Defence conducts OpenOffice.org trial
The Department of Defence has reportedly conducted an informal trial of the open source OpenOffice.org productivity suite involving some 100 users.
Turnbull wireless complaints getting “tedious”: Conroy
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has described comments by parliamentary opponent Malcolm Turnbull on the issue of wireless broadband competing with the NBN as "tedious", noting "virtually all experts" were in agreement that wireless and fixed broadband were complementary services, and highlighting what he called Turnbull's "hypocrisy" on the matter.
Shame on you, Dodo tells Paul Fletcher
Cut-rate broadband provider Dodo has slammed comments made about its customer service record in parliament by Liberal MP Paul Fletcher as "grossly unfair" and noted it would have expected more from the politician, given he was a former telecommunications sector executive.
Internode wants to resell Telstra HFC, Next G
National broadband provider Internode today revealed it had asked Telstra repeatedly for wholesale access to its Next G mobile and HFC cable networks, requests which the larger telco has consistently turned down.
Lenovo kicks off mega four-day sale
Over on our sister site, Delimiter Marketplace, we've just reported that Chinese manufacturer Lenovo has kicked off an extensive four-day sale on its popular ‘Think’-branded laptops, PCs, workstations and servers. Australian customers can to pick up discounts of up to 30 percent, depending on what they buy. Not bad for a weekend special!
Conroy must acknowledge wireless threat: Turnbull
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy must acknowledge the incoming generation of wireless broadband products represents a threat to the economic case for the National Broadband Network, Malcolm Turnbull said yesterday, in the wake of the revelation that NBN Co itself was concerned about the issue.
First South Brisbane fibre customers go live
The nation's largest telco Telstra last week carried out the first copper to fibre customer migrations in its South Brisbane exchange area -- including those of customers belonging to other ISPs -- as it continues its project to replace its copper network in the region.
NSW creates health IT agency
The New South Wales State Government has opened a new page in its long and troubled history implementing electronic health solutions, committing yesterday to creating a dedicated agency to service the area, amid a much wider shake-up of the health sector in general driven by its new Coalition Government.
CFO gone in significant NBN restructure
The National Broadband Network Company has embarked on a substantial restructure of its rapidly growing operations, in a move that comes alongside the departure of its chief financial officer and another senior executive responsible for industry engagement.
Telstra wants on-shore Office 365
The nation's largest telco Telstra has reportedly publicly stated that it wants to host Microsoft's Office 365 software as a service suite from its own datacentre facilities in Australia, in a move which would finally put paid to data sovereignty concerns around the service.
NBN Co acknowledges wireless competition threat
The National Broadband Network Company has included a lengthy section in its submission to the national competition regulator regarding Telstra's structural separation undertaking dealing with wireless and mobile broadband technology and its potential to compete with the predominantly fibre-based NBN rollout.
We don’t set Australian pricing, says Microsoft
Microsoft has responded to parliamentary pressure about Australian markups on its products by stating that it doesn't set final prices to local customers -- and stating that it was difficult to make direct pricing comparisons between countries, given differing local conditions in each jurisdiction.
MSDN markup: 83 percent slug for Aussies
Microsoft is charging Australian software developers about 83 percent more than their US counterparts to access subscription services associated with its Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) platform, it has emerged in the wake of parliamentary criticism of the company over price differences between the countries.
Coalition attacks “discount” NBN ISPs Exetel, Dodo
Coalition MP and former Optus executive Paul Fletcher has attacked early NBN pricing released by cut-rate ISPs Exetel and Dodo, claiming the pair's commercial plans didn't reflect the reality of what he said would be increased pricing on the NBN compared to today's existing broadband options.
Longhaus takes hammer to AGIMO cloud critics
One of Australia's top technology analyst firms has come out swinging against vendors who had criticised the Federal Government's peak IT decision-making body for being wary about embracing cloud computing solutions and lacking strategy in the area.
Attorney-General’s Dept seeks BitTorrent advice
The Federal Attorney-General's Department has invited major Australian ISPs and content owners to meet with officials and discuss the current landscape with regard to online copyright infringement, as it seeks to advise the Government on the current landscape and the views held by different sides of the debate.
TouchPad fire sale hits Australia
Retail giant Harvey Norman has confirmed that it will dramatically slash prices on HP's doomed TouchPad tablet from 2PM this afternoon, mimicking a global liquidation of the limited remaining stock of the device after HP sealed the line's fate last week.
MYOB bought out by private equity again
Multinational private equity giant Bain Capital over the weekend revealed it had bought MYOB, in a move which will see the Australian financial software house change hands into its second private equity owner in the past three years.
Harvey Norman pulls HP TouchPad from sale
Giant retailer Harvey Norman has reportedly instructed its retailers to stop selling HP's doomed TouchPad tablet and offer those who had bought it refunds, just four days after it had gone on sale locally and with development of the iPad competitor having been cancelled in the US overnight.
Evernote buys Aussie startup Skitch
Information collation service Evernote has acquired Australian startup Skitch, which publishes a popular Mac OS X image editing application and associated web service, for an amount which has not been disclosed.
Opening the kimono: Apple agrees to Husic meeting
The managing director of Apple's Australian division has reportedly agreed to meet with with Federal Labor MP Ed Husic, almost five months after the politician complained in Parliament about price markups on the company's products when sold in Australia.
95Mbps may be the NBN’s real-world limit
Early trials of National Broadband Network fibre connections through several different Internet service providers have shown speeds topping out at 95Mbps, five percent slower than the NBN's overall theoretical limit of 100Mbps.
Amazon bugs persist for Aussie Android dev
Australian development firm Shifty Jelly has delivered another embarassing backhander to global technology giant Amazon over the company's handling of its Android applications store, listing a litany of bugs and customer service issues regarding the platform.
Conroy reveals mysterious Telstra “subsidies”
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy yesterday reportedly revealed a mysterious set of "subsidies" being provided to Telstra to maintain services to certain broadband customers would be maintained under Labor's National Broadband Network project -- but without disclosing much in the way of details under the scheme.
