Gungahlin residents are concerned the elderly and those who are not tech-savvy could be left behind as the region prepares to switch phone and internet services to the national broadband network in coming months.
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NBN Co has said the area's existing copper network will be turned off from July 17. That means about 1700 householders will need to arrange for landline phones and broadband internet, including ADSL and Telstra cable internet, to be connected to the new fibre optic network.
Medical alarms, monitored security systems, eftpos and fax machines will also need to be switched over.
Gungahlin Community Council president Ewan Brown said while most residents looked forward to the new network, there had been ''a lack of good information'' available. Mr Brown said people who did not understand technology very well might not know their telephone and medical alarm services could be affected.
He said to switch from a standard telephone service to the national broadband network meant phone lines could occasionally ''fall over like a web service''. ''That could well raise problems for the elderly, because they might not understand why it's not working,'' Mr Brown said.
''And you would need a charged up mobile service in case anything goes wrong.''
NBN Co spokesman Darren Rudd said the switch was not automatic and anyone who used a landline phone had to contact a service provider to change to the broadband network. ''If they don't, on July 18 there will only be a soft tone available, which means they can only send an emergency call to 000 or to a telco.''
Mr Rudd encouraged residents and business owners to place an order as soon as possible.
Mr Rudd said NBN Co had carried out an extensive marketing campaign in an effort to reach the community, particularly the elderly and those who spoke English as a second language.
A spokesman for iiNet, Anthony Fisher, said the company had been door-knocking in Gungahlin and found ''a real need for more education for people who are not au fait with the technology''.
''Retail service providers are probably in the best position to be communicating with clients about this process,'' he said.
A Telstra spokeswoman said the company had been in regular contact with customers, and would step up its community activity in the next few months.
''We're encouraging any remaining customers still using copper services in these areas to place an order with us by May 22 to avoid the last-minute rush.''
There had been strong demand for services in Gungahlin, with the community among the fastest to adopt the network in Australia, the spokeswoman said. An Optus spokesman said customers began to receive correspondence about the disconnection in March.
