Broadband News
Thu, 28th Aug 2014
Section 313: iiNet, industry orgs seek limits on website blocking
Internet service provider iiNet, the Internet Society of Australia (ISOC-AU) and industry bodies the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association (AMTA) and the Communications Alliance have all called for restrictions on the government agencies that can issue requests for ISPs to block websites.
Source: Computerworld
Vocus posts record year as statutory profit more than doubles
Vocus Communications has cited organic growth as the driver of another banner year for the network and datacentre company.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co aims to double users, revenue in one year
NBN Co plans to double the 210,628 active users currently on the national broadband network and the $61 million in revenue it reported for fiscal 2014 in the 12 months to June next year.
Source: iTnews Australia
Federal government injects $8.4 billion to NBN
NBN Co expects to double the number of users connected to the NBN over the next year - setting a target of 480,000 users with the release of its annual results.
Source: ARN
FTTP needed for teleHealth, say Labor MPs in open letter
Two Labor members of Parliament have written an open letter to Malcolm Turnbull asking him to reconsider his scrapping of the Coalition's FTTP NBN plans.
Source: iTWire
Wed, 27th Aug 2014
Data-retention laws to contain statutory metadata specification
Attorney-General George Brandis has said that there is no definition of 'metadata', but a 'statutory specification' of metadata will be included in mandatory data-retention legislation to be introduced in this sitting period of parliament.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra hits back over bandwidth pricing claims
A Telstra spokesperson has condemned as "factually incorrect" claims about the telco's transit pricing made by DDoS protection and CDN provider CloudFlare.
Source: Computerworld
NBN Co calls Telstra back to court over CPI adjustments
NBN Co has appealed a decision by the New South Wales Supreme Court that had supported Telstra’s interpretation of consumer-price-index (CPI) adjustments in the companies’ $11 billion agreement.
Source: Computerworld
Labor, Greens slam analysis for favouring 'dog's breakfast' NBN
The government's NBN cost-benefit analysis report said exactly what the government wanted it to say, Labor and the Greens have said.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN cost-benefit analysis signals the end of an era
The long-awaited cost-benefit analysis of the National Broadband Network suggests the days of politicians shooting from the hip with taxpayer dollars are numbered.
Source: Computerworld
Telstra blamed for Australia's high bandwidth cost
Content delivery network provider CloudFlare has attacked Australia's largest telco Telstra for imposing a high bandwidth cost for both international and national data transit.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN: Labor condemns 'flawed' Vertigan panel report
The shadow minister for communications, Blaxland MP Jason Clare, has condemned the cost-benefit analysis of the National Broadband Network commissioned by the government as "flawed" and "not independent".
Source: Computerworld
Vertigan panel backs Coalition's NBN
The Coalition's cut-price National Broadband Network would deliver a net economic boost of $18 billion compared with $2 billion for Labor's gold-plated version, according to the first cost-benefit analysis of Australia's largest infrastructure project.
Source: ARN
Australia billions better off under cut-price NBN: report
The Federal Government has released a long-awaited cost-benefit analysis of the National Broadband Network (NBN).
Source: ABC News
Tue, 26th Aug 2014
Telstra trials 4G 700MHz services in Sydney, Adelaide
Telstra will add Sydney and Adelaide to its trial of 4G services on new blocks of 700MHz spectrum in mid September, ahead of the formal commencement of access licenses in early 2015.
Source: iTnews Australia
Leaked paper clarifies Australian metadata retention proposal
Browsing history is reportedly not part of Australia's proposed data-retention scheme, but the amount of data uploaded and downloaded by a connection, along with financial information will be kept, according to a leaked document.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Coalition move to disband Senate’s NBN committee deferred (again)
A motion by Liberal Party Senator Cory Bernardi to disband the Senate's National Broadband Network committee has been postponed for a third time.
Source: Computerworld
Aussie, Kiwi spies hooked into NSA metadata search engine
The Australian Signals Directorate is able to tap into the details of hundreds of billions of private communications records, thanks to a custom Google-like search engine built by the National Security Agency (NSA), new leaked documents reveal.
Source: iTnews Australia
Mon, 25th Aug 2014
It's five FTTN NBN customers down, over 11 million to go
Malcolm Turnbull would have been quietly relieved to preside over the unveiling of Australia's first FTTN NBN customers. But the launch did nothing to clarify questions around the government's relationship with Telstra, the competitive stance of the Coalition's NBN, and the nagging suspicion that Turnbull is digging himself into a deep, deep hole.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Optus 10 satellite set for lift-off
Australia's second biggest telco Optus has announced its Optus 10 satellite, initially slated for a May launch, will take off on 12 September (AEST).
Source: iTWire
M2 rakes in 53 per cent profit increase in full year results
The group which controls ISPs iPrimus, Dodo, Egin and Commander has reported a 53 per cent profit surge in its full year results.
Source: ARN
Fri, 22nd Aug 2014
'Re-nationalised' copper NBN allows Telstra to grow elsewhere
Telstra's stake in fixed networks will be significantly reduced once NBN Co 're-nationalises' the copper network and buys it back from Telstra, according to CEO David Thodey.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co delays copper disconnections in 58 areas
NBN Co and Telstra have pushed back the disconnection of copper services for 58 areas in which fibre has been rolled out.
Source: iTnews Australia
ACMA requires NBN warning on backup power
Telcos selling National Broadband Network fibre services will have warn customers that a mains power failure could knock out voice services under new rules drawn up by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).
Source: Computerworld
First NBN fibre to the node customer connected
The first customer connected to the NBN via fibre to the node has been hooked up with Telstra in Umina, on the New South Wales central coast.
Source: ZDNet Australia
iiNet breaks the billion - but 'furious' about NBN
When is a junior telco no longer junior? When it passes $1 billion in revenues. But CEO David Buckingham is not happy with the slow implementation of the NBN.
Source: iTWire
NBN FTTN pilot records download speeds of 96Mbps
NBN Co has ramped up it's fibre-to-node trial and is set to build and test another 300 nodes across NSW and Queensland.
Source: ARN
Thu, 21st Aug 2014
Turnbull picks 3.5GHz for metro NBN spectrum gap
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has directed the communications regulator to issue licenses for the national broadband network in the 3.5 Ghz spectrum band to address a shortfall of spectrum in the outskirts of metropolitan areas affecting 80,000 premises.
Source: iTnews Australia
Turnbull seeks NBN spectrum fix
NBN Co would pick up much-needed spectrum to fill a gap in its fixed-wireless network coverage in Australia's metropolitan fringes under a draft ministerial direction released today.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN customers boost iiNet revenues past $1 billion milestone
Internet service provider iiNet has recorded more than $1 billion in full-year revenues on the back of 40,000 active NBN customers.
Source: ARN