Markups a wider issue for Aussie industry: Adobe
Global software giant Adobe has responded to criticism in Federal Parliament of markups on its products in Australia by stating the issue wasn't one for the technology industry alone -- claiming it was a wider problem affecting other areas such as the automotive sector as well.
Labor MP wants ACCC enquiry into Aussie tech tax
Federal Labor MP Ed Husic has widened his complaint about price markups on Apple products in Australia to include other vendors such as Adobe, Microsoft and Lenovo, raising the possibility that an enquiry could be held into the matter by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Turnbull wants Govt-funded email for all
Shadow Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has reportedly proposed a policy which would see every Australian allocated a limited email-like inbox to receive communications from governments, if the Coalition took power in the next election.
CSC offers “on-premise private cloud”
Multinational IT services giant CSC this week launched in Australia a service which it described as private cloud computing infrastructure which could be hosted in customers' own datacentres, giving them an additional option for migrating to the burgeoning range of infrastructure as a service platforms.
Telstra still a major headache for iiNet
National broadband provider iiNet this week opened fire on Telstra on a range of fronts, accusing the telco of causing trouble with its new fibre rollout in South Brisbane, jacking up the price of accessing its wholesale ADSL broadband service and biting off more than it deserved in the first draft of its NBN structural separation undertaking filed with the competition regulator.
Sage wants to buy MYOB
Global software group Sage overnight confirmed it was currently considering attempting to acquire Australian financial software company MYOB, which is currently owned by local private equity house Archer Capital, following a $437 million buyout in early 2009.
Qld Rail wants traditional IT infrastructure outsourcing
The past year has seen a raft of cloud computing options launched in the Australian technology landscape, with companies as diverse as Telstra, CSC, Optus and Fujitsu focusing on infrastructure as a service offerings. But not everyone's biting -- with one government agency this month going to market for IT infrastructure services which couldn't look more traditional.
iiNet’s NBN costs “similar” to ADSL
National broadband provider iiNet today described the costs of connecting customers to the National Broadband Network as being similar to that of existing ADSL broadband services, breaking ranks with industry rivals who have complained about what they see as NBN Co's extortionate pricing model.
Horizon Power outsources to Fujitsu
Western Australian energy utility Horizon Power has signed a three year ICT managed services contract with Japanese IT services giant Fujitsu, in one of the vendor's first major deals in the state since opening a new datacentre in the region in late 2010.
Android starting to dominate Optus sales
The nation's number two telco Optus yesterday revealed that sales of mobile phones using Google's upstart Android platform were already making up between a quarter and a third of its total handset sales, just two and a half years after the platform launched in Australia.
High Court agrees to hear iiTrial
The High Court of Australia has this morning granted film and television studios the right to appeal against the decision made earlier in the year in the case against Australian ISP iiNet.
HP cuts Aussie TouchPad pricing pre-launch
In a statement this afternoon, HP has announced the Australian TouchPad will receive a big price drop before it goes on sale locally next Monday.
NBN? It’s too expensive, say BHP, CBA execs
Two of Australia’s highest-profile business executives have taken an axe to the Federal Government’s National Broadband Network policy. This time it’s BHP chairman Jac Nasser and CommBank chief executive Ralph Norris.
Sydney eCommerce CMS player takes $15m
News of another medium-sized Australian software as a service company taking significant amounts of investment from US venture capitalists was broken in July on TechCrunch. Here's the info.
Win govt, telcos tell Turnbull: Then we’ll talk
The chief executives of Australia's top two telcos Telstra and Optus today acknowledged the existence of the Coalition's new telecommunications policy unveiled last week -- but judging from their responses, it may take another election before they start to take it seriously.
Carosa’s baby funds another three startups
Local web 2.0 investment house Future Capital Development Fund (FCDF) today revealed it had invested in three more online Australian web properties, adding to the company's already extensive list of targets over the past year.
Telstra cutting top execs’ pay levels
Telstra chief executive David Thodey appears to be taking a dramatically different approach to remunerating its top executives compared to his predecessor Sol Trujillo, with new executives coming on board over the past several years attracting pay packets millions of dollars less than those they are replacing.
Telstra adding customers in every area but PSTN
Telstra might be Australia's largest telco and the nation's former incumbent, but you wouldn't know it from the company's customer growth, with the big T revealing today it continued to gain customers in virtually every area of its business -- even in the hyper-competitive and highly regulated fixed broadband market.
Internode rolls out IPv6 to customers
Australian internet service provider (ISP) Internode has announced that from this week, all its customers now have the option of being assigned a range of IPv6 addresses for their use.
THQ closes Aussie game studios
Multinational video game publisher THQ overnight in the US revealed it would close two development studios in Australia and a team in Arizona, with the move to affect some 200 staff in total.
Qld wants 100 NBN/digital TV trainees
The Queensland Government has revealed that it's looking for 100 new trainees which it hopes will be able to assist with the rollout of the National Broadband Network (NBN) and the switch-over to Digital TV in the state.
CVC rebate won’t change Internode’s NBN prices
Internode has confirmed it won't update its National Broadband Network pricing following a deal with NBN Co on a rebate on pricing for its Connectivity Virtual Circuit capacity links, with the ISP's managing director Simon Hackett noting the rebate had already been taken into account when the prices were set.
NBN Co brokers CVC truce with Hackett
NBN Co today revealed it would offer ISP customers a rebate on pricing for its Connectivity Virtual Circuit (CVC) capacity links to end customers premises, in what appeared to be an attempt to address persistent criticism of its pricing model from outspoken telco executives such as Internode managing director Simon Hackett.
Aussie tech stocks in share price bloodbath
The global sharemarket rout triggered by the downgrade of the US Government's credit rating has had a dramatic effect on Australian technology stocks, with all of the nation's major listed technology companies suffering share price drops over the past several days ranging from three percent to over 22 percent.
Apple to open Cheltenham store
Apple Australia announced this morning that it will open its latest Retail Store in Cheltenham, Victoria later this week as well as overnight unveiling a new, cheaper iMac for educational institutes.
