Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy Stephen Conroy yesterday announced the CDMA network would not be switched off on January 28 due to problems with hand-held telephone coverage on the Next G network.

He said he could not declare the Next G network to be of equivalent service to the CDMA network, which was the government’s requirement for the CDMA shut-down.

“I am concerned that some customers may not have had access to the necessary Next G equipment in time to migrate to the Next G network,” Senator Conroy said.

“I have made it clear to Telstra that it should continue to do everything possible to ensure customers are using the correct Next G equipment.

“This should include replacing handsets at no financial penalty in genuine cases.”

The CDMA network is now scheduled for closure on April 28 at the earliest.

Senator Conroy said Telstra must produce a report before April 28 to show it had fixed the problems with hand-held coverage.

“I have asked Telstra to confirm in its report that this equipment is available to enable the migration, and that these customers have been given every opportunity to migrate.”

Senator Conroy said the decision had been difficult.

In recent weeks local farmers have completed surveys comparing the Next G and CDMA networks.

The National Farmers’ Federation presented the results to the Minister, urging him to extend the shut-down date.

Senator Conroy said the comments from the farmers’ groups were a main consideration in his decision.

Telstra Country Wide managing director Geoff Booth said Telstra was committed to working with the small number of customers who were experiencing issues with the equipment.

“We have been on a path to resolve customer issues by January 28 and we were confident we would meet our deadline,” he said.

“The Minister has made a different assessment but we are very pleased he has given us a clear goal for closure, a process to get there, and a clear message to CDMA customers that they need to move quickly.”

Many locals have found the migration to Next G confusing, with a lot unhappy with handset choices offering the ‘blue tick’ - better coverage in regional and remote areas - according to the NSW Farmers’ Association.

Mr Booth said the ‘blue tick’ program ensured customers would have access to the right handsets with the “right range to meet the diverse needs of our country and city customers”.

Despite Telstra’s assurance the ‘blue tick’ handsets are adequate for regional users, choice is limited, with only seven handsets available at this stage.

Dubbo mayor Greg Matthews said he was in the process of migrating to the Next G network.

“I’ve been trying to replace my CDMA phone and I’ve had to order a Next G phone in,” Councillor Matthews said.

“Now the switch-off has been extended I will stick it out with CDMA and hope a few more blue tick models come out. There aren’t any that really suit my needs at the moment,” he said.

Dubbo MP Dawn Fardell also welcomed the extension.

She said it would allow customers in regional and remote areas time to adjust to the new network.

“It’s been postponed because the timeline hasn’t given the community enough time to change over to the Next G network,” Mrs Fardell said.

“I think this has proved the Minister has listened to people’s concerns and taken the time to visit people in remote areas.

“This extension will ease the rush for both Telstra staff and consumers,” she said.

keely.bell@ruralpress.com