Broadband News

Tue, 14th May 2019

Telstra launches new Plus rewards program

The new rewards program is aimed at making Australians bring all of their services into Telstra.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Most Australians on less than 24Mbps download speeds

The majority of Australian consumers are accessing the internet on download speeds of less than 24 Mbps, according to the ACCC.

Source: ARN

Australians downloading 1.7 exabytes a month

The first of a new series of reports from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) detailing Internet usage confirms that downloads are continuing to soar. In the three months ended 31 December, Australians downloaded 5,061,987 terabytes of data according to figures compiled by the ACCC.

Source: Computerworld

Mobile handsets preferred by Australian consumers to access Internet: report

Mobile handsets continue to be the most common way Australian consumers are accessing the internet while the largest volume of data is downloaded over fixed lines, according to a new data report on internet activity by the ACCC.

Source: iTWire

Australia's broadband speeds concentrated under 24Mbps

Over six in ten Australian consumers see “estimated” download speeds on broadband of less than 24Mbps, new numbers show.

Source: iTnews Australia

Mon, 13th May 2019

Optus details NSW and Victorian suburbs to get Ericsson 5G

Victoria to get 30 sites, while New South Wales will get 20.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Optus reveals first Ericsson 5G site locations

Optus has revealed the list of the first 50 5G site locations to be built by Ericsson across Sydney and Melbourne as part of its multi-vendor 5G rollout.

Source: iTWire

Fri, 10th May 2019

Could blocking the TPG-Vodafone merger leave phone users worse off?

The ACCC says consumers will benefit from it blocking the TPG-Vodafone merger. But there are plenty of reasons why that could be wrong, writes Stephen Letts.

Source: ABC News

Thu, 09th May 2019

ISP chief demystifies the NBN – in plain English

Along with miserable broadband, the NBN has brought into our lives a number of terms that sound like words from a foreign language that are designed to prevent one from ever understanding what the whole thing is about. The head of one ISP is trying to demystify the network using simple language and everyday analogies.

Source: iTWire

Vodafone Australia and TPG head to court for merger approval

Following the ACCC rejecting its deal, Vodafone and TPG will file in Federal Court for approval.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Telstra mum, Optus guarded in response to ACCC merger move

Australia's biggest telecommunications provider Telstra says it has no comment on the decision by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to oppose the proposed merger of TPG Telecom and Vodafone Hutchison Australia.

Source: iTWire

Wed, 08th May 2019

TPG and Vodafone to file legal action in response to ACCC’s decision

TPG Telecom and Vodafone Hutchinson Australia (VHA) plan to file legal action in the Federal Court on the basis that the potential merger will not substantially lessen competition.

Source: ARN

TPG share price crashes as ACCC blocks Vodafone merger

The ACCC says it will oppose the $15 billion merger of Australia's third and fourth biggest telcos, TPG and Vodafone, arguing consumers may end up paying higher prices for less innovative mobile plans.

Source: ABC News

ACCC opposes TPG and Vodafone merger

The ACCC has decided it will oppose the proposed merger between TPG Telecom and Vodafone Hutchison Australia.

Source: ARN

TPG says ACCC report shows it still leads market in delivering on NBN speeds

Telco TPG is touting its lead position for NBN average download speeds in the ACCC’s Measuring Broadband Australia program by the competition watchdog, the ACCC.

Source: iTWire

Tue, 07th May 2019

TPG is still king of NBN speed report

TPG still delivers on its download speed promises the most often, while Exetel won on upload speeds, Telstra on latency, and Optus on the highest number of daily outages, according to the fifth ACCC report.

Source: ZDNet Australia

ACMA warns TPG, Foxtel, Aussie Broadband on priority assistance

TPG, Aussie Broadband, MyRepublic, Foxtel, Activ8me, Exetel, Dodo, Skymesh, Southern Phone, Spintel, and V4 Telecom have been formally warned to provide accurate information on priority assistance services.

Source: ZDNet Australia

NBN speeds up but many FTTN services underperforming, ACCC says

The latest broadband performance data released by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) reveals that NBN speeds have generally improved. However, the ACCC said that a significant proportion of fibre to the node (FTTN) services continue to deliver substandard performance.

Source: Computerworld

Mon, 06th May 2019

NBN Co revenue growth slows as rollout nears completion

NBN Co has reported revenue of $2.04 billion for the first three quarters of its financial year, compared to $1.41 billion for the same nine-month period last year.

Source: Computerworld

NBN pulls in AU$2b revenue so far for FY19

For the first nine months of FY19, NBN has reported AU$2 billion in revenue and negative AU$808 million in EBITDA.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Fri, 03rd May 2019

Qld govt fund bids $494m in swoop on Superloop

No-one could accuse Bevan Slattery of not being able to spin-up a compelling transaction target in the form of specialist ISP and connectivity provider Superloop.

Source: iTnews Australia

Superloop considering takeover offer

An unsolicited offer of AU$1.95 per share has seen Superloop give QIC Private Capital three weeks to conduct due diligence.

Source: ZDNet Australia

QIC makes $494m offer for Superloop

Superloop today revealed that QIC subsidiary QIC Private Capital Pty Ltd had made an unsolicited, non-binding acquisition offer for the ASX-listed network operator.

Source: Computerworld

Over-the-top messaging allows Australia to stop regulating SMS services

Messaging platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, iMessage, and WeChat offer enough competition that SMS regulation is no longer required, the ACCC has said in its draft MTAS report.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Thu, 02nd May 2019

ACCC proposes to extend regulation of mobile call services

The ACCC has proposed to continue regulating Australia’s domestic Mobile Terminating Access Service (MTAS) for voice services for another five years.

Source: ARN

Telstra cable customers given free speed boost as NBN delays continue

In a bid to manage the number of new NBN connections, Telstra will scrap its speed boost fee, delivering around 100Mbps to all its non-NBN cable customers.

Source: SMH

Wed, 01st May 2019

5G ban yet to hit Huawei Australia’s carrier business

Although the Australian government has blocked the company from participating in the rollout of telcos’ 5G networks, Huawei says it has registered strong growth in its local carrier business.

Source: Computerworld

Labor will invest AU$245m in regional telco programs if elected

Labor’s promises have mirrored the Coalition’s, with AU$160 million to go to the mobile blackspots program and AU$60 million to work on Connected Community Plans with state, territory, and local governments.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Tue, 30th Apr 2019

No info-sharing if you use Huawei, US tells UK

The United States says it sees no distinction between the core of a 5G network and its radio access network, and will reconsider sharing information with any ally that uses equipment made by Chinese vendor Huawei Technologies in its next-generation telecommunications network.

Source: iTWire

Vocus served with class action

Vocus has been served with a class action proceeding filed in the Federal Court of Australia.

Source: ARN