Broadband News
Mon, 22nd Aug 2016
'Full stack' ACMA wins marginal telco support
A proposal to hand the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) a deeper remit has been met with a cautious response from telcos.
Source: iTnews Australia
Netflix may have to delay shows for Aussie users
Netflix is warning Australian users that they could soon face delays seeing new shows because classification of the content is taking too long.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra's New Frontier Gateway Modem Includes A 4G SIM For Backup Internet
Anyone who’s ever signed up for a NBN connection or even a regular ADSL line knows how frustrating it is to wait for a tech appointment. But eventually, one day that might be a distant memory. Telstra has just announced plans to release a home modem router early next year that includes integrated 4G as well as a fixed-line connection — cutting what can sometimes be a painful wait for customers to get their home ‘net connected.
Source: Gizmodo
Fri, 19th Aug 2016
Amaysim reports AU$12m net profit after Vaya, AusBBS purchases
The low-cost telco has reported a net profit of AU$12.31 million on revenue of AU$253.5 million and EBITDA of AU$25.1 million after purchasing MVNO Vaya and broadband provider AusBBS.
Source: ZDNet Australia
In Melbourne, A Telco Is Rolling Its Own Gigabit Fibre Internet
Following the lead of Google in the US, Melbourne telco DGtek is launching a 1 Gbps suburban GPON fibre service this month to serve homes and businesses hungry for bandwidth. The service will begin connecting customers at the end of August, starting in the beachside suburb of Elwood and extending across Melbourne’s densely-populated inner south-eastern suburbs. DGtek is also evaluating plans to extend to Adelaide and Sydney, along with regional Victoria starting with Geelong.
Source: Gizmodo
CloudFlare bandwidth cost claims overstated, Telstra says
Telstra and Optus are two of half a dozen network operators around the world whose pricing is significantly higher than other bandwidth providers, according to CloudFlare.
Source: Computerworld
Thu, 18th Aug 2016
Telstra, Optus network fees among world's highest: Cloudflare
Reverse proxy provider Cloudflare claims Australian carriers Optus and Telstra are abusing their monopoly positions to jack up network charges.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra Is Giving Away Free Netflix, Stan And Presto On Some Mobile Plans
Telstra knows that if you’re a tech-savvy early adopter, traditional TV is as good as dead — especially when you’re away from home and your big screen telly. To that end, it knows that streaming video services like Netflix, Stan and Presto are the future — and if you pony up for a decent mobile plan, it’ll give you them for free for three months.
Source: Gizmodo
Telstra reaches 60 mobile blackspots under government initiative
60 locations across NSW, Victoria, SA, WA, and Queensland now have mobile coverage thanks to Telstra activating new or upgraded base stations under the federal government project.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra flags new mobile and broadband plans, streaming app
In an effort to offer 'unrivalled' access to streaming services content, Telstra is throwing in subscriptions and unmetered offers for mobile and broadband customers, as well as a new app.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Wed, 17th Aug 2016
Ask Gizmodo: Why Are My iTunes Downloads Slow?
Hi Gizmodo! Long time reader, first time Asker. Hopefully the old adage of there being no stupid questions holds true here. So, I reside in the Guantanamo Bay of the Apple universe and, as such, watch most of my content via two Apple TVs (third and fourth gen). What has me puzzled is that they both stream Netflix in HD silky smooth, and movies via iTunes are completely downloaded minutes after starting them.
Source: Gizmodo
Optus Business strikes $20m Wi-Fi deal
Optus Business will roll out Wi-Fi to 81 shopping centres and six corporate sites under a $20 million deal struck with Vicinity Centres.
Source: Computerworld
NBN quietly removes all non-FttP areas from build prep map
At the end of 2015, NBN decided to remove all areas from its build prep map that are not slated to get fibre-to-the-premises technology.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Tue, 16th Aug 2016
MNF net profit up 25 percent to AU$9m
VoIP provider MNF has announced net profit of AU$9 million on revenue of AU$161.2 million and EBITDA of AU$17.8 million, rising across all three despite customer losses due to NBN migration.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN grows customer base, but suffers EBITDA loss
Australian broadband network, nbn, has reported an EBITDA loss of $1.6 billion for the year ending June 30, compared to $1.1 billion the same time last year.