2012 debut for JB Hi-Fi music streaming service
During its financial results presentation today, electronics retailer JB Hi-Fi announced plans for a new cloud-based music streaming service which will debut by the middle of next year.
NBN-connected Tassie schools finally get access
The Tasmanian Government has finalised a solution to a contractual impasse which has seen a number of schools in early stage National Broadband Network rollout zones in the state unable to utilise the infrastructure, despite the fibre having been physically connected to their premises.
Rotten Apple: Prod Commission targets tech tax
Australia’s Productivity Commission has sharply criticised international manufacturers for marking up their prices for the Australian market in the draft of its landmark report into the retail sector, particularly singling out iconic technology giant Apple in its examination of how so-called “regional price discrimination” affects local consumers.
August 29 launch for Telstra’s first 4G modem
Telstra this morning announced it would place the first 4G mobile broadband modemscommercially available in Australia on sale to business customers beginning August 29.
Sunrise hangs out on Google+
Channel 7′s breakfast show ‘Sunrise’ has made what it has described a “TV first”, using a Google+ feature to power behind the scenes footage for an hour this morning.
Huawei, LG feature in Woolworths’ new 3G service
Earlier this week, Australian shopping giant Woolworths announced a new prepaid mobile service utilising the Optus 3G network, with several handsets manufactured by Chinese vendor Huawei as well as LG Electronics to be sold as part of the service.
AHL dumps Exchange for Lotus … and back again
It was only five years ago that diversified Australian company Amalgamated Holdings (AHL) caused controversy in Australia's IT sector by becoming one of the few major groups to dump Microsoft's Outlook/Exchange platform in favour of IBM's troubled Lotus Notes/Domino suite. But now the company has gone back to Microsoft.
Internode apologises for pricing plan “stuffup”
Internode managing director Simon Hackett has published a lengthy apology to the ISP's customers for a pricing plan migration "stuffup" that had seen the company inadvertently alienate some of its oldest and most loyal customers.
Optus gets new BlackBerrys first
Optus will be the first Australian carrier to exclusively sell two of Research in Motion’s new BlackBerry devices announced overnight.
NBN goes live in Brunswick, Melbourne
The first Victorian National Broadband Network (NBN) test site is now live, with NBN Co today switching on the connection in Brunswick, Victoria.
NBN Co reveals first five wireless zones
NBN Co yesterday revealed the first five Australian locations which will receive a high-speed wireless connection as part of the Federal Government's flagship National Broadband Network (NBN) scheme.
New Coalition NBN policy: Splitting Telstra, using HFC
The Federal Coalition has proposed a new National Broadband Network policy which would see Australia provided with broadband through a combination of developed HFC cable in urban areas, splitting up Telstra into wholesale and retail arms to serve suburban and regional areas, and wireless and satellite solutions to serve the rest of Australia in remote regions.
No NBN customers for Vodafone yet
Mobile telco Vodafone yesterday confirmed it had not yet connected any customers to National Broadband Network infrastructure as part of its trial of the network, three months after it started working with NBN Co to test the NBN waters.
Not happy, Amazon: Aussie developer slams app store
Australian development firm Shifty Jelly has delivered harsh words to Amazon over the company's relatively new Android Appstore and its Free App Of The Day promotion.
NBN Co releases new rollout schedule
NBN Co has this morning released a schedule for the beginning of works on second release sites across New South Wales, Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory.
Apple targeted wrong tablet, says Samsung
Korean electronics giant Samsung this afternoon claimed a lawsuit filed by rival Apple last month had succeeded in blocking Australian sales of a variant of its Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet which it had no intention of selling in Australia anyway; with the real tablet to be released locally "in the near future".
Winter of Vodafone’s discontent: 375k customers lost
Vodafone today revealed its total customer base declined by 375,000 over the past six months, with the besieged mobile telco still struggling to shake off poor customer sentiment stemming from its disastrous series of network outages in late 2010 and earlier this year, and a rash of re-classified customer numbers also taking their toll.
Telstra mobiles get quota sharing, mass device management
The nation's biggest telco Telstra today announced a series of changes to its mobile phone and mobile broadband business plans, including matching Optus and Vodafone with the introduction of data quota sharing, as well as a new tool to let organisations remotely manage their smartphone fleets.
NBN: Is Conroy telling ‘porkies’ on Tassie schools?
The Federal Opposition has accused Communications Minister Stephen Conroy of telling "porkies" over the extent to which NBN-connected schools in Tasmania are actually using their new broadband service, more than 12 months after the infrastructure was rolled out in select locations in the state.
APPLE LAWSUIT:Cupertino blocks Australian Galaxy Tab launch
Following legal proceedings in the Federal Court today, iconic technology giant Apple has reportedly reached an agreement with Samsung which will block the Korean electronics giant's upcoming Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet from being sold in Australia until patent concerns are resolved.
Optus’ Interpol filter goes live
Optus has confirmed it has now put in place the voluntary filter that rival Telstra has had running for nearly a month. A spokesperson for Optus said today that the Interpol filter was put into operation “last thing” on Friday, and has been ‘live’ for customers over the weekend.
NBN Co kicks off Brunswick trial this week
NBN Co will this week begin trials at the third mainland Australia National Broadband Network (NBN) site situated in Brunswick, Victoria. The Brunswick trial site will be the third NBN site to come online on the Australian mainland, and the first to be situated outside of New South Wales.
DSD approves BlackBerry PlayBook
Research in Motion (RIM) this morning announced its new PlayBook tablet had received certification for use by the Australian Government.
CSC swallows iSOFT’s bitter pill
US-headquartered IT services giant CSC today revealed it had closed the acquisition oftroubled Australian e-health player iSOFT, in a move that will finally give CSC full control over the company it has long partnered with in the UK Government’s makeover of its national health technology systems, and will bring long-awaited stability to iSOFT’s operations.
Telstra lodges separation plan with ACCC
The nation's largest telco Telstra has filed two key documents with the national competition regulator which will pave the way for the final conclusive step in its decades-long journey from Australia's telecommunications monopolist to an equal player in the telco landscape.
