Broadband News

Fri, 14th Oct 2016

NBN signs new greenfield deals

NBN has signed deals with Fulton Hogan and Visionstream to hook up greenfields areas to the National Broadband Network as well as build out the fibre links for its transit network.

Source: Computerworld

Thu, 13th Oct 2016

NBN signs fibre contracts with Visionstream, Fulton Hogan

Visionstream and Fulton Hogan have won the tenders for NBN's final MTM design and construction contracts to roll out broadband services to 450,000 new development premises.

Source: ZDNet Australia

nbn signs on Fulton Hogan and Visionstream for NBN delivery

nbn has signed new development and fibre links contracts with two delivery partners to roll out NBN services.

Source: ARN

Wed, 12th Oct 2016

Turnbull says NBN represents 'great corporate turnaround'

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has hailed the multi-technology mix national broadband network being rolled out by his government as "one of the great corporate turnarounds in Australia's history".

Source: iTWire

Vodafone demonstrates 5G with robots, VR streaming

Vodafone has publicly shown off trial uses for 5G technology at the University of Technology Sydney today, including robotics and virtual reality streaming.

Source: iTnews Australia

Vocus founder quits after leadership spill attempt

Vocus founder James Spenceley has been forced out of the company alongside fellow board member Tony Grist following a failed leadership coup.

Source: iTnews Australia

Vodafone Australia and Nokia attain 5Gbps speeds in 5G showcase

Following Telstra and Ericsson's live 5G trial last month, Vodafone and Nokia have demonstrated 5G use cases during a live trial of the network technology at UTS.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Pauline Hanson receives seat on NBN committee

After failing in a ballot to be part of the Joint Standing Committee on the National Broadband Network, Pauline Hanson has been appointed to it after Senator John Williams was discharged.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Tue, 11th Oct 2016

Turnbull claims NBN reboot as great Coalition achievement

Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said the changes to the company rolling out the National Broadband Network under his tenure is one of the shining lights of the Coalition government.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Telstra: We let our customers down

Telstra has admitted seven network outages let its customers down, with the resulting drop in net promoter score meaning executives missed out on part of their remuneration package.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Telstra's Network Outages Means Execs And Senior Staff Won't Get A Bonus

Telstra’s rough few months at the start of this year may have turned some long-time customers off the company and onto competitors, but now Telstra senior staff and executives are feeling the pinch directly: a customer advocacy bonus for good performance worth millions has been withheld from the company’s top brass.

Source: Gizmodo

Mon, 10th Oct 2016

Telstra, Vodafone stop replacing Galaxy Note 7 over fire risk

Australia's three biggest mobile telcos have stopped replacing Samsung's troubled Galaxy Note 7 smartphones after multiple reports of new devices catching fire overseas.

Source: iTnews Australia

Data retention supported by two-thirds of Australians: ANU

The latest poll on national security by ANU has shown 'overwhelming' support for data retention for counter-terrorism and national security purposes.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Telstra customer stalled by apparent $170,000 outstanding debt

A Telstra customer attempting to port his phone number to an alternative provider was told he could not do so until an outstanding amount of $170,000 is paid.

Source: SMH

Fri, 07th Oct 2016

TPG ‘keen’ to get its hands on 700MHz spectrum

TPG says it welcomes a decision by the government to ditch previously mooted plans to sell spectrum in the 700MHz band to Vodafone Hutchison Australia.

Source: Computerworld

Government to auction off 700MHz mobile broadband spectrum

Vodafone's proposal to buy the spectrum outright sparked negative responses from Telstra, Optus, and TPG, with the government deciding to auction off the 700MHz spectrum instead.

Source: ZDNet Australia

The Australian Government Is Auctioning Off The Rest Of The 700 MHz Spectrum

The Turnbull Government today announced it will sell off two lots of 15 MHz of unallocated 700 MHz digital dividend spectrum by auction.

Source: Gizmodo

Aussie telcos to compete on 700 MHz spectrum auction

The Australian government is putting 2 x 15 MHz of unallocated 700 MHz wireless digital dividend spectrum up for auction.

Source: ARN

Vodafone vrooms in Canberra: major network boost, prepares for 5G

Canberra’s Vodafone network capacity has had some serious capital applied to give it a major boost, catering for growing data demand.

Source: iTWire

Optus Mobile – not hacked

The Sydney Daily Telegraph reported a hack on Optus Mobile yesterday, allegedly enabling hackers to take over control of at least 170 users phones to steal data and send unsolicited messages to random numbers.

Source: iTWire

Thu, 06th Oct 2016

Triple-zero emergency service up for grabs after being run by Telstra for more than 50 years

The federal government will push ahead with a new tender for Australia's triple-zero emergency call service, despite an official review warning changes should be delayed until location capability technology is implemented and co-ordination problems are resolved.

Source: SMH

Optus working with Nokia on 5G

Optus and Nokia intend to operate a prototype 5G service in Australia next year. The two companies have already conducted closed tests of 5G at Optus's Sydney headquarters using Nokia's AirScale system.

Source: iTWire

NBN resolves software upgrade causing satellite connectivity issues

The satellite connectivity issue was caused by a software upgrade, with NBN also certain that it will 'never' see capacity constrain speed across its service thanks to beam-management technology.

Source: ZDNet Australia

NBN launches second satellite Sky Muster II

After a 24-hour delay from poor weather, NBN's second satellite has been launched to provide the Australian population living in regional and remote areas with high-speed broadband.

Source: ZDNet Australia

NBN tackles software upgrade issue as Sky Muster II enters orbit

nbn is taking steps to ensure customers in regional areas don’t see a repeat of an outage in late September that affected areas serviced by its Sky Muster satellite service.

Source: ARN

Wed, 05th Oct 2016

Telcos tee off in round two of domestic roaming debate

Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone are using the same arguments for both sides of whether the ACCC should declare wholesale domestic mobile roaming.

Source: ZDNet Australia

NBN closes in on half-way mark for regional rollout

In Australia’s non-metro areas, the rollout of the National Broadband Network is 42 per cent complete, according to NBN’s chief network engineering officer, Peter Ryan. Non-metro Australia covers “the biggest physical expanse and lowest density areas we have,” the NBN executive said in a speech today.

Source: Computerworld

Vodafone New Zealand launching gigabit-speed broadband

Following suit with Chorus, Vodafone NZ is now offering customers a 1Gbps fibre broadband service across the government's UFB network.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Exetel takes on UK market

Exetel has begun offering services in the UK, the Australian Internet service provider has announced.

Source: Computerworld

NBN delays Sky Muster II satellite launch

NBN’s second satellite, Sky Muster II, was to blast into space this morning, from the French Guiana Space Centre in South America before orbiting 36,000km into the sky.

Source: ARN