(Telecompaper) Vodafone Australia has secured government funding for 70 base stations in regional areas of New South Wales, Tasmania, Queensland, Western Australia and Victoria under the Mobile Black Spot Programme. Vodafone says it has invested over AUD 3 billion in its new mobile network over the past three years. Vodafone will use this federal funding to expand its network into more parts of Australia, offering mobile service to customers in regional areas "which currently do not have coverage or choice", the company said.