New Projects
Activ8me - An official provider and installer of Community Phones
(Indigenous Communications Program)
Activ8me today announced a major milestone in a project that it is rolling out in conjunction with the Australian Government’s Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy (DBCDE). Over 25,000 calls have been made from innovative new community phones, designed, built and installed by Activ8me. The community phones are installed in remote Indigenous communities under the Commonwealth’s Indigenous Communications Program (ICP).
Working closely with DBCDE personnel and community representatives, Activ8me installs self-contained community phones in Indigenous communities of fewer than 50 people. Since August 2009, 40 community phones have been installed in remote Indigenous communities on Cape York Peninsula, throughout the Northern Territory, north of Broome, on islands off Arnhem Land and north of Darwin, and in the Kimberley. Activ8me says plans are in place for several hundred more phones across the country, with the Department having already placed orders for the first 200 phones.
Activ8me CEO, Tony Bundrock, said “We are delighted with the success of the program – the rate of calls far exceeds what we expected when we started. But what’s more important is that the communities involved have taken to them so quickly. They have become a really valuable communications service to people living in these isolated spots.”
While a community phone allows people to stay in touch with family and friends, it also allows them to get help when they are injured or ill. There are also reports that in some communities, the new phone has become a regular meeting place.
The community phones are powered by solar panels and connected to the phone network by a satellite dish. Standard calls are free, while mobile, international and premium numbers can be dialled using a phone card. This means no cash (or cash collection) is required to operate the phones.
The objective of the Indigenous Communications Program is to improve access to essential telecommunications services in remote Indigenous communities. An early priority is to increase the awareness, understanding and take-up of the service.
“There is opportunity for other remote Indigenous communities with a population under 50, and without reasonable access to a public payphone, to qualify for a phone under the ICP. Communities or their representatives simply have to complete a nomination form, have it endorsed by a government official and send it to DBCDE,” he said.
Mr Bundrock continued, “We are honoured to be part of such an innovative program. The Government is to be congratulated on an initiative that delivers such immediate and meaningful results for Australia’s most isolated communities”.
DBCDE staff members are able to provide information and can be contacted by
phone on 1800 355 014 or by email at icp@dbcde.gov.au
Detailed information about the ICP and community phones is available at
www.dbcde.gov.au/icp