More than half of Australian businesses believe the national broadband network (NBN) will improve the way they do business, according to new research commissioned by Macquarie Telecom (ASX: MAQ).

The survey conducted by Access Economics on 550 firms across 17 industry groups has found companies expect the NBN will allow better online capabilities, new product and service offerings, more diverse ways of communicating with consumers and suppliers, and change employment models, especially an increase in telecommuting.

In terms of industry, health, education, utilities and information, media and telecommunications have the greatest expectations at present.

Just over half of all respondents believed that the NBN would allow them to compete better, through new technology or the enhancement of existing technologies.

A similar number expected to expand their customer range from consumer-only or business only to include both consumers and businesses and extend their reach to new geographic regions.

"With a superfast broadband network such as the NBN, Australia has the potential to be a truly global player. Rolling out the NBN will not only help create a strong future for Australian businesses and provide a platform for economic growth, but will also stimulate new skills and job opportunities unrestricted by geographic location," said Macquarie Telecom chief executive David Tudehope, who presented the research findings at an event in Sydney today.

Access Economics Director Ric Simes said: "Whilst the NBN is in its infancy and we can only estimate the potential of superfastbroadband in Australia, the meta-research findings in the report show productivity gains from fast broadband networks around the world, even with significantly slower broadband speeds.

"Given its increased reach, speed and capacity, the NBN can therefore be expected to drive productivity gains of an order of magnitude even greater than those experienced as a result of earlier ICT/broadband innovation."