Broadband News
Mon, 09th May 2011
NBN Co reveals B2B gateway architecture
NBN Co plans to schedule a weekly "change window" between 2am and 6am where it can service its B2B gateway - the IT interconnection point with ISP systems.
Source: iTnews Australia
Budget 2011: AIIA wish list
Ahead of Treasurer Wayne Swan delivering his fourth Federal Budget tomorrow night, the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) has released its wish list for what it thinks the government should focus its ICT investment on for the next 12 months.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Westnet delivers on regional broadband upgrade
iiNet subsidiary Westnet has delivered on its promise to roll out ADSL2+ services to homes in Western Australia under a $5 million broadband infrastructure upgrade for regional Australia.
Source: Computerworld
Westnet completes WA ADSL2+ rollout
iiNet-owned Western Australian telco Westnet has announced that it has completed the Western Australian portion of its $5 million ADSL2+ network roll-out across Australia.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Optus to launch converged IPTV service with FetchTV
Optus is partnering with wholesale IPTV service provider, FetchTV to jointly develop a converged IPTV service that will be available over is fixed broadband network and on smartphones and tablet devices.
Source: iTWire
Internode turns 20
South Australia-based ISP, Internode, has celebrated its 20th birthday.
Source: ARN
iiNet begins Netspace billing migration
ISP iiNet has begun migrating Netspace customers onto its billing platform, after having acquired the Victorian company for $40 million last March.
Source: iTnews Australia
ISOC-AU calls on ISP participation for World IPv6 Day
The Internet Society of Australia (ISOC-AU) has called on local businesses ISPs to participate in World IPv6 Day, with Internode the first major Aussie telco to sign up to the initiative.
Source: Computerworld
Stop the free calls rip-off says ACCAN
Australian peak telecoms consumer advocacy group, has called on the big three carriers, Telstra, Optus and Vodafone, to end timed calls from mobiles to the 13, 1300 and 1800 numbers that used by government services and businesses. Such calls are billed as free or at cheap untimed rates of a maximum of 30c when called from landlines within Australia.
Source: iTWire
Fri, 06th May 2011
NBN Co chief expects build to stay on budget
NBN Co chief Mike Quigley has stated his expectation that the national broadband network can be deployed without blowing the $36 billion budget, despite delays in awarding construction contracts.
Source: iTnews Australia
200 remote homes to get 6Mbps NBN satellite trial from Optus and IPstar
NBN Co has announced a new trial for 200 homes in remote regions for its new 6Mbps satellite broadband service, using Optus and IPstar as the service providers. A long way short of city broadband speeds, the new satellite service promises peak download speeds of 6Mbps and uploads of up to 1Mbps.
Source: iTWire
Telcos to pay for slow connections, repairs
Those customers who rage at the ridiculous amount of time that a telecommunications provider is taking to repair a fault or to connect a line may soon have a legal avenue to follow after the introduction of benchmark reforms.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co confirms Optus, IPSTAR satellite contracts
National Broadband Network (NBN) wholesaler NBN Co has awarded satellite operators Optus and IPSTAR contracts worth a total $300 million for managed satellite services to three per cent of Australian premises, confirming ndustry speculation surrounding the service.
Source: Computerworld
iiNet's IPv6 to hit customers soon
National broadband provider iiNet has told customers not to worry about the impending shortage of IPv4 internet addresses, noting that it was currently running trials with the next version 6 of the Internet Protocol, and that it expected to start including portions of its customer base soon.
Source: iTWire
Telstra 'threatened to dump' NBN deal
Telstra threatened to walk away from an $11 billion deal with NBN Co unless the federal government allowed the telco giant to charge smaller players high prices to access its network, the Australian Greens and telco industry sources say.
Source: Computerworld
NBN boss looks to fix costs of labour
NBN Co chief executive Mike Quigley says he "believes" the $36 billion broadband fibre network can still be built to budget.
Source: Australian IT
iiNet: Online strategy discussion lacking in NBN debate
Australia needs a game plan on how to best utilise the National Broadband Network (NBN, according to Perth-based ISP, iiNet.
Source: ARN
Thu, 05th May 2011
iiNet slams Telstra over VoIP stance
National broadband provider iiNet has responded to comments by Telstra that consumer-grade Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephony isn't yet reliable enough for use by pointing out that it has 170,000 customers using the technology - and they're very happy, thank you very much.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Internode lets loose two Billion IPv6 and an NBN-ready router
The number of routers ready for the IPv6 and NBN world grows, with the addition of the two Billion routers to Internode's lineup.
Source: PC Authority
ACMA puts the brakes on fax marketing
The ACMA has finalised rules governing the delivery of fax-based marketing messages, as part of the Do-Not-Call regime, limiting the times at which these can be sent and their frequency.
Source: iTWire
Selling the NBN dream
A little over a week ago Fairfax and News Ltd each ran a story about a collection of prominent Australians who would sell the benefits of the National Broadband Network to the Australian population.
Source: ZDNet Australia
US judge rules out IP address evidence in file-sharing case
Judge accuses prosecution of "fishing trips" by using IP address evidence to identify alleged file-sharers.
Source: PC Authority
IPSTAR joins NBN interim satellite talks
Australian satellite operator IPSTAR is likely to become one of several sub-contractors to Optus under a deal to provide interim satellite services under the National Broadband Network (NBN).
Source: Computerworld
Wed, 04th May 2011
300MHz spectrum shortfall in 2020: ACMA
Australia's love of mobile internet will increase 1000 times from 2007 to 2020, forcing providers to find an extra 300MHz of spectrum in order to cope with the growing demand in the next nine years, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has warned.
Source: ZDNet Australia
iiNet bucks TIO complaints trend
At at time when complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman are escalating, at least one major ISP - iiNet - is the subject of fewer complaints.
Source: iTWire
NBN must be detailed in budget: Abbott
An honest government would use next week's budget to demonstrate how the troubled National Broadband Network (NBN) would be delivered and at what cost, opposition leader Tony Abbott says.
Source: Computerworld
NBN Co's planned points of interconnect updated
The ACCC has published a revised list of NBN points of interconnect, describing it as "a refinement of the outcome of the public confirmation process about the initial PoIs to the NBN."
Source: iTWire
Vodafone not a scapegoat for TIO spike
The Australian Communications and Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) has warned telcos against scapegoating Vodafone for an unprecedented rise in telecommunications complaints referred to the industry's ombudsman.
Source: iTnews Australia
Vodafone Hutchison Australia joins NBN mainland trials
Vodafone Hutchison Australia (VHA) has taken its first steps to providing consumer fixed-line broadband services by joining the mainland National Broadband Network (NBN) trials.
Source: ARN
ACMA sees demand for mobile spectrum peaking in 2018
Most forecasts for mobile broadband data are for exponential growth driven by increasingly smart devices and video services. The ACMA, however expects demand to peak in 2018 by which time short range wireless technologies accessing fibre to the premises networks will be easing demand for spectrum.
Source: iTWire