iiNet has thrown down the gauntlet to Telstra and Optus with a set of aggressively priced broadband and phone bundles, but has joined the top two telcos in counting uploads on its new plans.

The new products are similar to the popular Optus Fusion plans, in that there is one fixed price for an ADSL2+ broadband service and a local phone service. Like Optus, iiNet is including unlimited local and national calls, so the plans will probably only be attractive to those that make a lot of calls on their landline. However, there are differences on both sides.

iiNet's pricing is cheaper, starting at $49.95. It also provides more quota, starting at double what Optus offers, and going up to more than four times what Optus offers in the higher end plans. On the other hand, Optus is able to offer free calls to Optus mobiles, and provides a normal "copper" phone service. Although iiNet is able to port the existing phone number over to its new service, it is using a standard VoIP solution.

One negative change for iiNet is that it now counts uploads for the first time. Typically, counting uploads has been something that only Telstra and Dodo did. But recent changes have seen Optus, AAPT and some other smaller ISPs begin the practice. This issue is especially troubling for any customers wishing to use P2P services, but all activity on the Internet involves uploading some amount of data. iiNet says it has increased quotas to compensate for the change, and that the existing iiNet plans will not be affected.

iiNet chief regulatory officer Steve Dalby told Whirlpool that an increase in uploads from customers was a "growing trend". "When it was a fairly small proportion of the traffic we were really able to not put any focus on it", he said. But Dalby said that the "ratio of uploads to downloads has swung significantly now", and that "on some of the higher plans it is approaching a 1:1 ratio". iiNet joins Telstra and Optus in counting uploads, and Dalby admitted that iiNet was "playing with the big boys" and side by side comparisons with Telstra and Optus were a consideration.

Another issue with the service is the downtime when switching. For customers changing from Telstra or other ADSL1 based providers, there is a simple and quick process in place. However, for those already on iiNet ADSL2+ or that have ADSL2+ with another provider, a period of two weeks with no broadband, and one week with no phone service is possible.

Dalby said that Telstra had no process for switching customers from LSS to ULL (Unbundled Local Loop) services (the technology that makes naked DSL possible), and said it "could be seen to be used as a brake on competition." Dalby said that ideally a process would allow a transfer in 2-3 days, and would involve little or no downtime. However, negotiations with Telstra are "going nowhere fast", and iiNet would continue to lobby the ACCC for improvement.

Links:

• iiNet Naked DSL plans
• iiNet naked DSL FAQs
• Amnet launches naked DSL  (Whirlpool, 14 Nov 2007)
• ISPs offer line rental escape  (Whirlpool, 27 Jul 2007)
• Optus to count uploads on new plans  (Whirlpool, 8 Jul 2007)