NBN Co to Replace Illuminate with New Rebate and Incentives Scheme

Are your premises one of the one million or so that isn’t connected to the NBN yet? With the broadband network has been available for 18 months, NBN Co will soon be offering new incentives for RSPs to acquire those new connections. 

Previously, NBN Co offered the Illuminate discount rebate, cutting tariffs by up to 50% for new connections. This new suite of incentives will be replacing that. 

How many locations can access the NBN? 

According to NBN Co, a total of 11.97 million premises are ready to connect to the network. However, only 8.2 million of these have an active connection, meaning the penetration rate is just around 69%. 

Will all premises be eligible for the rebate? 

Unfortunately, the monthly rebate will only be available for those premises that were ready to connect to the NBN 18 months ago but did not do so. These premises either didn’t connect or were inactive for 18 to 24 months. 

Back then, the penetration rate was only 61% - that is, 6.4 million active connections out of a potential 10.5 million. However, there are many more premises now that can access the NBN compared to a year and a half ago, hence the incentives.

How long will the rebate be available?

Eligible Australian households on the fixed-line and fixed-wireless network footprints that are ready to connect but haven’t done so will draw a $15 wholesale rebate each month, for six months. However, for premises where the line has been ready to connect but remained unconnected for at least 24 months, the rebate will extend to 18 months. 

All in all, retailers will see a wholesale rebate for each eligible household that connects to the NBN between 1 September and 28 February 2023, regardless of speed tier. 

NBN Co will be publishing an updated list of Location Identifiers each month to help retailers pinpoint inactive or unconnected locations. 

Other Incentives

NBN Co will also be introducing two new satellite incentives for Sky Muster customers. From 1 September to 30 November 2021, retailers will be able to access six months of rebates for every eligible service between $10 and $25, if they upgrade customers from Sky Muster to Sky Muster Plus. 

NBN Co is also planning a separate campaign that will run from 1 September 2021 to 28 February 2023. Under this campaign, retailers can access 12 months of rebates between $10 and $25 for each premise they reconnect to Sky Muster Plus, as long as said premises have been inactive for more than 90 days. 

Last but not the least, the Marketing Development Fund program will provide retailers with up to $200,000 in co-investment funding. This is intended to drive activations in new development locations that either haven’t connected or have been inactive for at least 90 days. This offer will start on 1 September and will end on 30 November 2021.

For more information, contact Compare Broadband at 1300 106 571.