Broadband News

Wed, 23rd Jun 2021

NBN Co opens $300m regional co-investment fund

NBN Co is now inviting expressions of interest for its $300 million regional co-investment fund, which will part-pay broadband infrastructure upgrades in areas served by either fixed wireless or satellite.

Source: iTnews Australia

Over the Wire joins Tier 1 voice providers and now offers full-service voice capabilities

Telecommunications company Over the Wire joins Tier 1 voice providers such as Telstra, Optus, TPG, MyNetFone, and Vocus after it completed its Carrier Interconnect project. The said project, the company says, is a milestone and laid the foundation for a new phase of growth.

Source: iTWire

Tue, 22nd Jun 2021

New regulatory model for NBN a ‘step closer’ says ACCC

Australia’s competition regulator the ACCC says a new regulatory model for the National Broadband Network is one step closer after a telecommunications industry roundtable last week brought together NBN Co, broadband retailers, industry groups, consumer representatives and government.

Source: iTWire

Mon, 21st Jun 2021

TPG Telecom brands ACCC "out of touch" over mobile competition claims

TPG Telecom called the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) “out of touch” for suggesting that the major telcos had raised prices and stopped competing for customers after TPG and Vodafone merged.

Source: iTnews Australia

ACCC says ‘I told you so’ over TPG-Vodafone merger

​Australia’s competition body has wagged its finger at the country's biggest telcos after mobile plan prices soar, year-on-year, following the Vodafone and TPG merger.

Source: ARN

ACCC blasts less competitive mobile market after TPG-Vodafone merger

Australia's competition watchdog claims its fears of less mobile competition in the wake of the TPG-Vodafone merger have become a reality, with price hikes now seen across the board.

Source: iTnews Australia

Fri, 18th Jun 2021

Future NBN pricing may have more options and constraints

NBN Co may be required to offer internet retailers more ways to differentiate the services they resell, and may also be prevented from withdrawing products or making them more expensive, under ideas to be canvassed at a roundtable today.

Source: iTnews Australia

Akamai routing error caused widespread outages

Akamai has apologised for the routing error within the company's Prolexic distributed denial-of-service mitigation platform that saw users in Australia and New Zealand unable to access bank accounts and other services over the internet yesterday.

Source: iTnews Australia

iiNet now has an unlimited home wireless broadband plan with a one-month free trial

iiNet has expanded its range of internet plans with a new 4G-powered home wireless broadband option. While 4G-based home wireless broadband plans typically max out with 500GB download allowances, iiNet's plan comes with unlimited data.

Source: WhistleOut Broadband News

Thu, 17th Jun 2021

Major banks' online services, airline systems go down

Major banks’ internet services and payment terminals, as well as websites for other major brands, went offline on Thursday afternoon in what appears to be an issue with a widely-used DDoS mitigation service.

Source: iTnews Australia

Telstra's $328m NSW schools project has flow-on benefits for business

Telstra said that a $328 million project upgrading fibre connectivity to NSW schools will also benefit businesses in regional areas, with access to up to 10Gbps speeds now possible.

Source: iTnews Australia

Tue, 15th Jun 2021

Telstra comes down harder on suspected scam calls

Telstra said it has more than doubled the number of suspected scam calls it is blocking every month.

Source: iTnews Australia

Fri, 11th Jun 2021

ACMA sees 15% drop in total telco complaints even though they're taking longer to resolve

Latest figures from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has indicated there was a 15% year-on-year drop in telecommunications complaints from 323,804 to 274,290 during the January to March 2021 quarter.

Source: ZDNet Australia

Telstra tops Aussie telcos, tech companies in renewables report card

Telstra has been ranked ahead of other Australian telcos, data centre and tech companies for their renewable energy commitments in new report card from Greenpeace Australia.

Source: iTnews Australia

Why does my internet connection play up when it's raining?

