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• Determining funding arrangements under the Commonwealth's $50 million general mobile phone program

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A total of $50.5 million will be used to fund other ways of providing greater access to affordable mobile telecommunications in areas currently without terrestrial services. This program will be undertaken in consultation with the States and Territories.

On 1 November 2001 the Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Richard Alston announced the allocation of funding under this program as follows:

• $20.4 million to provide improved coverage on 34 regional highways, subject to ongoing viability;
  
• $20.4 million to provide coverage to 55 towns with populations under 500, subject to community need and ongoing viability;
  
• $7.0 million towards the WirelessWest project to improve mobile phone services in the south west land division of Western Australia;
  
• a $2.1 million satellite handset subsidy scheme, providing up to $1,100 to offset the purchase price of a handset for those people who are unable to access terrestrial mobile phone services; and
  
• $50,000 to address a blackspot in mobile phone coverage in the ACT.

Media releases

• 15 August 2002- FAQ - Mobile Phone Coverage along Selected Highways
• 15 May 2001 - General TSI - Listening and delivering on better regional telecommunications services
• 20 August 2001 - Discussion Paper - Determining funding arrangements under the Commonwealth's $50 million general mobile phone program
• 21 March 2002 - Towns under 500 - Improved mobile phone coverage a step closer
• 1 April 2002 - Highways - Safer highways for travellers
• 14 June 2002 - Satellite Phone Subsidy Scheme fact sheet
• 5 October 2001 - WirelessWest - Project to improve mobile coverage for South-West Western Australia
• 12 June 2002 - WirelessWest - Launch media release

• Document ID: 6700 |
• Last modified: 6 February 2008, 1:40pm