Qld Govt hitting “panic button” ICT policy, says Opposition
The Queensland Opposition has accused the incumbent Bligh Labor State Government of hitting the "panic button" in a belated attempt to enter "catch-up mode" when it comes to technology policy, with a state election looming on the horizon.
Optus launches commercial femtocell service
The nation's number two telco Optus has ramped up its trial of femtocell technology into a fully-fledged commercial service offered across all of Australia's capital cities and large regional centres, with the flagship offer over the service seeing customers pay as little as $5 a month for unlimited calls nationally.
NBN Photos: Kiama’s big orange button
Did the Federal Government buy big "turn it on" buttons in bulk when it approved the National Broadband Network policy? It's starting to look that way, judging by the amount of NBN launch events it has held over the past few years. Today's big orange button comes from Kiama, where the NBN was officially switched on this morning.
AFACT wants ‘automated’ BitTorrent violation system
The Australian organisation representing film and TV studios' anti-piracy efforts has written to at least one local ISP requesting a meeting to discuss implementing an "automated processing system" for copyright infringement notices to be distributed to customers.
NBN switched on in Kiama, Minnamurra
Australia’s second mainland National Broadband Network (NBN) site has been turned on this morning, with residents in the Kiama Downs and Minnamurra area set to gain access to the high-speed network.
NBN Co releases wholesale, ACCC agreements
The National Broadband Network Company yesterday published two key documents which will guide how it provides wholesale broadband services to ISPs over the coming decades, using the fibre, wireless and satellite infrastructure which it is currently rolling out.
Google Cloud Sherpas land in Oz
In a bid to capitalise on the slowly growing number of businesses in Australia making the move to Google Apps, US firm Cloud Sherpas has now opened its first Australian office in Sydney that will provide local support and advice for customers.
Internode forces some customers onto new plans
Internode have this afternoon confirmed a number of existing out-of-contract customers would have to be moved onto the company’s newer plans because of a wholesaler “price squeeze”.
Qld Premier defends iPad first claim
Queensland Premier Anna Bligh has been forced to defend her claim that the state is the first government to allow ministers to read their briefing notes via Apple iPad, with a number of commentators pointing out a similar move by the Australian Capital Territory revealed just weeks ago.
NEC reveals rural broadband rollout
Telco and hardware manufacturer NEC has revealed a nation-wide expansion of its wholesale broadband network is nearing completion, with the last stage of the works to be finished by the end of 2011.
Ministers confirm DistributeIT hacking link
The nation's federal Attorney-General and Justice Minister late yesterday confirmed the suspect arrested this week in connection with telco hacking charges was also suspected of being the same hacker which destroyed DistributeIT’s web hosting infrastructure in mid-June.
AFP won’t confirm DistributeIT hacking link
The Australian Federal Police has declined to confirm claims by defunct web hosting company DistributeIT that the suspect it arrested this week in connection with telco hacking charges was also suspected of being the same hacker which destroyed DistributeIT’s web hosting infrastructure in mid-June.
‘Evil’ hacker also DistributeIT culprit, claims firm
Web hosting company DistributeIT has accused a suspect arrested this week by the Australian Federal Police of being the same hacker, known online as 'Evil', who effectively destroyed its business last month by remotely destroying the functionality of a number of its servers.
Google updates Aussie Street View images
Google today updated the imagery on its controversial Street View service in Australia for the first time since the Wi-Fi sniffing scandal emerged late last year.
Qld dumps cabinet ministers’ bags for iPads
The Queensland Government has revealed plans to become the first government in Australia to dump the traditional cabinet briefing bags full of paper documents and issue all of its ministers with iPads instead, for electronic access to the same information.
AFP arrests alleged telco hacker
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have this morning confirmed a 25-year-old Australian man has been arrested after allegedly hacking into an NBN wholesale provider’s systems.
Tassie Govt hack more serious than thought
It looks like the rogue group of Internet nuisances known as "S4t4n1c S0uls" didn't just break into the Tasmanian Government's media release distribution site recently, but also made off with a great deal of Government data.
HEAD HONCHO: Qld seeks CIO “champion”
For the second time in three years, the Queensland State Government has flagged plans to significantly enhance the powers of its whole of government chief information officer role, with Premier Anna Bligh today noting it would shortly start recruiting for a new executive to take on a drastically expanded brief.
Customers continue to desert Vodafone
Embattled mobile telco Vodafone has continued to lose customers over the past three month, according to new financial results documents released overnight, with some estimates placing the number lost in the quarter as high as 378,000.
NBN ISPs perform the same, says Linton
The outspoken chief executive of ISP Exetel has rejected claims that higher priced ISPs like Internode will be able to provide a better quality of network performance on the emerging National Broadband Network infrastructure, maintaining that all ISPs on the NBN will be offering an "identical" experience.
Will Telstra wholesale its Next G network?
Huge news arrives today courtesy of iTNews (click here for the full article), which reports that Telstra has started discussions with other carriers to allow wholesale access to its flagship Next G mobile network.
HTC EVO 3D to hit Telstra in September
Telstra this morning announced that from September it will be entering the multi-dimensional world; offering its first 3D smartphone, the HTC EVO 3D.
Exetel prices show up Coalition lies, says Conroy
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has demanded the Opposition admit they have been "misleading" Australians about the end user cost of accessing the National Broadband Network, in the wake of the release of new cut-rate NBN plans by ISP Exetel.
Delimiter Forum: Take #3
I just wanted to invite you to start beta testing Delimiter's new forum, which we have implemented over the past several weeks. You can find it by clicking here!
HP TouchPad hits Australia 15 August for $599
HP will begin selling its TouchPad tablet in Australia from August 15, with pricing starting at $599.
Was the R18+ classification a pyrrhic victory?
Australia's video game industry and gamers themselves hailed last week's in-principle agreement by almost all of the nation's states and territories on the need for an R18+ classification for video games as a historic victory. But was it in fact closer to a veiled defeat?
