Broadband News
Thu, 11th Jun 2009
ANAO can access secret NBN docs
The Australian National Audits Office has confirmed it can request the National Broadband Network ACCC and expert panel documents being kept under wraps by the government.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Tasmanian budget pumps $14.87m into NBN initiatives
The Tasmanian Government, in its state budget, The Tasmanian Government, in its state budget, has confirmed it will invest $12.7m into Aurora Energy and has announced other initiatives designed to maximise broadband opportunities created by the National Broadband Network (NBN), which will be rolled out first in Tasmania.
Source: iTWire
Minchin calls for release of "secret" NBN letter
Shadow Minister for Communications Nick Minchin has called on the Government to release a confidential letter of advice received from the NBN Expert Panel.
Source: iTnews Australia
Satellite internet needs ground investment to be NBN-ready
The Federal Government is being advised to consider investing in the ground segment of the IPSTAR broadband satellite network to fast-track its suitability for use by the 10 per cent of Aussies to miss out on NBN fibre.
Source: iTnews Australia
ISPs may be stranded by NBN, not just their assets
DSLAM assets stranded by the NBN could be the least of ISP's problems with an Ovum analyst warning of a major shake-up in the transition to a new national network.
Source: iTnews Australia
Wed, 10th Jun 2009
Comms Alliance says NBN industry consensus difficult to achieve
Communications Alliance has issued a second discussion paper on the National Broadband Network that anticipates a number of key definitional aspects of the NBN on which, it says, industry consensus will be difficult to achieve.
Source: iTWire
Basslink set to meet H1 in-service date, just
Basslink expects to complete the Victorian terrestrial component of its network in time to meet its plans to be carrying customer traffic by the end of June.
Source: iTWire
iiNet ups loan funding to $60m, upgrades guidance
iiNet (ASX: IIN), Australia's third largest ISP, has announced the extension of its existing debt finance facility with Westpac for a further three years to June 2012, providing iiNet with increased funding of up to $60m.
Source: iTWire
AFACT "struggling" to make a case: iiNet
ISP iiNet has dismissed claims by the film industry that it is stalling their landmark battle in the Federal Court, accusing AFACT of "struggling to get their case together".
Source: iTnews Australia
IIA cautions against ISP e-security burdens
Measures outlined by Senator Conroy to kick-start development of an e-security code of practice for ISPs are "on the table" but may not make the final cut.
Source: iTnews Australia
Tue, 09th Jun 2009
Canberra acts fast on bush net grant
The federal government has moved swiftly to close loopholes in its bush broadband subsidy scheme that have allowed a satellite company to claim grants for services that do not comply with the program.
Source: Australian IT
Thodey mending fences with ACCC
Telstra's conciliatory tack under new chief executive David Thodey has gathered momentum with the telco's voluntary withdrawal from a looming legal battle with the competition regulator.
Source: Australian IT
Thodey could make $6.8m per year
Telstra's new chief executive David Thodey will receive a fixed annual remuneration of $2 million or $1 million less than his predecessor, compensated by a significant boost to incentive payments that could see him take home up to $6.8 million a year.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Good year for iiNet
Australia's third-biggest internet provider iiNet today said it expected "strong growth" for the 2009 financial year, with expected full-year net profit of $25 million.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Forget FTTP, the NBN is about the apps
The laboratory director of one of Australia's leading ICT research and development organisations has claimed the national broadband network (NBN) is all about the applications, not the fibre.
Source: ARN
Basslink to go live by 30 June
The long-awaited Basslink fibre cable, which will end Telstra's monopoly over the Bass Strait between Tasmania and the mainland, will start carrying customer traffic by 30 June, the cable's operator said today.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Mon, 08th Jun 2009
Telstra split-up key: Optus
The Government's $43 billion NBN will be economically unviable unless Telstra is structurally separated, Optus says.
Source: Australian IT
Striving for mediocrity
If the latest NBN scenario planning is right, David Thodey will have to accept that even an optimal outcome for both Telstra and the government will not deliver dramatic returns for Telstra's one million shareholders.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Future FTTH network should be buried, and shouldn't be PON
With the benefit of 40 years in telecoms engineering, management and consulting Ross Kelso brings an informed and independent perspective to the debate around Australia's National Broadband Networks and his submission to the Government's review of the regulatory environment has some interesting ideas.
Source: iTWire
Sat, 06th Jun 2009
Did cyber security concerns decide the NBN?
I'm not one for conspiracy theories but I just can't get the idea out of my head that the Federal Government's decision to go it alone with the NBN was because of cyber security concerns. No, not because of China and Russia directly, but because it will help our own national security.
Source: ARN
Telstra split-up key to NBN viability, says Optus
The federal Government's $43billion national broadband network will be economically unviable unless Telstra is structurally separated, arch-rival Optus says.
Source: The Australian
Fri, 05th Jun 2009
ACCC to extend Telstra rules
The competition watchdog late Thursday said it intended to extend the declarations that enable Telstra's competitors to provide fixed voice and broadband services over the telco's copper network for a further five years.
Source: ZDNet Australia
ACCC draws copper line
The ACCC has moved to address uncertainty over regulation of Telstra's copper network ahead of construction of the NBN.
Source: Australian IT
National auditor to begin NBN tender review
The national auditor will soon begin a full review of the federal government's abandoned NBN tender process.
Source: Australian IT
Full blown audit into NBN tender
The Auditor General has cancelled the Audit Office's preliminary inquiry into the failed NBN tender, opting instead for a full-blown performance audit.
Source: iTnews Australia
Broadband Dept hires for NBN team
The Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy is on the hunt for five key executives to join its National Broadband Network team.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Thu, 04th Jun 2009
Structural separation of Telstra slips off the agenda
Neither the ruling ALP nor the Liberal Party will openly advocate the structural separation of Telstra, despite repeated calls from competitors for the Government to break up Australia's incumbent carrier.
Source: iTnews Australia
Libs won't push for Telstra break-up
Shadow Communications Minister Nick Minchin this week said the opposition would not support calls from Telstra's rivals for the telco to be broken up into chunks.
Source: ZDNet Australia
ACCC wants to keep Telstra's lines open for 5 years
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced its intention to extend a key declaration that allows Telstra's competitors to use its copper network for a further five years.
Source: ARN
Government collects regulatory reform papers
The Government received more than 90 submissions yesterday for its regulatory reform discussion paper.
Source: Australian IT