Broadband News
Mon, 25th Feb 2019
NBN available to 75% of premises: Fifield
NBN services are available to three-quarters of Australian premises, Communications Minister Mitch Fifield says.
Source: iTWire
ACMA to issue revised rules for international mobile roaming
The Australian Communications and Media Authority will release modified rules for international mobile roaming later this year, based not on the International Mobile Roaming Standard, but one more attuned to service providers with similar, more flexible rules.
Source: iTWire
Telstra announces it is '5G-ready now' plus three 5G smartphones
Telstra has announced at MWC 2019 it has "partnered with some of the world’s leading 5G smartphone manufacturers for exclusive or first to market deals".
Source: iTWire
Telstra reveals Samsung, LG and Oppo as exclusive 5G smartphone partnerships
Telstra has unveiled some of the smartphone vendors it sealed an exclusive partnership to be the first to bring its 5G smartphones to Australian customers.
Source: ARN
MWC 2019: Optus will gain ‘months more’ 5G experience with fixed-wireless launch
By launching 5G fixed-wireless now instead of waiting for a pure mobile solution, Optus will have around five months more experience in running a 5G service than its competitors, according to CEO Allen Lew.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Fri, 22nd Feb 2019
Second NBN supplier scoped for sham contracting class action
A second major telecommunications technical services supplier is being painted up for a class action on behalf of staff who were allegedly dudded on pay and conditions by deliberately classifying them as contractors when they were legally employees.
Source: iTnews Australia
Casa Systems to acquire NBN supplier NetComm
Massachusetts-headquartered Casa Systems is seeking to acquire ASX-listed NetComm Wireless.
Source: Computerworld
Law firm investigates telco technical services provider
Shine Lawyers has launched an investigation of a possible class action on behalf of telecommunication technicians against technical services contracting company BSA Limited.
Source: Computerworld
Thu, 21st Feb 2019
5G needed to ease 4G LTE congestion: OpenSignal
OpenSignal has compared average speeds and fastest hour speeds on 4G LTE networks globally, with Australia pulling in fifth and seventh rankings, respectively.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Telstra says it has first dibs with Samsung S10 5G
Both Telstra and Optus have announced they will be providing their customers with the new Samsung Galaxy models released overnight, with Telstra claiming to have struck an exclusive deal with the South Korean phone-maker that would ensure its customers get their hands on the 5G device first.
Source: iTWire
Wed, 20th Feb 2019
NBN Co faces calls to endorse good quality modems
NBN Co is facing calls to endorse modems that work best on its network after internal tests uncovered some retail service provider-supplied devices that weren’t performing to specifications.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN flags frozen HFC connections thawing over the coming months
Cable premises still ring-fenced by NBN due to its HFC pause, which will be released to market in the next four months.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co plans four-month HFC blitz
NBN Co is planning to release just shy of 200,000 HFC premises a month from April to June this year, purging a great deal of the footprint that is currently listed as unserviceable.
Source: iTnews Australia
AI firm claims its software will help ISPs reduce NBN CVC use
Australian AI firm Canopus Networks claims to have developed new technology to change the way in which network operators and ISPs classify Internet traffic leading to a reduction in costs and a better user experience.
Source: iTWire
NBN Co eyes new ways to fend off mobile challenge in apartment blocks
NBN Co executives say they are examining ways to address challenges faced by short-term renters, including potentially introducing an arrangement for broadband services similar to that offered by utilities for electricity.
Source: Computerworld
Tue, 19th Feb 2019
NBN Co wants a broadband product to attract renters
NBN Co is exploring product options that would make its services more appealing to transient users such as renters.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN Co will reach $52 ARPU only if RSPs pay for CVC 'overage': claim
The only way that the NBN Co, the company rolling out the Australian national broadband network, can achieve its stated aim of reaching its goal of $52 average revenue per user by the time the rollout ends, is by earnings from what is called CVC "overage", the head of a small RSP claims.
Source: iTWire
Labor slams govt over 'ridiculous' NBN target claims
The Australian Labor Party has described as "ridiculous" a claim made by the government that the NBN Co - which released its half-yearly results on Monday - was continuing to exceed its targets.
Source: iTWire
Mon, 18th Feb 2019
Nine telcos had no metadata interception plan by mid-2018: ACMA
The ACMA's 2017-18 report also reported almost 2.3 million disclosures of customer information by carriers under legal obligations to assist government agencies and departments.
Source: ZDNet Australia
NBN Co's actual cost per premises for FTTC is $3058
NBN Co has revealed its first actual cost per premises for the fibre-to-the-curb portion of the network, coming in at $3058.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN half-year revenue jumps to AU$1.3b as CEO confident of positive cash flow by FY22
9.5 million premises are now ready for service, while NBN announced revenue of AU$1.3 billion and negative EBITDA of AU$477 million for the first half of FY19.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Vodafone offers incentives for those who take up 100Mbps plans
Vodafone Hutchison Australia is offering customers who sign for its 100Mpbs NBN plan a Vodafone TV and a Google Home Mini which costs $150.
Source: iTWire
NBN scales-up release of HFC premises after ‘pause’
NBN Co CEO Stephen Rue says the company will conduct a “significant release of optimised HFC premises over the next six months”.
Source: Computerworld
NBN Co active premises grow 38 per cent
NBN Co, the company behind the roll out of the National Broadband Network, has reported 4.6 million premises had an active service over the network by December 2018.
Source: ARN
Fri, 15th Feb 2019
Optus disables My Account site after users complain of privacy breach
Optus said it is speaking with third-party vendors to look into how the issue happened.
Source: ZDNet Australia
Thu, 14th Feb 2019
Vocus eyes FTTP unbundling with Vodafone NZ
Vocus and Vodafone's New Zealand operations have teamed up to unbundle the Ultra Fast Broadband (UFB) national fibre-optic broadband service, funded as a public-private partnership.
Source: iTnews Australia
NBN affects Optus too, as profits fall
Australia's second largest telco Optus suffered a fall in net profit for its third quarter, with a fall of 32% year-on-year from $254 million to $172 million.
Source: iTWire
Telstra racks up 3200 job losses
Telstra has cut 3200 staff since the middle of June last year under its massive T22 restructure, and has indicated it will use automation to increase cuts to customer-facing roles.
Source: iTnews Australia
Telstra half year profit takes a hit
The roll out of the NBN has impacted Telstra's net profit after tax, which dropped 28 per cent to $1.2 billion in the half year ended 31 December 2018.
Source: ARN
Wed, 13th Feb 2019
Michael Malone reappointed to NBN Co's board
iiNet founder and former CEO Michael Malone has been reappointed as a non-executive director of the NBN Co board for a further three years.
Source: ARN