Broadband News
Fri, 03rd Jun 2016
Trident partners with Matrix on Perth, Jakarta, Singapore subsea cable link
Trident Subsea Cable has renewed its partnership with Matrix Networks — the operator of the Matrix Cable System with NAP Info Lin Nusa — as it progresses towards the development phase for its high-capacity fibre optic subsea cable linking Perth, Jakarta and Singapore.
Source: iTWire
ACCC takes court action against debt collection agency which purchased debts from Telstra
Australia’s largest privately owned debt acquisition firm, ACM Group, which purchased debts from Telstra, has been taken to court over its dealings with consumers by the competition watchdog, the ACCC.
Source: iTWire
Wed, 01st Jun 2016
Labor to deliver ‘deliver fibre-based broadband’, says Albanese
Shadow infrastructure minister Anthony Albanese has criticised the Coalition’s handling of the National Broadband Network and said that Labor “proposes to deliver fibre-based broadband” in contrast to the “copper-based system” being rolled out by the government.
Source: Computerworld
NBN: Labor to offer ‘greater proportion of fibre’, still not sold on FTTN: Shorten
Labor leader Bill Shorten has offered new hints at the shape of the NBN policy that his party will take to the election.
Source: Computerworld
Tue, 31st May 2016
NBN seeks regulatory amendment to support fibre, copper, HFC network mix
The move to a multi-technology mix network means having to amend the special access undertaking, with NBN submitting its proposed variations to the ACCC.
Source: ZDNet Australia
ACCC seeks feedback on nbn SAU proposed updates
The ACCC is looking for feedback on nbn Co’s proposed variations to its Special Access Undertaking (SAU).
Source: ARN
NBN Co wants ACCC approval for variations to Special Access Undertakings
NBN Co wants to vary its Special Access Undertakings (SAU) to include fibre-to-the-node, fibre-to-the-basement and hybrid fibre coaxial technologies to which the SAU will apply.
Source: iTWire
NBN: Question marks over copper costs persist
It’s still too early to determine how much effort will be required to whip into shape the elements of Telstra’s copper network that will be used for the National Broadband Network, according to an analysis prepared on behalf of NBN.
Source: Computerworld
Vodafone invests $9m in 32 new mobile base stations
Vodafone is expanding its regional mobile network, having invested more than $9 million in 32 new mobile base stations that will sprout across New South Wales, Tasmania, Queensland and Western Australia.
Source: ARN
Mon, 30th May 2016
Telstra outage apology now subject to $25 compensation complaints
Telstra’s COO, Kate McKenzie, publicly apologised (again) for yet another Telstra outage, but its customers think the $25 compensation offered is churlishly cheap.
Source: iTWire
Optus Business, Macquarie Uni to invest AU$10m in cybersecurity hub
Optus Business and Macquarie University will establish a cybersecurity hub that will focus on three topic areas: Computing and IT, business and economics, and security studies and criminology.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Former iiNet execs join Trident board
Australian subsea cable network operator, Trident Subsea Cable, has appointed former iiNet chief executive officer David Buckingham and the telco’s former business business officer and chief technology officer Greg Bader, as non-executive directors.
Source: iTWire
Vodafone expands with 32 new regional mobile sites, most by year’s end
Vodafone is expanding its regional mobile network in NSW, Tas, QLD and WA, with $9+ million being invested in 32 new base stations.
Source: iTWire
What's New On Netflix, Stan And Foxtel Anytime For June
From Orange Is The New Black, to Daria (yes!), to The X Files — here’s just a taste of what Netflix, Stan and Foxtel Anytime are streaming for the month of June.
Source: Gizmodo
Telco groups see flaws in website-blocking guidelines
A draft document setting out whole-of-government guidelines for the use of Section 313(3) of the Telecommunications Act 1997 contains some useful material for agencies but also has some significant flaws, according to industry group Communications Alliance.
Source: Computerworld
Fri, 27th May 2016
Telstra sends free modems to customers still affected by NBN ADSL outage
Free modems are being sent to the 'single-digit thousands' of customers still affected by the NBN and ADSL outage caused by a DNS software failure, Telstra has said.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra blames network outage on DNS bungle, modem firmware bug
Telstra has revealed a fixed broadband outage last week was triggered by a bungled software update to a domain name server, which in turn triggered a previously unknown fault in some customer modems.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra CTO sacked
Telstra has sacked its chief technology officer Vish Nandlall after discovering elements of his resume had been falsified and amid accusations he had plagiarised presentation material.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra’s broadband outage: How a minor software change became a big problem
What should have been a straightforward software update to a DNS server last week snowballed into a major broadband outage for Telstra from which the telco is still recovering.
Source: Computerworld
Thu, 26th May 2016
Kogan Mobile goes 4G ahead of schedule, includes Visual Voicemail
If you live in an area where Vodafone offers 4G, and you’re a Kogan Mobile customer, 4G has just gone live nicely ahead of schedule, with new plans up to 11GB (with time limited bonus to 12GB).
Source: iTWire
Wed, 25th May 2016
NBN 'five movies' speed promise is optimistic at best
On ABC's Q&A this week Christopher Pyne said the Coalition's multi-technology NBN, with its remit to provide access to download speeds of 25 megabits per second (Mbps) to all Australians, was fast enough for households to watch five movies simultaneously.
Source: SMH
Optus 'secretly' cuts user's broadband speed as calls for performance monitoring grow
Guy Ward's excitement about an Optus broadband and phone bundle upgrade for $5 more each month quickly dissipated when he noticed his internet speed had slowed.
Source: SMH
NBN leaks claim scalps
The nbn co has stood down two members of its staff alleged to have leaked information to the Labor Party. It has declined to name the two employees or comment further.
Source: iTWire
Tassie plagued by Internet, phone problems: Digital Tasmania
Tasmanian consumer action group, Digital Tasmania, says widespread issues with Internet usage including persistent slowdowns and complete service outages have hit the state in recent days and it has called on Internet providers to improve their technical performance and customer standards.
Source: iTWire
85 percent of voters support the NBN
Likely Labor voters both support and oppose the project in the higher numbers, while proportionally, Liberal voters give the NBN the highest level of support.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Tue, 24th May 2016
Telstra customers forced to reset modems after NBN, ADSL outage
Some customers are being told to reset their modems in order to access NBN and ADSL services after Telstra's Friday outage.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Basslink defers cable service date again
Basslink has been forced to push back the return to service date for its subsea Bass Strait electricity and data cable for a second time as bad weather impedes repair efforts.
Source: iTnews Australia
‘Absolutely not’: No regrets ditching NBN FTTP rollout, says Pyne
The government’s industry, innovation and science minister says the Coalition does not regret the decision to ditch the fibre to the premises (FTTP) blueprint for the National Broadband Network.
Source: Computerworld
Mon, 23rd May 2016
Two NBN staff stood down in AFP leak investigation
NBN Co has stood down two employees over their alleged involvement in the leaking of damaging internal documents following an Australian Federal Police raid last week.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra NBN And ADSL Outages Are Still Not Fixed
Despite the telco’s assurances that last week’s huge outages have been fixed, many customers across the country are still unable to connect to their NBN and ADSL services. Service is gradually returning, with Telstra advising customers to regularly cycle their modems to attempt to connect to the network, but it’s been a rough four days for Telstra in a year that’s been full of major outages.
Source: Gizmodo