Broadband News
Mon, 17th Jun 2013
Committee urges NBN Co to prepare for new govt
NBN Co needs to prepare for potential policy changes as a result of the September federal election, according to the NBN joint oversight committee, which recommended an update to the company's corporate plan.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN Co put rejected apartment alternative in corporate plan
Exclusive: NBN Co originally put an alternative fibre-to-the-basement proposal for apartment blocks in the revised corporate plan in 2012, but it was rejected by the Australian government.
Source: ZDNet Australia
4G shootout: Vodafone vs Optus vs Telstra
How does Vodafone's new 4G network stack up against the competition? PC & Tech Authority took to the streets of Sydney to find out.
Source: PC Authority
NBN Co sinks Telstra's NBN info-sharing plan
Telstra is winning few friends with its attempts to limit restrictions on how it handles NBN information, failing to gain the confidence of even the information source, NBN Co.
Source: iTnews Australia
Armidale hosts fastest wireless NBN in Australia: Fusion Broadband
Armidale, NSW is now the location of the fastest wireless NBN in Australia - four times faster than what the NBN is currently promising - according to broadband service provider, Fusion Broadband.
Source: ARN
Police Federation makes play for unsold 700 MHz
The Police Federation of Australia is making a play for two-thirds of the 700 MHz spectrum passed in at May's digital dividend auction to underpin a planned national 4G network for emergency services.
Source: iTnews Australia
Sat, 15th Jun 2013
Google pilots 'balloon internet' above New Zealand
Google is piloting a mesh network of high-altitude balloons in the skies above New Zealand that it hopes will eventually carry reliable internet services to all corners of the globe.
Source: iTnews Australia
Fri, 14th Jun 2013
Telstra may dodge legal challenge to Sensis cuts
Telstra is a step closer to dodging a legislative bullet aimed at saving the jobs of almost 700 Sensis workers after a Greens-backed amendment to existing laws failed to gain traction with a Senate committee.
Source: iTnews Australia
Aussie telcos mull mixed cellular-Wi-Fi networks
Network equipment makers are pushing technology that enables mobile data traffic to be "steered" in real-time between cellular and Wi-Fi networks, but Australia's telcos are unlikely to have a use for it in the short to mid term.
Source: iTnews Australia
iiNet, Optus reject Telstra's revised NBN infosec plan
ISPs iiNet, Optus and AAPT are pressuring the competition watchdog to reject fresh revisions to the way Telstra proposes to handle confidential NBN information.
Source: iTnews Australia
Thu, 13th Jun 2013
NBN contractor Service Stream extends trading halt
NBN Co contractor Service Stream will remain in a trading halt for close to two weeks while it reviews its joint venture company Syntheo, which has struggled to meet NBN Co construction deadlines.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Internode launches new business bundles
Internode has launched new bundled business plans starting from $79.95 per month on 24-month contracts.
Source: Computerworld
Telcos issue trans-Tasman cable tender
The three largest telcos in Australia and New Zealand, Vodafone, Telstra and Telecom NZ, will proceed with a cable construction project between the two countries, with a tender issued for the build today.
Source: iTnews Australia
Black vault for a deluge of secrets
The Australian government has been building a state-of-the art, secret data storage facility just outside Canberra to enable intelligence agencies to deal with a ''data deluge'' siphoned from the internet and global telecommunications networks.
Source: SMH
Wed, 12th Jun 2013
Vodafone claims 'superfast' speeds with 4G launch
Vodafone is claiming Australia's fastest mobile data speeds with today's launch of its 4G network in selected areas of Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane, and in Newcastle and Wollongong.
Source: iTWire
Aspley switches on to the NBN
Aspley in Queensland has been switched on to the National Broadband Network (NBN).
Source: Computerworld
NBN approach less "chaotic" than US broadband: The Intelligent Community Forum
The growth of broadband in the US was more chaotic and viewed less as a national priority when compared with the NBN, according to The Intelligent Community Forum.
Source: ARN
Vodafone switches on 4G network
Vodafone today announced the launch of its 4G network in Australia, the latest effort in its comeback plan to win back the hordes of customers that deserted the company for poor mobile service.
Source: iTnews Australia
Vodafone turns on 4G
Telecommunications provider, Vodafone, has launched its own 4G network in Australia, claiming "demonstrated trial speeds" of up to 100Mbps.
Source: ARN
Conroy targets Australia to be world leading digital economy by 2020
The Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, has released an update to the national digital economy strategy, Advancing Australia as a Digital Economy, which lays out the next steps towards achieving an improved digital economy by 2020.
Source: ARN
NewSat to buy Optus satellites?
Since SingTel announced a ‘review’ of its Optus satellite operation in March, a number of potential buyers have emerged. Now NewSat has thrown its hat in the ring.
Source: iTWire
Tue, 11th Jun 2013
NBN Co should take asbestos responsibility: analyst
NBN Co should take some of the responsibility for the asbestos mishandling issue, according to analyst Guy Cranswick.
Source: Computerworld
NBN contractor halts trading
Telco construction company Service Stream has entered a trading halt in order to "clarify a number of issues" in relation to Syntheo, its joint venture with Lend Lease.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra 4G coverage for skiers
Telstra customers in the NSW and Victorian snowfields now have 4G coverage, with Telstra switching the network in Falls Creek, Mt Hotham, Perisher and Thredbo.
Source: iTWire
Mon, 10th Jun 2013
Chinese telco Huawei tries to shake off spy image after NBN ban
The Chinese company blocked from working on Australia's National Broadband Network has set its sights on shaking off its image as a stalking horse for Chinese spies.
Source: ABC News
Opposition 'very troubled' by US surveillance programme
Unease over a clandestine US data collection programme has rippled across the Pacific to two of Washington's major allies, Australia and New Zealand, raising concerns about whether they have cooperated with secret electronic data mining.
Source: iTnews Australia
Mass internet surveillance whistleblower goes public
The United States bulk surveillance scandal is continuing unabated with further revelations about the NSA PRISM programme and the person who leaked information about it.
Source: iTnews Australia
Fri, 07th Jun 2013
Slow work internet 'frustrates' Aussies
Over one-third of Australia's workers get faster internet at home than at work, according to new research.
Source: iTnews Australia
Thu, 06th Jun 2013
ACCAN condemns ASIC block of 250k sites
The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) has hit out at the revelation that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) accidentally blocked 250,000 legitimate websites.
Source: Computerworld
Internet industry reports progress on IPv6, but work remains
One year after the World IPv6 Launch Day, the Internet industry has reported steady progress moving users around the world to the new Internet Protocol version. However, Australia continues to lag behind other companies in IPv6 uptake, industry figures told Computerworld Australia.
Source: Computerworld