Millions of homes and businesses would have access to five times faster internet under a new proposal from NBN Co.
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The national network is proposing to deliver the greater download speeds through its nbn Home Fast product at no extra wholesale cost to retailers.
It would see a 10GB file downloaded within five minutes rather than 17 minutes, better video conferencing and gaming and more reliable connectivity.
The accelerated speeds would be available to internet users connected to nbn through the Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) and Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) technologies.
And customers would either need to be already using, or upgrade to, one of the three highest speed nbn products.
It comes as data demand and usage has doubled in the past five years in Australia, with an average 22 devices connected to the internet per household according to NBN Co.
This is expected to grow to 33 devices per household by 2026 and 40 devices by 2030.
NBN Co chief customer officer Anna Perrin said many customers have remained on the same broadband plan for years despite the "explosion in data usage".
"Our network monitoring suggests that some customers are potentially hitting their maximum speed on a regular basis," she said.
"We are on track with our national fibre upgrade program to put these incredibly fast speeds within reach of more than 10 million Australian homes and businesses by the end of next year."
NBN Co proposes to deliver the higher internet speeds to about nine million homes and businesses by December 2024, and up to 10.2 million premises the following year.
This represents about 90 per cent of NBN's fixed line network.
Federal communications minister Michelle Rowland said reliable, high-speed internet was "essential 21st century infrastructure".
"NBN Co's proposal is consistent with the Albanese Labor Government's objectives and will deliver turbo-charged speeds that would deliver significant benefits for businesses and households alike," she said.
"The government expects nbn to consult closely with its retail partners and work with them to enable these speed enhancements to be available for consumers as soon as practical."
The company is seeking feedback on the proposal from internet retailers by April 19, including on the equipment needed in homes to deliver the greater internet speeds.
