26 September 2007

Passengers onboard Spirit of Tasmania I and II will soon be able to use ATMs, shop with EFTPOS and can now get uninterrupted mobile coverage and fast wireless broadband during the popular Devonport to Melbourne journey.

The new services are delivered by Telstra’s Next G™ mobile network.

Telstra Country Wide® Group Managing Director, Mr Geoff Booth – who tested the services onboard the ship this week – said the network extension will provide many benefits for passengers.

“No time need be lost on the 11-hour journey now that Telstra Next G™ network customers can get access to the on-board 7.2 megabit per second broadband network by simply inserting a wireless broadband card into a laptop computer,” Mr Booth said.

“On mobiles, customers can watch 16 channels of FOXTEL or 25 BigPond TV channels, search Yellow Pages, download music, check the up-to-date weather conditions at their destination and of course make video-calls and voice calls.   

Mr Booth said that since Telstra turned on the Next G™ network in October 2006 more than a million Australians had already embraced the freedom to access the web, email, files and BigPond and FOXTEL content while they are on the move.

“The Next G™ network has created a paradigm shift in the way Telstra’s customers work, live and play.”

TT-Line Chairman, Mr Denis Rogers, said he was pleased that Telstra was able to deliver faster connections and continuous coverage onboard the ships.

“Passengers onboard Spirit of Tasmania will now have faster access to mobile and internet communications and uninterrupted coverage. This is an impressive technological advancement that will enable everyone onboard to remain connected to the outside world while sailing anywhere in Bass Strait,” he said.

Mr Booth said that coverage extensions of the Next G™ network also benefit the marine, fishing and tourism industries operating on Bass Strait.

“The Next G™ network’s reach has dramatically improved mobile broadband coverage on Bass Strait, enabling people in marine, fishing and tourism industries real-time access to their corporate email and IT systems while on the water. This can increase efficiency and productivity through quicker response times to important business matters.”

Passengers on board the Spirit of Tasmania will have access to:

• EFTPOS transactions from the Spirits’ bars, shops and restaurants.
• ATM banking from the ships’ teller on level seven, previously only available when in dock;
• up to 7.2 Mbps broadband access from the Internet Kiosk on level seven - previously this dial up service operated at a maximum speed of 80kbps;
• Payphone calls across the Bass Strait, previously only available for part of the journey using CDMA.

To find out more about Telstra’s Next G™ network and services visit www.telstra.com/nextg or contact your local Telstra Country Wide team on 1800 OUR TCW.

Telstra Media Contact:

Patrick O’Beirne

Ph: 0407 041 836

TT Line Media Contact:

Carolyn Neill

Ph: 0438 393 898