3 promises expanded broadband coverage

Here at Lifehacker, we’ve regularly tempered our discussion of 3′s broadband services with the warning that if you end up roaming outside a 3 coverage area, it’ll cost way too much to be worth it. It looks like that situation could improve in the near future, with 3 announcing today that it plans to expand its services to cover 96% of the population (the current level is 56%). First areas off the rank will be Newcastle, the NSW Central Coast and the Mornington Peninsula, all of which will see 3 build its own network coverage by the end of the year. 3 s also looking to offer roaming onto Telstra’s Next G 3G network in other areas to reach the 96% goal, though we’ll hold off on judgement of that until pricing arrangements are revealed.