Amcom wins Uni of WA cloud work
Perth-headquartered telco Amcom has won a $9 million deal to provide hosted services to the University of Western Australia, in a deal which will see the telco deliver hundreds of servers and over 400 terabytes of storage to the institution.
Undercutting Internode: Exetel reveals NBN prices
National ISP Exetel has published its first commercial prices for services on the National Broadband Network, significantly undercutting previous prices published by rival Internode, with the cheapest option starting at $34.50 a month and the most expensive topping out at $99.50.
ACCC concerned about Foxtel/Austar merger
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced on Friday that it had delayed its decision on approving Foxtel’s takeover bid for Austar until September.
Conroy slams Turnbull’s “half-baked” NBN plan
Communications Minister Stephen COnroy yesterday attacked the Coalition's plans for an alternative to the National Broadband Network, calling the rival policy as “half-baked” and cobbled together.
NBN Co welcomes Internode’s “very good prices”
The National Broadband Network Company has taken to YouTube to defend the early NBN pricing plans unveiled by Internode this week, arguing the ISP's plans compare "very favourably" to current options in Australia's broadband market.
After a decade, Nola gives up DiData reins
After ten years at the top, IT services group Dimension Data today revealed the long-serving chief executive of its Australian division, Steve Nola, would take a step sideways to lead its growing global cloud computing business.
Telstra shifts jobs to India
Multiple outlets are reporting Telstra’s confirmation that it may shift up to 300 jobs to India. The story, of course, was broken by iTNews several days ago, which reported the figure at 200 jobs. Today we got a fresh new round of detail, with the AustralianIT placing the figure at 300 and the outsourcers being Tata Consulting Services and India. ZDNet.com.au has followed up with further confirmation.
NSW expects R18+ “reasonable compromise”
The NSW Government today said it expected a "reasonable compromise" would shortly be reached with the other states on the issue of an R18+ classification rating for video game sales in Australia, with the Federal Government hailing a national agreement on the issue this morning as a "historic win" that could see R18+ games being sold within "months".
NSW blocks R18+ video game rating
The NSW Government today reportedly abstained from voting on a proposal to introduce a long-awaited R18+ classification for video games sold in Australia, effectively halting the long-awaited new standard, despite the unanimous agreement of every other state and territory that it should go ahead.
Internode prices prove NBN failure, says Turnbull
Shadow Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has claimed that early pricing released by Internode yesterday for services on the National Broadband Network demonstrates consumer prices under the NBN will be higher than those currently levied for access to current broadband services.
iiNet CEO defends Interpol filter
The chief executive of one of Australia's largest Internet service providers has broken his company's relative silence on the voluntary limited filtering initiative being implemented by Telstra and Optus, defending the project and insisting it not be linked with the Federal Government's much broader mandatory filtering policy.
Xero buys Australia’s Paycycle for $1.5m
Accounting software provider Xero yesterday afternoon revealed it had signed an agreement which will see the company acquire Australian-based payroll startup Paycycle.
Internode unveils NBN pricing
National broadband provider Internode this afternoon revealed its initial pricing plans for commercial services over the planned National Broadband Network infrastructure, with the ISP to only offer so-called 'bundled' plans which come with a telephone connection and prices starting at $59.95 a month.
Quickflix raises $4.6m for Internet platform
Australian DVD rental service Quickflix this morning revealed it had raised over $4.6 million in funding through private investors, with the money set to be put towards the company’s growing expansion plans.
Salesforce.com shifts APAC customers to Japan
Software as a service giant Salesforce.com has started notifying customers whose services are hosted on its Asia-Pacific infrastructure (including Australia) that it intends to shift their services onto a new datacentre which it is currently putting the final touches on in Japan.
Mac markup: Apple levies Aussie tech tax
Iconic technology giant Apple will price its new range of products unveiled tonight substantially higher in Australia than in the US, reversing a trend seen recently where the company has appeared to be narrowing the pricing gap between Australia and its home country.
Lenovo tablets to hit Australia in September
Global technology giant Lenovo this afternoon revealed it would shortly become the newest contender in what is speedily becoming a very crowded local tablet computing market, confirming plans to launch two new ranges of devices running Android 3.1 in September this year.
Telstra forcing fibre voice bundling
From Communications Day yesterday comes the news that Telstra will force other ISPs who sign up to sell services over its new fibre network in South Brisbane to also resell a compulsory voice service alongside broadband.
HP TouchPad launch looms in Australia
Global technology giant HP has given a strong indication that it will shortly launch its flagship TouchPad tablet in Australia, inviting local media to a briefing next week regarding the device.
Optus offers TV from your mobile
Optus has this morning announced a new service which allows customers to record and watch free-to-air television from their mobile phone or computer on the go.
Software Qld tears State Govt a new one
The chairman of Software Queensland has ripped into the State Government in a fiery speech, telling the state's IT Minister to stop attending meetings of a joint working group and lambasting Queensland's public sector project management, while highlighting the efforts of industry figures such as PIPE Networks founder Bevan Slattery, a "money making machine".
Consulting firm ditches Google Apps for BPOS
Well, well, well. Looks like it’s not only Lotus Notes and Novell GroupWise customers who are dumping their collaboration suites for the Microsoft option. According to a case study published on Microsoft’s site on 14 July and quickly and mysteriously removed, Redmond has pulled one back from arch-rival Google.
NBN helped Coalition lose 2010 election
A landmark report handed down yesterday into the Coalition's loss in the 2010 Federal Election has highlighted a failure to adequately respond to Labor's flagship National Broadband Network plan as a key reason for losing valuable votes, especially in the sensitive Tasmanian electorate, which is receiving the network before the rest of the nation.
Apple to open Penrith store on 23 July
Apple has this morning confirmed its newest retail store in Australia will open to the general public on the 23rd of July.
ACMA builds new child abuse blacklist
Australia's communications regulator has this month quietly started evaluating new URLs which it believes may contain child abuse material, to be added to its controversial 'blacklist' of sites to be filtered under the Federal Government's planned mandatory Internet filtering scheme.
