Frequently Asked Questions

Having problems with phones or internet ?

The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) provides a free service to people who have been unable to resolve a complaint directly with their telephone company or internet service provider. The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman is an office of last resort. This means that before contacting them you must have tried to resolve your complaint with your service provider.

Television:

When are we going to get Channel 10 in the Northern Territory?

Currently some Network TEN Programming is 'cherry-picked' by Imparja, Southern Cross (7) and Channel Nine. The content chosen by these broadcasters is by agreement between the individual broadcaster and Network TEN.

There are no current plans for Network Ten to enter the NT market. This is due, in part, to the relatively small market place available and the moratorium on the issue of new broadcast licenses until 2007 introduced in the Broadcast Services Act 1992.

An extra digital only channel is due to commence broadcasting in Darwin prior to the end of May 2008. Negotiations on issues such as program content are yet to be finalised but indications are that some Network 10 programming will be shown on the new station.

 

What is Digital TV?

Digital televisiion is the way forward for free to air TV. It was introduced to Darwin in 2002 and the current analogue system will be turned off in 2010-2012. The digital signal provides a clearer picture with better sound because the digital signal can transmit more information than the analogue signal within the same amount of spectrum.

What does digital TV offer that analogue TV does not?

The digital signal carries more information than the old analogue signal. This provides a better quality picture and sound and allows for other enhancements such as wide screen TV, closed captioning, electronic program guides.

 

Do I need to buy a digital TV to get the digital signal?

Check the inputs on your set to see what sort of connections are available prior to purchasing any set top box. In most cases your current TV set will work if you use a set top box to receive the digital signal and convert it to be able to display on your TV.

 

What is High Definition?

Basically, the quality of the picture and sound that your TV produces is dependent upon the amount of information it receives. In the current analogue system a good quality display would equate to 640 X480 pixels (about 2 Mb per second).

Digital TV uses the following native resolutions.-

• Standard definition TV uses 576 horizontal lines by 720 pixels high (up to 5 Mb per second of information)
• High Definition used 1080 horizontal lines by 720 pixels high (up to 13 Mb per second of information)

Further questions and answers are available at the DBA site.

Broadband and Internet:

 

How can I find a if broadband services are available in my area or find a plan that suits my needs?

To find out if broadband is available in your area you can go to Broadband Choice (Whirlpool) and enter your telephone number. You can also search for suitable plans on this site.

 

Why can't I get broadband?

Broadband is available throughout the Northern Territory, however in most instances distances from the exchange do not allow for a connection, in these cases a broadband connection equivalent to the ADSL connection can be achieved at a higher cost via satellite.

 

What if I can't get broadband?

If you can't get broadband in your local area you may be able to register your interest for the service on many telecommunications supplier web sites. Typically once a community has reached its 'quota' of interested broadband users, the carrier may enable the local exchange to deliver broadband services (though there is often no guaranteed time for rollout of services).

 

When will Broadband be available in my Suburb?

ADSL is provided via copper wire and is dependent upon both the type of exchange nearest you and the cable kilometres to your door. Check with your provider to see if you can get ADSL access and, if not, you may wish to register on the Broadband Demand Register.

Training:

Which NT Communities were funded under the federal Government's IT Training program?

the Local Government Association of the NT (LGANT) and Telstra secured funding of $1.2M for IT training in the following NT Communities: -

Elliot, Dagaragu/Kalkaringi, Timber Creek, Mataranka, Duck Creek, Beswick,
Borroloola, Ngukurr, Alyangula, Angurugu, Maningrida, Galiwinku, Numbulwar, Daly River, Palumpa, Wadeye/Port Keats, Gapuwiyak, Ramingining, Oenpelli, Nhulunbuy, Yirrkala, Millingimbi, Warruwi, Minjilang, Milikapiti, Pirlangimbi, Nguiu, Umbakumba, Peppimenarti, Barunga, Yarralin, and Binjari.

Training in some of these communities commenced in mid 2007.

Updated 28 June 2007