Broadband News
Wed, 12th Sep 2012
Australians using BitTorrent less: study
Use of BitTorrent and peer-to-peer filesharing services in Australia has fallen to its lowest level in four years, a new study by the Swinburne University of Technology has found.
Source: iTnews Australia
Researchers, schools call for flexible copyright rules
Education institutions have urged the Federal Government to introduce new ways of circumventing copyright enforcement technologies.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN Co withdraws special access undertaking
NBN Co has pre-empted the likely rejection by the ACCC of the proposed terms and conditions under which it will provide services to its wholesale customers, ahead of the ACCC's 17 September deadline.
Source: iTWire
Tue, 11th Sep 2012
NBN Co promises new regulatory framework in weeks
NBN Co has said it will submit a revised regulatory framework to the competition watchdog "in a matter of weeks", again missing deadlines it set for submission of the key documents.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN support drops as election looms
A new survey of 1,001 Australians has revealed that support for the National Broadband Network has declined somewhat.
Source: iTWire
Roxon takes to YouTube to dispel data-retention hype
Australian Attorney-General Nicola Roxon has responded to GetUp's campaign against proposed data-retention legislation by hitting back with her own YouTube video.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Can I connect to the NBN?
With the National Broadband Network (NBN) expected to reach a peak in its rollout in 2016, some areas around Australia are already connected to the network via fibre-to-the-premises, fixed wireless and an interim satellite service.
Source: Computerworld
NBN Co chair warns on coalition policy
NBN Co chairman Harrison Young has publicly attacked the Coalition's proposed broadband policy as a potentially more expensive and slower option than the existing National Broadband Network.
Source: iTnews Australia
Mon, 10th Sep 2012
Conroy berates Turnbull for being two-faced over Fibre To The Home
In the latest body blow to be landed in the Conroy versus Turnbull NBN-stoush-that-never-ends, the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy has accused Malcolm Turnbull of rank hypocrisy for investing in another telecommunications company that is building a Fibre To The Home [FTTH] network.
Source: ARN
Vodafone rates sustainability of handsets
Vodafone has launched a new eco rating initiative for mobile phones in an attempt at rating the sustainability of handsets as of September 12.
Source: ARN
NBN costs could rise under Coalition's plan, says chairman
The chairman of NBN Co, Harrison Young, says Coalition's preferred "mix of technologies" plan could increase the long-term costs set for the national broadband network.
Source: SMH
Internode connects its first household to NBN in Adelaide
Internode has hooked up its first customers in Adelaide to the NBN.
Source: ARN
Fri, 07th Sep 2012
Telstra blames software for BigPond email outage
Telstra has attributed a nationwide outage of its BigPond email services this week to an unnamed "software configuration issue".
Source: iTnews Australia
Data retention proposal 'raises more questions than it answers,' says IIA executive
The Internet Industry Association has asked for more information on the government’s proposal to require retention of Internet user data for two years, said IIA CEO Peter Lee. Lee, who became the IIA’s CEO in July, said other current areas of focus include updating the iCode and reforming copyright laws.
Source: Computerworld
Optus eyes law reform after TV Now decision
Optus has pinned its free-to-air TV recording hopes on the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC), after the High Court rejected its appeal against a Federal Court decision that found its TV Now service in breach of copyright.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN retail service provider sign ups boom
Forty service providers have signed onto the National Broadband Network (NBN), up from just five 12 months ago.
Source: iTnews Australia
Geraldton connects to the NBN
The fixed wireless network for the National Broadband Network (NBN) has been switched on in Geraldton.
Source: Computerworld
Thu, 06th Sep 2012
NBN Co awards field service, fibre maintenance deals
NBN Co has awarded contracts collectively worth at least $142 million for the maintenance of its fibre network and activation of NBN equipment in homes and businesses.
Source: iTnews Australia
iiNet accuses Govt of gaming data retention debate
ISP iiNet's chief regulatory officer Steve Dalby has accused the Federal Government of "gaming" telcos and voters with an overly broad brush approach to data retention in the hope of eliciting a compromise.
Source: iTnews Australia
Broadband competitors seek to level playing field with NBN
The NBN should heat up telco competition in a broadband market that has been dominated by Telstra, said Optus, Vodafone and iiNet officials on a panel at the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) conference in Sydney. However, they said the national network won’t resolve all inequities in the telco industry.
Source: Computerworld
Coalition could revoke Optus and Telstra NBN agreements
Malcolm Turnbull, shadow minister for communications and broadband, has said he would try to overturn existing National Broadband Network (NBN) agreements with Optus and Telstra if a Coalition government was in power.
Source: Computerworld
NBN Co hands out contracts worth $142m for network installation and maintenance
NBN Co has awarded contracts for network installation and maintenance worth $142 million.
Source: ARN
Australia ranks 8th in first global web index
Sweden is the most effective at using the internet to improve people's lives, ahead of the United States and Britain, while Austraila places eighth, according to a global survey launched by Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web.
Source: SMH
Pipe Networks to upgrade Sydney Guam cable to 100Gbps
TPG subsidiary, Pipe Networks, is to upgrade its PPC-1 Sydney-Guam submarine cable to 100gbps per wavelength operation using Infinera's DTN-X platform, increasing capacity on the cable to more than 3Tbps.
Source: iTWire
Wed, 05th Sep 2012
Telcos to pay levy to keep ACCAN ticking
Telecommunications companies will be levied by the Gillard Government to ensure the continued existence of the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN).
Source: ARN
Conroy announces new funding plan for ACCAN
Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital economy, senator Stephen Conroy, has introduced a new funding plan for the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN), right through to 2017.
Source: ARN
Telco users shocked by average $169 bill excesses
Bill-shocked users of postpaid telecommunications and internet services are being slugged an average $169 over their usual monthly bill amount, according to new research.
Source: iTnews Australia
ISPs need to step-up customer service on the NBN
Mark Gregory, a senior lecturer at RMIT university, believes ISPs should be providing greater transparency over National Broadband Network (NBN) processes for customers.
Source: Computerworld
Virgin Mobile announces 4G, will sell Galaxy S III 4G
Australian mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) Virgin Mobile has announced the immediate availability of 4G network coverage and revealed it will sell the Samsung Galaxy S III 4G smartphone.
Source: ARN
NBN Co selects Quintiq for workforce optimisation
Software vendor to provide rostering, time and attendance, and activity-based costing software to NBN Co.
Source: ZDNet Australia