CBA’s dated IT systems forced its hand, says ANZ
ANZ Bank chief information officer Anne Weatherston has rejected claims the bank's technology platform was falling behind that of rivals, stating billion-dollar IT splurges by the likes of the Commonwealth Bank in recent years were necessary because of a lack of ongoing investment in technology infrastructure throughout the past several decades.
Optus beats Telstra to $30m Sydney Water deal
Optus' business division has won a close to $30 million contract to provide Sydney Water with telecommunications services across its business, knocking a number of other telcos including Telstra out from their incumbent position with the utility.
Patriot Act applies to Amazon Australia, warns Ninefold
Australian cloud computing specialist Ninefold has warned that any datacentre set up by global rival Amazon Web Services in Australia would still be subject to US legislation, despite being located in a different jurisdiction.
NBN scammers target Tasmania
Tasmanian technology lobby group Digital Tasmania has warned that scammers may be targeting residents in the state and fraudulently offering to sign them up to receive services over the National Broadband Network.
Victoria opens up IT services panel again
The Victorian Government has once again opened up its tendering process for its major technology services purchasing panel, known as the eServices Panel, following industry complaints that a recent cull of suppliers on the panel had resulted in too sharp a cutback.
iiNet exports BoB to New Zealand
Australian internet service provider iiNet today announced a new deal which will see products coming out of its Labs division sold in New Zealand as early as next week.
iOS price cuts catch Aussie developers off-guard
Australian developers making applications for Apple’s iOS product range were caught off-guard by the company’s sudden pricing changes, which have seen prices cut for apps under $5 to match American pricing.
Amazon opens Australian office
Global cloud computing and retail giant Amazon today told customers it had opened an Australian office with dedicated local staff to service the cloud computing market, as speculation continues to swirl that the company will also establish a new local datacentre facility to meet customer demand.
Stop favouring the US, customers tell Google
US-headquartered technology giant Google is facing a wave of complaints from users around the globe after it launched another in a string of online services which are only available to those who live in the United States.
Australia misses out on Apple app bulk buys
Alongside major pricing changes announced this morning, Apple has announced the forthcoming availability of a new program which will allow businesses to buy apps in bulk at once -- but there are no immediate plans to make the arrangement available in Australia.
Mystery man takes Primus reins as CEO quits
National broadband provider Primus overnight revealed the long-time chief executive of its Australian branch would leave his post, with a mysterious executive to take his place in the short term while a permanent replacement is sought.
Vodafone may support Interpol filter
National mobile carrier Vodafone has signalled its support for the new voluntary Internet filtering scheme being implemented by rivals Telstra and Optus, but has refused to clarify whether it will definitely implement the scheme or not.
Apple brings Aussie app store pricing into line
Apple has taken a new stance on pricing of applications in its iTunes and Mac app stores, with prices for apps in Australia now closer to their US counterparts.
What’s the best iPad 2 data plan?
Over at our sister site Delimiter Marketplace, we’ve posted an article examining the options for buying a SIM card (3G mobile broadband access) for your Apple iPad. There are quite a few choices — you can choose between Telstra, Optus, Vodafone, Virgin, Amaysim or even iiNet or Internode. Check out the article to find out what we think is the best option.
NSW Health to dump Novell GroupWise
To be honest, whenever we realise there's still a GroupWise implementation out there, we kind of feel like we've discovered an untouched ancient archeological dig. Who knows what treasures can be found buried there, amongst the musty trappings of the past covered in dust? What glories await? What ghosts of the past?
Pirate Party slams AFACT’s ISP “extortion”
The Australian arm of the Pirate Party late yesterday opened fire on the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft, accusing the group of "strong-arm tactics" and "extortion" in its renewed approaches to local ISPs over the past few weeks on the issue of online copyright infringement through file sharing services such as BitTorrent.
Telstra ‘price squeeze’: Hackett slams ACCC inaction
Telstra's been squeezing prices to its wholesale customers for almost a year now -- and the national competition regulator's taken zero action in response, according to Internode managing director Simon Hackett.
HP takes cloud step with MMG win
Technology giant HP this week took one of its first major steps into Australia's emerging cloud computing market, picking up a four-year IT transformation project with local miner Minerals and Metals Group which will see the company implement a hybrid cloud environment.
Please join Delimiter’s new email newsletter!
Just a quick administrative note to let you know that over the past several weeks Delimiter has launched a new daily email newsletter.
Internode simplifies broadband plans
National broadband provider Internode has revamped its monthly plan structure, with the aim of unifying its disparate product offerings under one simplified structure, and giving customers small bonuses in terms of extra quota and bundled services.
Xperia neo: Telstra adds to Android love-in
The nation's biggest telco Telstra has added to a string of exclusive launches of Android handsets, revealing plans this morning to launch Sony Ericsson's Xperia neo on 26 July.
Telstra’s “epic” HTC Sensation goes on sale
Telstra today started selling HTC's new flagship smartphone the Sensation in Australia, pricing the handset at the top of its range, with customers to pay a minimum of $79 a month for the device on a plan.
Interpol filter: Does it breach user agreements?
Does the mandatory implementation of a limited Internet filtering scheme by Telstra and Optus constitute a breach of the ISPs' existing agreements with their users? So far the situation is unclear, according to Australia's Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman.
Foxtel/Austar merger takes step forward
The multi-billion dollar merger of Foxtel and Austar has taken another step forward, with the pair confirming yesterday that definitive agreements had been signed which will see Foxtel buy all of the issued shares in its fellow pay TV operator.
Amazon planning Australian datacentre: Report
Amazon's Web Services cloud computing division is planning to open a new datacentre hosted in Australia next year, according to an article published in the Australian newspaper this morning.
Changing the enterprise IT buying paradigm
What innovative thinkers in Australia and the US are trying to get to right now is a more flexible and responsive model of buying enterprise IT goods and services. Most of the discussion around this in Australia is currently taking place in the context of cloud computing. But there's more to it than that.
