RESIDENTS living in regional and rural areas in Maranoa can begin to connect to affordable, high-speed broadband with the launch of services on nbn's Sky Muster satellite network.

Federal candidate for Maranoa David Littleproud welcomed the official launch of nbn's commercial Sky Muster broadband service today.

"This is great news for people in Maranoa that will finally be able to access high speed internet," Mr Littleproud said.

Offering download speeds of up to 25 Megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of up to 5 Mbps, the Sky Muster service will provide a faster online experience for internet users living in regional and remote areas.

"The Australian Government has invested $2 billion in two advanced Ka-band satellites and a network of ground stations that make up the Sky Muster service," Mr Littleproud said.

"Many homes and businesses in Maranoa are still dependent on very basic internet access which makes even online banking or emailing difficult. Sky Muster will change all that for many thousands of Australians."

"This is an exciting announcement for the people of Maranoa. With more than 25000 businesses and homes eligible for Sky Muster satellite, Maranoa is the largest recipient of this roll out in the country."

A variety of different broadband plans are available from providers and pricing compares favourably with current international and local commercial satellite and mobile internet plans.

The launch of nbn's commercial satellite services is delivering the Government's commitment to bring high-speed broadband to rural and regional Australia.