Broadband News
Mon, 05th Dec 2011
Oz slides on OECD fixed-broadband ranks
Australia has slipped from 18th to 21st in the latest Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) rankings for fixed-broadband services, while wireless percentages continue to soar.
Source: ZDNet Australia
iiTrial: High Court weighs ISP responsibilities
Just how much notice should an ISP take of alleged breaches of copyright occuring over its network and what can it do to prevent further breaches?
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra to lodge revised SSU 'shortly' & no 'material changes'
Following press reports that the ACCC will be unable to reach a decision on Telstra's structural separation undertaking by the 20 December deadline, both parties have expressed confidence that this timeframe will be met.
Source: iTWire
Telstra shutters wireless hotspots
Telstra has moved to shut down its national wireless hotspot service from next year, continuing the trend away from the technology as an offload service from mobile networks in Australia.
Source: iTnews Australia
Trans-Tasman roaming cost enquiry progresses - slowly
DBCDE has called tenders for the provision of economic consultancy advice as part of the joint Australia-New Zealand investigation into trans-Tasman mobile roaming costs.
Source: iTWire
Sat, 03rd Dec 2011
High Court day 3: AFACT's final pitch
It would be in iiNet's economic interest to stop people using BitTorrent because it is such a bandwidth hog, the court heard on the final day of the High Court hearing between iiNet and the consortium of film and television studios known as the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT).
Source: ZDNet Australia
Fri, 02nd Dec 2011
High Court day 2: iiNet says AFACT lawsuit inevitable
No matter what kind of warning notice scheme iiNet put in place to stop users breaching copyright, if it didn't include an account termination threat, it wouldn't have been enough to prevent the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) from launching legal action, iiNet counsel Richard Cobden has told the High Court.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra-NBN deal timing called into question
Questions have been raised as to whether the deal between the National Broadband Network Company (NBN Co) and Telstra can be completed by 20 December, at which point the deal would be terminated.
Source: ZDNet Australia
iiTrial: AFACT dismisses individual user suits
The Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) has sought to downplay the relevance of section 202 of the Copyright Act in its ongoing battle with service provider iiNet.
Source: iTnews Australia
iiTrial: ISPs 'set up' by rights holders
Communications Alliance counsel Patrick Flynn has accused rights holders of "setting up" internet providers by delivering them an ultimatum to become copyright enforcers or be sued.
Source: iTnews Australia
Thu, 01st Dec 2011
iiTrial: Court mulls 'partially effective' ISP warnings
The Australasian Performing Rights Association (APRA) has added weight to the proposition that passing on copyright infringement notices is only a "partially effective" means of an ISP avoiding accusations of authorisation.
Source: iTnews Australia
"Final" wholesale agreement a work in progress: NBN Co
Despite publishing its "final executable" Wholesale Broadband Agreement (WBA), NBN Co has conceded that the contract terms will continue to be open for consultation with industry and customers for further development.
Source: Computerworld
iiTrial: AFACT grilled on 'reasonable steps' for iiNet
The Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) has faced tough questions from three of five High Court Justices over the efficacy of an ISP warning its users of alleged copyright infringements.
Source: iTnews Australia
Wed, 30th Nov 2011
iiTrial: Comms Alliance, APRA allowed to intervene
The High Court today dismissed four of six applications for amicus curiae, or "friends of the court", as hearings between service provider iiNet and content owners began in Canberra.
Source: iTnews Australia
iiNet vs. AFACT: the road to High Court
Today marks the beginning of the end for the landmark copyright infringement battle between iiNet and the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT). ZDNet Australia looks back into the three-year history of the case.
Source: ZDNet Australia
iiNet forgoes 'Amazon-style' model in cloud push
iiNet has unveiled its take on infrastructure-as-a-service in the latest bid to ramp up its focus on the business market.
Source: iTnews Australia
Optus continues WBA negotiations with NBN Co
Despite the expected release of NBN Co's Standard Form of Access Agreement today, Optus has confirmed it is still in negotiations with the company to address what it views as unresolved issues in the draft version of the agreement.
Source: Computerworld
Tue, 29th Nov 2011
Govt trials NBN-based health monitoring
Chronically ill veterans will soon have their health monitored at home through technology driven by the Federal Government's high-speed National Broadband Network (NBN).
Source: ZDNet Australia
ISPs stuck with 'Malaysia' piracy solution
You've got to have some sympathy for internet service providers, just like Labor with asylum seeker policies, no matter what they do around copyright infringement, someone will be unhappy.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co demo truck hits Tasmania
Nbn Co's demonstration truck has begun its nationwide journey in Tasmania this week, with the 23-tonne mobile 'discovery centre' having arrived in Devonport yesterday.
Source: Computerworld
Mon, 28th Nov 2011
ISP code a US-style privacy sell-out
Some may welcome it as a conciliatory and positive step towards resolving disputes between ISPs and copyright holders, but the industry's new code of practice also turns Australia away from the privacy protections of its European heritage, and towards an American-style regime where privacy is less sacred than commercial interests.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN oversight Committee to consider privatisation
Construction of the NBN has barely begun, yet the Parliamentary committee overseeing the project is already gearing up to consider privatisation of NBN Co.
Source: iTWire
Telstra exec: No more excuses for bad customer service
The telco may have had "reasonable reasons" for why it couldn't deliver on customer satisfaction, but not anymore, according to Telstra's consumer unit boss, Gordon Ballantyne.
Source: ARN
New warnings of NBN cost blow-out
The organisation engaged by the government to review NBN Co's corporate plan reportedly told the government that NBN Co capex would total $50.8b by 2028, as opposed to NBN Co's estimate of $35.9b by 2020.
Source: iTWire
Sat, 26th Nov 2011
Telstra's London datacentre: photos
Telstra is in the process of revamping a 10-year-old building shell in London to support a modern high-efficiency datacentre, with the help of consulting company On365.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Fri, 25th Nov 2011
Rights holders vetted in ISP copyright plan
A proposed scheme to address allegations of copyright infringement on the internet would force rights holders to open their detection technology to third-party audits and limit the number of notices to 100 per service provider a month.
Source: iTnews Australia
Early signs of NBN cost overruns: Oakeshott
The Joint Committee on the National Broadband Network has warned that NBN Co may be showing early signs of cost-blowouts and delays, with timeframe slippage and higher than expected operating expenditure recorded during the last six months.
Source: Computerworld
NBN operations facility finally opens in Melbourne
NBN Co has unveiled its mainland network operations and testing facility for the National Broadband Network (NBN) in Melbourne's docklands.
Source: ARN
EU rules against ISP filtering
Internet service providers cannot be forced to install filters aimed at preventing people from illegally downloading music and other files, the EU's top court has ruled.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Value-added broadband services increase uptake, revenue
A global study of the broadband market has found that value-added services, such as security, Voice Over IP (VoIP) and IPTV, added almost 37 percent to the basic broadband subscription during 2010, and generated $60 billion in revenue for vendors.
Source: iTWire