Video: Pollenizer’s Phil Morle + Bronwen Clune
In this video filmed by the good chaps at StartCastAU, Pollenizer co-founder Phil Morle and staffer Bronwen Clune discuss how the startup incubator works internally, including the concept of ‘cross-pollenization’, which sees the team as a whole discuss issues with the wider team outside the segregated ‘pods’ in which they do their day to day work.
Android? Meh, says DSD
Android is speedily becoming Australia's most popular mobile operating system, with sales of devices using it poised to outstrip Apple by the end of 2011. But the Federal Government's peak security agency this week clarified it hadn't yet started evaluating Google's Android platform for use within the public sector just yet -- seeing no immediate need.
iiNet’s Malone calls for end to NBN politics
iiNet chief executive Michael Malone has called for those commenting on the National Broadband Network to return to judging ideas on their "technical merit", instead of letting politics cloud the national debate.
AFACT issues BitTorrent warning to ISPs
'Deal with us or else': The Australian organisation representing film and TV studios in their war against online content piracy has written to local ISPs inviting them to work with it on a solution to the issue -- or else it will take action in its own right off the back of precedents set in its lawsuit against major ISP iiNet.
Video: WA Premier cans shared services project
In this video published by the Western Australian Government today, WA Premier Colin Barnett outlines the Government's response to a damning report into its eight year-long shared services project, which has run significantly over time and over budget.
WA DUMPS SHARED SERVICES PLAN
Eight years after it was begun and with its credibility in tatters, the Western Australian State Government today announced it would cancel its controversial plan to provide shared corporate services to its departments and agencies through a centralised platform.
Exetel shuns ‘pointless’ Interpol filter
Exetel has joined ranks with Internode and TPG with respect to the limited filtering scheme being rolled out by Telstra and Optus, with the ISP's chief executive John Linton today stating it would not implement the scheme unless required to do so by law, and describing the industry association backing the project as "a bunch of wankers with nothing better to do with their time than pointlessly pontificate".
iiNet’s new BoB goes on sale
National broadband provider iiNet has started selling the second major version of its popular BoB integrated routers, as well as a wireless bridge which aims to link customers' loungeroom media centres with their Internet connections.
Redundancies hit QBE’s IT department
Insurance giant QBE this afternoon confirmed it had made a number of staff in its IT department redundant and was seeking to hire a new chief information officer, as the company's profits took a hit following the global series of natural disasters.
We’ve upgraded Samsung’s Galaxy S II, claims Telstra
The nation's largest telco Telstra has justified its late launch of Samsung's flagship Galaxy S II handset this month by stating it has made a number of improvements to the device which won't appear when customers buy the high-level handset from other carriers.
Pollenizer coup: Dealised wins $5m round
Australian tech startup incubator Pollenizer has notched up another major success, announcing this morning that its Dealised company whose technology underpins Australian group buying site Spreets has taken a $5 million investment round led by a venture capital fund belonging to Singaporean telecommunications giant SingTel.
Telstra restructures … yet again
Telstra chief executive David Thodey has again embarked on a major restructuring effort within Telstra, representing the latest in half a dozen such initiatives since the executive took Telstra's reins in mid-2009.
Filtering technically impossible for us, says NBN Co
The National Broadband Network Company late yesterday confirmed it wouldn't be implementing the limited filtering scheme being implemented by other Australian telcos, noting that the national network it was constructing was incompatible with the type of technology being used in the filter.
Cracks open in DSD’s iOS shield
Several signs have emerged over the past week that the long-held reluctance of the Federal Government's peak security certification agency to approve of Apple devices being used in the public sector may finally be coming to an end.
We’ll filter when the law makes us: Internode
National broadband provider Internode has clarified its position with respect to the limited filtering scheme being implemented by other ISPs, saying it will implement the scheme when it's forced to by law - but not otherwise.
eBooks: Publishers + authors keen, but unprepared
Australia's peak organisation representing the rights of copyright owners has published the results of an extensive survey demonstrating that the nation's authors and publishers are enthusiastic about the burgeoning eBook revolution, but haven't quite yet formulated all of their next steps in the new digital environment.
Optus’ filter can be defeated by ‘trivial’ DNS change
The nation's second-largest telco Optus this afternoon confirmed users would be able to defeat its implementation of a blacklist filter of sites containing child pornography merely by changing the DNS settings on their PC.
AGIMO finalises open source guide
The Federal Government's peak IT strategy branch has published the final version of its second guide to open source software for departments and agencies, in its latest move to help the public sector better understand how to buy and use open source software.
Telstra shutters online DVD rental arm
Telstra has revealed plans to shut down its long-running online DVD rental service, with customers to be referred instead to rival service Quickflix.
Optus’ filter to go live later this month
The nation's number two telco Optus has confirmed it will follow Telstra and start filtering its customers' Internet traffic for a blacklist of sites containing child pornography within the next few weeks.
Telstra’s Interpol filter goes live
The nation's largest telco Telstra tonight confirmed it had started filtering its customers' Internet traffic for a blacklist of sites containing child pornography as compiled by international policing agency Interpol.
Network re-fit going well, claims Vodafone
National mobile carrier Vodafone this afternoon said it was ahead of schedule in delivering the re-build of its troubled mobile network, stating that customers were already starting to see a difference in the quality of their connections.
Wi-Fi Motorola Xoom hits JB Hi-Fi
Motorola has launched a version of its Xoom Android tablet without 3G mobile broadband support, with the device having gone on sale through JB Hi-Fi and other retailers today for a recommended retail price of $689, a price which makes it comparable with the Wi-Fi version of Apple's market-dominating iPad.
Don’t let the FBI steal your server, says Ninefold
Fledgling Australian cloud computing startup Ninefold has so far played relatively nice when it comes to the jurisdictional debate about where data should be stored, politely making its way amongst the likes of Amazon, Microsoft, Google and so on. But yesterday the company took the gloves off.
Pollenizer’s new office + Mick Liubinskas’ crazy life
In this video filmed by the good chaps at StartCastAU, local tech startup luminary Mick Liubinskas walks us through the new offices of his startup incubator Pollenizer. It’s been a wild ride for Liubinskas and his co-founder Phil Morle.