When your Netflix stream drops out in the middle of a rainstorm, can you blame the wild weather? James Jin Kang and Paul Haskell-Dowland investigate.

Source: ABC News

Thu, 10th Jun 2021

NBN Co says 5G competition is challenging its monopoly status

NBN Co may seek changes to regulatory rules affecting its operations on the basis - or belief - that it can no longer be considered as “a monopoly provider of broadband services” in many market segments.

Source: iTnews Australia

Mon, 07th Jun 2021

NBN Co offers to axe CVC in exchange for yearly price hikes

NBN Co has finally revealed how it might implement ‘flat’ wholesale prices, but it would involve a $5 to $20 a month hike, and as-yet unquantifiable yearly increases above the rate of inflation.

Source: iTnews Australia

NBN floats options for killing off CVC charges

The company responsible for the National Broadband Network has revealed the flat-price modelling it has been working on as part of a trio of pricing options to retailers.

Source: ZDNet Australia

NBN Co looks to enforce 'fair use' for fixed-line users

NBN Co will soon more clearly define what is “inappropriate or excessive” use on its fixed-line network - and what actions can be taken in response - almost a year after one ‘extreme’ user racked up 34TB of downloads in a matter of days.

Source: iTnews Australia

Thu, 03rd Jun 2021

Telstra has SO MANY end of financial year phone deals

Telstra has kicked off its end of financial year sale, with deals going on top-tier handsets from Apple, Samsung, OPPO, and Google.

Source: WhistleOut Mobile Phones News

Australian Bureau of Statistics says it's ready to deliver a seamless 2021 Census

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has less than 70 days before it is due to capture the 2021 Census, and Australian Statistician David Gruen says the ABS is "well prepared" and "ready".

Source: ZDNet Australia

Wed, 02nd Jun 2021

Telco complaints shrink to 30,393 in Q3

The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman has posted a drop in quarterly complaints about phone and internet services for the January-March 2021 period.

Source: ARN

Dodo and iPrimus fined $2.5m for misleading consumers about NBN speeds

Dodo and iPrimus are the latest internet providers to get fined for making misleading claims about the typical speeds of their NBN broadband plans.

Source: ABC News

Foxtel wants to 'proactively intervene' to address customer issues

Foxtel is embarking on a large-scale customer service transformation that could ultimately allow the company to "proactively intervene" when technical or other issues are detected that impact an individual customer's entertainment experience.

Source: iTnews Australia

Tue, 01st Jun 2021

Optus has a new NBN plan for gamers

Optus today announced the availability of a new specialist NBN plan designed for gamers. Dubbed the Optus Internet Gamer plan, the offering is configured on the NBN 100 speed tier and is bundled with an ASUS DSL-AX5400 WiFi 6 gaming modem.

Source: WhistleOut

Optus buoyant at prospect of second 'digital dividend' for mobile broadband

Optus has backed a government plan that would create a repeat of the “digital dividend” spectrum auctions a decade ago, where spectrum used in TV broadcasting was refarmed for cellular use.

Source: iTnews Australia

Nokia deploys 5G antenna with Optus

​Nokia has deployed Australia’s first integrated 5G antenna in partnership with Optus, utilising its Interleaved Passive Active Antenna (IPAA).

Source: ARN

NBN Co says no date for resumption of new HFC services as yet

NBN Co, the company rolling out Australia's national broadband network, says it has not set a date for resumption of new HFC connections, despite having planned to do so from 24 May onwards.

Source: iTWire

Thu, 27th May 2021

Telstra branded packaging to be fully recyclable by 2022

Australia's incumbent telecommunications carrier announced on Thursday that by the end of 2022, all Telstra branded packaging would be made of renewable or recycled material and be fully recyclable.

Source: ZDNet Australia

NBN Co calls audit of field technician pay

NBN Co said it is unable to see how a restructure of its field services contracts may result in large cuts to what technicians are being paid, and has called in an “independent auditor” to investigate.

Source: iTnews Australia