IPSTAR Broadband offers ‘unmetered’ data to regional Internet users

Australian-operated, Thai-owned rural and regional satellite internet service provider IPSTAR Broadband is offering unmetered and non-speed-restricted data to Internet users in regional Australia – via Skymuster satellite – for essential services including emails, general browsing and social media.

IPSTAR says its offer will also be available for PC and smart phone software updates to rural and regional areas.

IPSTAR Broadband managing director, Shannon Fisher, said the new service was another example of the company’s “commitment to ensuring rural and regional Australians were better able to stay connected, educate their families and grow their businesses”.

“Customers have told us their monthly data allowance is sometimes used up by their children, grandchildren or even them streaming videos and gaming, leaving them unable to complete tasks crucial to running a business, like sending and receiving emails to and from customers and suppliers,” Fisher said.

“Sky Muster Plus will remove the monthly download cap for essential services, allowing rural regional businesses – many of which operate from home – to rest easy knowing their operations won’t be disrupted by too many streamed episodes of Stranger Things or battles on Fortnite.”

IPSTAR says the Sky Muster Plus package maintains on the top plan a monthly cap of up to 150 GB peak and 150GB off peak for streaming but there will be no data limit for regular web activities like accessing emails or internet banking.

Under the activities such as gaming and video streaming will contribute to users’ overall monthly streaming data limit and, once the streaming cap is reached, will be speed-shaped down – but the unmetered essential services can continue to function at the same speed of up to 25Mbps.

Fisher said IPSTAR Broadband was “improving connectivity across rural Australia, ensuring customers received the best possible internet service”.

“Whether it is health, education, Indigenous equality, live sports, or streaming entertainment, when it comes to internet connectivity regional Australians are being left behind,” he said.

“IPSTAR Broadband is committed to making life better for those in the bush.”

IPSTAR says community advocacy group, Better Internet for Regional Rural & Remote Australia, has been instrumental in helping the Federal Government and NBN to develop Sky Muster Plus.

Co-Founder Kristy Sparrow says Sky Muster Plus will make a significant difference to those who have been “battling limited data allowances, especially for the 42% of Sky Muster users who have no other internet option”.

“We appreciate that NBN and the Minister for Regional Services have listened to regional advocacy groups and understood that data allowances on Sky Muster have restricted essential services for regional users and we thank them for listening to our concerns” she said.

Article originally appeared on iTWire