Source: ARN
NBN's EBITDA worsens to AU$1.57b loss
NBN's revenue has increased alongside its EBITDA loss, ARPU, capex, opex, and number of active premises as the network rollout intensifies.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Says Its Rollout Is 'On Track'
The National Broadband Network released its 2016 yearly results today, showing the rollout “continues to exceed its connection and financial targets”. A spokesperson for Senator Mitch Fifield, Minister for Communications says this is “the latest evidence of the benefits of the Coalition’s faster, more affordable NBN rollout”.
Source: Gizmodo
NBN confident but closemouthed on future funding
During FY16 NBN received a $7.1 billion equity injection from the federal government, bringing total equity funding to date to $20.3 billion.
Source: Computerworld
NBN to add 2.5 million homes to network in FY17
By the end of FY17, NBN is planning to have some 5.4 million premises able to order a National Broadband Network service — adding some 2.5 million premises to the network’s footprint during the year.
Source: Computerworld
Mon, 15th Aug 2016
Optus EPL fail: Aussie sports fans deserve better
As English Premier League fans suffer at the hands of Optus, the ACCC needs to intervene when broadcasters and telcos can't deliver on their streaming sports promises.
Source: SMH
Optus Out: EPL fans rage after football streaming service hits technical faults
When Optus shocked the Australian sporting landscape by buying the rights for the English Premier League, outbidding Foxtel three-to-one, there were murmurs of discontent within the football fraternity.
Source: SMH
Ten times faster than NBN: DGtek brings gigabit fibre to Aussie suburbs
Following the lead of Google in the US, Melbourne telco DGtek is launching a 1 Gbps suburban GPON fibre service this month to serve homes and businesses hungry for bandwidth.
Source: SMH
Has TPG started building its own 4G network?
TPG Telecom appears poised to step up work on its own 4G network, revealing plans over the weekend to design and implement a “LTE network rollout”.
Source: iTnews Australia
Fri, 12th Aug 2016
ABS staff point finger at government for Census crash: Union
The union has said ABS staffers blame the Turnbull government for the Census crash after 'dilly-dallying' in appointing a chief statistician, changing ministers thrice, and cutting staff members.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra's AU$3b network spend criticised by analysts
The AU$3 billion to be sunk into its network betrays Telstra's previous underinvestment, according to telecommunications analysts.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Optus’ operating revenue slips 13 per cent
Telecommunications company, Optus, has reported a 13 per cent decline in operating revenue for the quarter ending June 30, from $2.3 billion in 2015 to $2 billion this year. Its underlying net profit also dipped 1.9 per cent to $194 million, from $194 million the same time last year.
Source: ARN
IBM defends itself following Turnbull’s accusation
IBM has broken the silence about the incident involving the Census 2016 website, where the website was brought offline by four distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.
Source: ARN
Netflix And Fill: How The World's Largest Video Streamer Shares New Titles Around The Planet
Ever wonder how that latest season of Orange Is The New Black actually made its way across the planet from Netflix’s little home in Los Gatos, California to your big-screen TV? Netflix engineers have talked in depth about how one copy of a new video is converted into dozens of different resolutions and bit-rates, uploaded to a storage service, and then distributed as smartly as possible to thousands of different Netflix nodes around the world — including the one closest to your home.
Source: Gizmodo
Thu, 11th Aug 2016
Qantas Is Launching Free, Fast Wi-Fi On Domestic Aircraft
Qantas is gearing up for the rollout of free in-flight wifi on about 100 domestic aircraft, under a partnership with global broadband services provider ViaSat that will tap into the NBN network.
Source: Gizmodo
Telstra pledges $3bn to network, systems overhaul
Telstra will spend an extra $3 billion over the next three years to improve its networks and customer experience following a spate of outages earlier this year.
Source: iTnews Australia