Developers association investigates Team Bondi
The video game industry's peak global body for professional developers has pledged to investigate Australian studio Team Bondi, in the wake of allegations the company mis-treated staff during the lengthy development process for its flagship L.A. Noire game launched last month.
$90,000 fine: Microsoft busts Qld pirate
Software giant Microsoft yesterday revealed it had successfully prosecuted a Queensland man who was selling counterfeit copies of the company's software packages, with a judge this week ruling the defendant would have to pay Microsoft $90,000 in civil damages and the man separately pleading guilty to several dozen counts of fraud.
Gillard repeats: Abbott would ‘rip the NBN fibre up’
Prime Minister Julia Gillard has repeated her claim that a Coalition Government would physically remove the National Broadband Networks' fibre cables out of the ground if it were to take office.
Mana Bar Melbourne opens 16 July
It's taken quite a bit longer than expected, but trendy video game-focused cocktail bar the Mana Bar today finally confirmed the launch date for its Melbourne facility as 16 July this year.
Victoria slams ‘risky, uncompetitive’ NBN policy
Victoria's Coalition State Government has heavily criticised the Labor Federal Government's flagship National Broadband Network policy, arguing in a submission to a parliamentary inquiry into the NBN that the project could see the telecommunications sector's existing "dysfunctional" market structure replicated and competition put at risk.
Up to 76% more: Australia’s raw Office 365 deal
Global software behemoth Microsoft has jacked up the prices of its flagship cloud productivity suite Office 365 for the service's launch in Australia, listing local prices up to 76 percent higher than the exact same service will cost in the United States.
Telstra CFO Stanhope to retire
The nation's biggest telco Telstra today announced its long-time chief financial officer John Stanhope would retire at the end of this year, putting paid to a career with the company of more than 40 years.
SA Coalition slams shared services “disaster”
South Australia's Shadow Finance Minister Rob Lucas has added to a long-running series of attacks on the Labor State Government's handling of technology initiatives, labelling its implementation of a series of shared services centres as an "unmitigated disaster" that had blown out by $68 million.
IIA blacklist just “security theatre”, says EFA
Digital rights lobby group Electronic Frontiers Australia has panned the efficacy of the Internet Industry Association's planned industry-wide child pornography filter, describing it as "security theatre" that wouldn't actually make much difference to the ability of police to enforce the law.
CSC, Telstra want longer-term AGIMO strategy
Several of Australia's largest suppliers of technology suppliers to the Federal Government have called for it to be more forward-thinking, in reactions to a draft whole of government strategic vision published by its peak IT decision-making agency in mid-April this year.
It’s on: Android to beat Apple down under this year
By the end of this year, there will be more Android-based smartphones being sold in Australia than Apple iPhones, according to IDC research released yesterday -- with Finnish giant Nokia falling further and further behind.
PCRange CEO moved suburbs to get NBN fibre
The chief executive of consumer electronics distributor PCRange, Raaj Menon, moved Adelaide suburbs earlier this year with the specific aim of being one of the first customers to be connected to the National Broadband Network, he revealed yesterday -- although his wife was happy as long as she could still get Facebook over Wi-Fi.
“It’s not censorship”: IIA defends Interpol blacklist
Australia's peak internet industry body today sought to distance its fledgling child pornography filtering scheme from the Federal Government's mandatory filtering policy, stating its own more limited approach was more akin to ISPs cooperating with law enforcement authorities and would not constitute a form of censorship.
Most ISPs will filter Interpol list this year: IIA
The association representing Australia's internet industry today claimed that 80 to 90 percent of Australians would have their internet connections filtered for child pornography this year, following the release of an industry code in July that will focus on a blacklist of sites supplied by international policing agency Interpol.
Primus may dump voluntary ISP filter
National broadband provider Primus has given its first indication that it may have changed its mind about implementing a voluntary ISP-based filter to block child pornography from reaching its customers, despite making a commitment on the issue 12 months ago to the Federal Government.
Telstra to launch HTC’s latest Sensation
Forget the Desire HD and the Samsung Galaxy S II. There's a new top dog in Android smartphones in Australia, and it's coming to Australia very shortly.
Full video: Telstra’s NBN deal press conference
In this video, published by the Australian Labor Party, the Federal Government, Telstra and NBN Co reveal at a press conference in Canberra last Thursday that they have finally inked the $11 billion deal which will see Telstra's infrastructure made available to NBN Co to speed up the NBN rollout, and Telstra's fixed-line customers migrated onto the NBN as it is rolled out across Australia over the next decade.
Telstra proposes to filter Interpol blacklist
The nation's largest telco Telstra today revealed it was close to receiving executive sign-off for its internal proposal guiding the technical details of how it will cooperate with the Federal Government to voluntarily filter a list of sites containing child pornography from being accessed by its internet customers.
Vodafone bundles PlayBook with BlackBerry
National mobile carrier Vodafone has released a limited amount of information about how it will price Research in Motion's BlackBerry PlayBook, noting the device will be available bundled on a single monthly plan with the BlackBerry Bold 9780 handset and will launch next week on June 29.
Conroy releases key telco reforms
As expected, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy this afternoon released the final versions of five key regulatory instruments which will pave the way for Telstra to file its long-awaited structural separation undertaking with the competition regulator.
Voluntary ISP filter attracts global attention
The continued support by several of Australia's largest internet service providers for a voluntary version of the Federal Government's mandatory ISP filtering scheme has attracted the ire of the world's largest digital rights group, the Electronic Frontiers Foundation.
Curtin University deploys Office 365
Perth's Curtin University has flagged plans to deploy Microsoft's Office 365 software as a service productivity suite, in one of the first major known local implications of the technology and ahead of what is expected to be a substantial push by Microsoft of the service in Australia.
Hasta la vista, Turnbull: Conroy is “the Terminator”
In one of the more amusing articles we’ve seen discussing the relative performance of Communications Minister Stephen Conroy against his nemesis Malcolm Turnbull, