Broadband News
Wed, 10th May 2017
Telstra 4G used in disaster management drone trial
Queensland's local government association is trialling beyond-line-of-sight drone technology for use during natural disasters, using Telstra's 4G network.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN And Mobile Black Spots: What's In the 2017 Budget For Regional Australia
High–speed broadband "at affordable prices" and the continuation of the Mobile Black Spot Program are some of the plans for rural and regional Australia revealed in the 2017 Federal Budget, announced by Treasurer Scott Morrison tonight.
Source: Gizmodo
Telstra Wi-Fi Calling Is Now Available On iPhone
Telstra has extended its native Wi-Fi calling service to 13 more devices, including iPhone 6 and 7 and the new Samsung Galaxy S8.
Source: Gizmodo
Tue, 09th May 2017
Telstra hit by Parklea exchange fire
Telstra has been hit by an exchange fire in Sydney’s north-west overnight that has caused “extensive damage” and impacted fixed and mobile services in the area.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra cuts jobs in wholesale division as a result of NBN rollout
Telstra has cut 24 more jobs from its wholesale customer operations division in Sydney and Brisbane.
Source: ARN
Mon, 08th May 2017
Pre-budget call on govt to reassess ‘bad debt’ rollout of NBN
Internet Australia has taken up the “good debt, bad debt” pre-budget debate sparked by the Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison, with IA chair Anne Hurley calling on both the government and the opposition to ensure that funding going to the National Broadband Network is good debt.
Source: iTWire
Labor adopts wait-and-see policy on roaming draft decision
The Australian Labor Party has adopted a wait-and-see policy on the decision by the competition regulator not to declare wholesale mobile roaming and open up telecommunications to greater market competition.
Source: iTWire
Govt to introduce legislation for broadband tax
The government is pushing to introduce a $7.10 minimum monthly broadband tax for fixed-line NBN users to pay for the future cost of the fixed wireless and satellite portions of the NBN.
Source: iTnews Australia
Fri, 05th May 2017
Amaysim 1Gbps NBN plans on the table once 'commercially viable'
While its current NBN plans cap out at 100/40Mbps, Amaysim said it will bring in higher-speed services once it is economically viable to do so, with 1Gbps plans to be considered.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra to 'immediately' expand 4G network if ACCC draft decision holds
While Australia's smaller telcos have said the ACCC's decision will 'trap' consumers, Telstra has confirmed that it will expand its 4G network to 99 percent of the population if the draft decision holds.
Source: ZDNet Australia
ACCC won't force Telstra to open up regional mobile network
The competition watchdog has tentatively decided not to require telcos to open up their regional mobile networks to competitors following a hard-fought battle between the major telco players.
Source: iTnews Australia
Confusion reigns over whether Aussie VPNs must keep user metadata
Australian virtual private network providers are at odds over whether they are required to comply with the country's data retention laws and store user metadata due to a lack of clarity and guidance by the federal government.
Source: iTnews Australia
Thu, 04th May 2017
Moose Mobile kicks off MVNO services with Optus
Moose Mobile has moved into providing telco services in addition to selling refurbished Android and iPhone handsets, using the Optus 4G network to do so.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra: Regional mobile regulation important for autonomous vehicles
Telstra has said 4G would 'enhance' the safety and efficiency of autonomous vehicles, with expanding regional coverage therefore important with the regulatory backing of the government.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN connection delays drop as fault complaints rise: TIO
There were 130 fewer complaints about delays in being connected to the NBN during the first half of FY17, according to the ombudsman, despite the number of connected premises growing.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co replaces more FTTN with FTTC
NBN Co is continuing to grow its fibre-to-the-curb rollout at the expense of much-maligned fibre-to-the-node connections, with 122 towns and suburbs added in the past two months.
Source: iTnews Australia
Wed, 03rd May 2017
Over 1 million premises sit on 25Mbps NBN connections
The 600,000 users opting for 12/1Mbps plans ensured that over 80 percent of NBN customers are now on the two slowest-speed plans.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Vocus says it can keep ASC cable project afloat
Vocus has doused suggestions it might have to “stall” its Australia-Singapore Cable project to shore up its financial position in the wake of a damaging profit downgrade.
Source: iTnews Australia
Why Vocus' share price has crashed
Vocus' share price has taken its second big tumble in six months following a late night 20 percent profit downgrade as it struggles to integrate acquired businesses.
Source: iTnews Australia
Optus snares Telstra exec to lead wholesale division
Optus has poached former Telstra retail executive Stuart Bird to front its wholesale and satellite division.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra’s grip on NBN market unshaken
The latest data on National Broadband Network connections released by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission reveal that Telstra continues to dominate the market, with the telco delivering over 51 per cent of NBN connections (excluding satellite).
Source: Computerworld
The ACCC's Quarterly NBN Report Shows A Move Away From Telstra
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission just released its fifth quarterly National Broadband Network Wholesale Market Indicators Report, which details the number of NBN services in operation "by access technology" - like FTTP, FTTB, FTTN, HFC, fixed wireless, and satellite.
Source: Gizmodo
Telstra’s new CTO rules the innovation roost
Telstra’s new chief technology officer, Hakan Eriksson, has wasted no time in his new role. After just a couple of months on the job, he has brought together the company’s start-up incubator muru-D and the GSMA IoT Innovation Lab within the newly launched Telstra Labs.
Source: Computerworld
nbn cracks 2M broadband wholesale access services
nbn is now supplying more than two million wholesale access services to Australia's National Broadband Network.
Source: ARN
Tue, 02nd May 2017
Labor calls for independent review into NBN satellite service
The federal opposition wants an independent review to examine installation issues, data caps, outages, and a lack of transparency involved in NBN's satellite service.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co reshuffle sees CTO replaced
NBN Co has undergone an executive reshuffle that has seen CTO Dennis Steiger replaced along with several other new appointments.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN rolls out 147 fixes for Sky Muster service
NBN’s Sky Muster satellite service is back on track after experiencing a wave of performance problems beginning in September, NBN’s chief customer officer, John Simon, told a conference in Sydney today.
Source: Computerworld
Vodafone takes next steps in fixed broadband push
Vodafone Australia is continuing its plans to launch fixed broadband services via the NBN by asking for expressions of interest from consumers.
Source: ARN
Vocus will miss its revenue target by $100 million
Vocus has warned its projected full year 2017 revenue will come in $100 million lower than forecast due in part to a dip in wholesale and enterprise sales and the late realisation of contract fees.
Source: iTnews Australia
Mon, 01st May 2017
Telstra enables voice services across small cells
Telstra's small cells, being built across regional Australia under its federal government blackspot program obligations but using its own funding, are now voice enabled.
Source: ZDNet Australia