Broadband News

Thu, 28th Apr 2011

iiNet's new BoB delayed to June

National broadband provider iiNet today revealed its latest integrated router, BoB2, would be released two months later than previously indicated but would be cheaper than the current model.

Source: iTWire

NBN Co signs Conneq for Tasmanian build

NBN Co has appointed Lend Lease-owned Conneq to build out the next phase of its Tasmanian network.

Source: iTnews Australia

NBN Tasmania second stage rollout schedule released

Nbn Co has laid out the timetable for stage two of the National Broadband Network (NBN) rollout which will provide services to another seven sites.

Source: ARN

Where did the NBN go wrong?

The National Broadband Network (NBN) is already hitting roadblocks. There's a chance it could all derail. So when did it start to unravel?

Source: ZDNet Australia

Leaked: Telco code seeks ban on soft 'caps'

Australian telcos and ISPs could be banned from using the word 'cap' in advertisements for new mobile and broadband products, unless the cap is "hard", according to a leaked copy of a revised industry code.

Source: iTnews Australia

Loud and clear: The Townsville NBN experience

Any regional town would be thrilled to test a new, blazing fast fibre-to-the-home network ahead of the rest of Australia. When that chance came for Townsville, there was definitely excitement but the road to high speed broadband has had many bumps.

Source: Computerworld

Wed, 27th Apr 2011

ACCC proposes set five-year fixed-line pricing for NBN certainty

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) wants to set its draft regulatory fixed-line pricing for five years so there will be certainty for ISPs as they transition onto the National Broadband Network (NBN).

Source: ARN

Australian internet ranked fourth most free

A global report on internet freedom has ranked Australia fourth most "free", with affordable, high-quality connections available to 75 percent of the population.

Source: iTnews Australia

Taxpayers to foot bill for service double-up

Thousands of small housing estates will receive brand new temporary copper connections, which will be disconnected at a cost to taxpayers.

Source: Australian IT

Tue, 26th Apr 2011

New IPv6 protocol from IETF will boost 'Internet of Things'

Adoption by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) of a new IPv6 routing protocol for low power and lossy networks (RPL) will provide a significant boost the emerging 'Internet of Things'.

Source: iTWire

22,000 join Vodafone legal suit

The proposed class action against Vodafone Australia over mobile network performance is gaining pace.

Source: Australian IT

Sun, 24th Apr 2011

Gartner: Who will benefit from NBN

According to Gartner research vice-president, Geoff Johnson, the three verticals most set to benefit from the NBN are health, education and utilities.

Source: ARN

Fri, 22nd Apr 2011

Opinion: The IPv6 magic trick

A magician in a long black coat walks out on stage. A voice booms: "The great Mephisto will now saw his beautiful assistant in half". The audience breathes in. The saw cuts through the box. The magician pushes the two halves of the box containing his assistant apart. The transition from internet protocol version four (IPv4) to version six (IPv6) is much like this magic act. The Web that was once one is now two.

Source: Computerworld

Thu, 21st Apr 2011

Telcos need chief customer officers: iiNet

Telcos should employ chief customer officers alongside CFOs, CIOs and CTOs, said iiNet's general manager of customer service Paul Cahill.

Source: iTnews Australia

Optus take step towards LTE with Nokia Siemens

Optus has picked Nokia Siemens to provide Long Term Evolution (LTE) compatible packet core technology.

Source: ARN

NBN complicates a Foxtel-Austar deal

While price has always been a hurdle to Foxtel's long-mooted purchase of  Austar, the NBN is shaping up to be a "left field" stumbling block.

Source: Australian IT

Piracy-free world to aid NBN business case?

All the brouhaha over whether NBN Co's pricing structure might kill off 1TB plans made me wonder whether NBN Co might be relying on changes to copyright law reducing user downloads.

Source: ZDNet Australia

NBN: Do you still need to optimise?

Despite the political controversy over its value to the Australian public, the NBN is going to be a hugely beneficial piece of national infrastructure. Faster and more reliable speeds will mean new applications can be developed to the benefit of consumers and businesses alike.

Source: ARN

Inside an NBN fibre access node

Today iTnews reveals the innards of Australia's future communications exchange - with the industry's first look inside an NBN Co fibre access node.

Source: iTnews Australia

Virgin tests "world's fastest" cable broadband

Virgin Media is trialling a 1.5Gbit/sec cable system in the UK.

Source: PC Authority

Black markets sprout in IP address shortage

With only days passed since the Asia Pacific regional internet registry initiated a severely reduced allocation policy for Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4), 'black' markets have begun to appear for operators and address holders to trade address between themselves.

Source: Computerworld

Wed, 20th Apr 2011

IPV6 traffic volumes going backwards

With the long expected exhaustion of IPv4 addresses now a reality, in Asia Pacific at least, you'd expect the volume of Internet traffic using IPv6 addressing to be growing strongly, but it has in fact decreased in the last six months.

Source: iTWire

Optus upgrades core with Nokia Siemens

Optus has selected Nokia Siemens Networks to upgrade its mobile network core to Evolved Packet Core in preparation for launching Long Term Evolution (LTE) mobile services, in a multi-million dollar deal.

Source: ZDNet Australia

ACCC reveals interim pricing for transmission services

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has revealed interim prices for regulated transmission services.

Source: ARN

TIO fees don't help customers: telcos

The three big telcos have raised concerns about the fees that telcos pay the Telecommunications Ombudsman for complaints made against them, stating that the organisation's reliance on the fees for funding is not appropriate.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Test customers go live on Armidale NBN

The first mainland National Broadband Network (NBN) services have gone live, with users in Armidale reporting operational fibre access to the $36 billion network.

Source: Computerworld

Tue, 19th Apr 2011

NBN costs weigh on uni student market

James Cook University has warned of the potential for the National Broadband Network (NBN) to price university students out of the broadband market without continued monitoring of regional fibre backhaul competition.

Source: Computerworld

Townsville clamours for NBN communication

Townsville City Council has criticised the Federal Government for a lack of leadership and communication around the rollout of the National Broadband Network (NBN).

Source: Computerworld

Why I'm ditching VoIP for the PSTN

This week I called iiNet and cancelled our VoIP service. We're returning to the Public Switched Telephony Network. All of my calls from now on will be placed over the ageing copper infrastructure which the National Broadband Network will eventually replace. The switch will take down our broadband connection for several days, but at the end of the process it'll be worth it.

Source: Delimiter

NBN won't kill 1TB plans: NBN Co

The National Broadband Network (NBN)'s pricing structure will not lead to the demise of terabyte plans, NBN Co has said, because most Australians will stick to smaller plans that will average out the cost of high-use customers for retail service providers (RSPs).

Source: ZDNet Australia