In the period 2010-2014 the notion of telecommunications as a ‘critical infrastructure’ for rural and regional Australia, and in particular in agriculture had well and truly taken root. Momentum has since grown to the point that during 2015-17 a number of national inquiries concerning telecommunications have been initiated, and in some cases completed. During the period of August 2016 – June 2017, a series of eight workshops, numerous phone interviews and site visitations around Australia sought to understand the current status of on-farm telecommunications at the farm level in support of a digital agriculture future. This review has sought a ‘producer-eye’ view, seeking to understand the dimensions of key enabling telecommunications utilized by producers, factors constraining the uptake or adoption of available enabling technologies, as well as investigating the future telecommunications needs and opportunities. Information has been solicited from not only producers, but also providers of technologies and data services to producers, as well as those developing those technologies and services.

There has been a significant increase in the development of end-to-end telecommunications technologies and services offered to producers. So-called ‘second tier’ telecommunications providers offer their own transmission backhaul capability and in some cases associated cloud based services. Second tier providers will help extend the value and potential of existing NBN and mobile telecommunication networks. The role of telecommunications in supporting a digital agriculture future is not necessarily technology constrained; if a farm has access to the mobile network somewhere on the farm, or NBN into the farm house then there is technology available to beam it to where it is needed. The real constraint is likely to be around who assumes technical risk, service and price. Entirely new, innovative, methods of extending connectivity over remote regions are in the R&D pipeline; even surfacing for the first time during the period of this review. Others have been around for some time and overlooked; it is time to visit or revisit them.

The on-farm telecommunications market is rapidly evolving but education is one of the biggest challenges faced by those looking for solutions and those offering solutions. Industry needs well-curated case studies and education must target not only consumers of telecommunications services but also technology developers and service providers. 

Producer frustrations around existing telecommunications in Australia are fed by a perception that their challenges are not being acknowledged, nor responded to, by network operators or at the industry or national strategic level. There is a lack of appropriate quantitative data around data use ‘behaviour’ of producers and of the capability of existing or planned network infrastructure to cater for that data use. At a national strategic level there is no centralized knowledge of mobile network data carrying capacity, by location. How can we future proof data connectivity for Australian producers without such basic information? 

Bearing in mind the critical need for education at all levels, this review includes an introduction to the key telecommunications technologies and services utilized, or at least on offer, to Australian producers and a small number of illustrative case studies of producers and service providers. The report also includes a discussion of future opportunities and the provision of recommendations aimed at further enabling Australian producers to realize a big-data future for their farming business. 

The ultimate purpose of this review, was to deliver “recommendations for data communications to improve decision making- or decision agriculture”. Thirteen summary recommendations were published: 

Recommendation 1 - Establish an independent group, tasked to oversee mobile telecommunications development and execution strategies aimed at national coverage, including equitable access in rural and regional areas and future proofing in light of changes in usage and growth and complexity in web based services available to producers. 

Recommendation 2 - Develop a national mobile network coverage (data speed and volume) database based on datasets held by Australian Communications and Media Authority and the application of standardized network conditions. 

Recommendation 3 - Relevant producer Research and Development Corporations (RDCs), in collaboration or individually assess total data usage behavior (diurnal and seasonal) of producers related to the business and lifestyle of farming. 

Recommendation 4 - Carriage Service Providers (CSPs) make available location-based cell data carrying capacity (as related to speed) to potential/existing consumers of carriage services. This could be made available via a website to allow producers to plan ‘data movements’ and related data generating/consumption activities.

Recommendation 5 – A Universal Services Obligation that recognizes data in all its forms as opposed to data in support of voice (VOIP), with inclusions around the definition of baseline broadband service that recognizes data ‘speed’. 

Recommendation 6 - State and federal authorities, and relevant codes related to monitoring, enforcing or mediating on issues of compliance and delivery of telecommunications services to consumers, acknowledge the critical importance of data speeds in consideration of ‘service’ and ‘access’.

Recommendation 7 - A satellite broadband ‘Fair Use’ policy that factors in periods of increased demand associated with ‘significant farm operational activities’, for example harvesting 

Recommendation 8- Multi-point NBN satellite access, including mobile access be granted to rural properties on the basis of criteria related to multiple occupancy and property size. 

Recommendation 9 - Improving wireless backhaul infrastructure to cater for the growing demand for supporting on-farm networks, including efficient methods of using spectrum (including white space) and physical assets.

Recommendation 10 - NBN offer information packages aimed at guiding web service providers on necessary optimisations (e.g. HTTPS versus HTTP) to enable web platforms to function via Sky Muster. 

Recommendation 11 - Extend the ACCC Broadband performance monitoring program to include those modes of access to Australian farms, specifically with the aim of understanding broadband access experience related to the business and lifestyle of farmers.

Recommendation 12 – RDCs develop educational packages, including case studies illustrating on-farm telecommunications technology options for their stakeholders. 

Recommendation 13 - RDCs establish demonstrator sites (e.g. in partnership with exemplar producers) to let them see firsthand some of the innovations on site.