petersaville.net

In response to growing discussion on Power line Communications or PLC the Australian Communication Authority has released a new information website for broadband over power line (BPL) technology.PLC technology has been around for some time and used widely in the electricity industry for remote controlling equipments like heating, street lighting and other equipment. These technologies were all slow bit rate and narrowband communications. However, recently many of the electricity companies in NSW have been exploring the BPL technology promises to provide broadband speeds of over 10Mbps by utilizing existing power line infrastructure.The site lists trials currently underway as well as guidelines for providers looking to roll out BPL in the future. Four power companies are currently conducting trials including Aurora Energy in Tasmania, Energy Australia in Newcastle and Country Energy in Queanbeyan. There has been a concerted campaign in America again the PLC & BPL technologies claim it causes interference to radio technologies. Due to this the ACA and its successor ACMA is looking into the regulatory issues associated with the new technology and is opening discussions with the interested parties. Regulation will ensure that frequencies used by BPL do not interfere with other radio services.