However, in a boost to the government-backed service, the latest investigation reveals average download speeds on its traditional fibre service have significantly improved following a major upgrade plan.
It comes after Elon Musk criticised Labor’s decision to invest another $3 billion in NBN, suggesting the money would be better spent investing in Starlink.
The latest Measuring Broadband Australia report gathered data from users in December 2024. It found that the latency of NBN’s geostationary satellite service, Sky Muster, averaged 663 milliseconds across all hours, compared to just 31 milliseconds on LEO rival Starlink.
Those figures are similar to the 665 and 30 milliseconds recorded in the previous report, which measured performance in September.
The numbers suggest Sky Muster would struggle to consistently stream high-quality videos or play computer games online.
Low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations, such as Starlink, offer quicker services than traditional geostationary satellites, such as NBN Sky Muster, because they are closer to Earth.
The lower height, though, also means LEOs cover a smaller area and, therefore, need to operate in larger, connected constellations to be effective.
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Starlink, a subsidiary of SpaceX, has the advantage of being able to launch thousands of satellites without paying external customers because it operates its own reusable rockets.
It’s currently thought there are around 7,000 Starlink satellites in orbit, with plans for a final constellation of 40,000.
NBN’s ground-based service, though, performed far better following major improvements.
“Australians on NBN Co’s Fixed Wireless Plus plan have experienced further improvements to their broadband speeds following the completion of NBN Co’s fixed wireless upgrade program,” said the ACCC.
“The average download speed on the Fixed Wireless Plus plan during the busy weekday hours of 7 to 11pm increased from 86 Mbps in September 2024 to 93.3 Mbps in December 2024, with the average upload speed in these hours increasing from 8.3 to 11.5 Mbps.”
The report observed download speeds as high as 500 Mbps on NBN’s highest-speed fixed wireless plan, compared to a year ago when the highest speeds were below 100 Mbps.
It comes after Space Connect reported yesterday that Amazon would launch its first tranche of satellites next week to power its rival service to Starlink.
The blast-off of 27 Project Kuiper spacecraft, reportedly a year behind schedule, is the first of a planned constellation of 3,200.
Over the next few years, Kuiper and ULA teams will conduct seven more Atlas V launches and 38 launches on ULA’s larger Vulcan Centaur rocket.
An additional 30-plus launches are planned using launch providers Arianespace, Blue Origin and SpaceX.
Reports suggest Amazon must deploy half the constellation by July 2026 under rules tied to its licence, and the rest by July 2029.
It significantly follows speculation that the federal government will pick the service to replace Sky Muster.
Adam Thorn
Adam is a journalist who has worked for more than 40 prestigious media brands in the UK and Australia. Since 2005, his varied career has included stints as a reporter, copy editor, feature writer and editor for publications as diverse as Fleet Street newspaper The Sunday Times, fashion bible Jones, media and marketing website Mumbrella as well as lifestyle magazines such as GQ, Woman’s Weekly, Men’s Health and Loaded. He joined Momentum Media in early 2020 and currently writes for Australian Aviation and World of Aviation.
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