis.
Recent comments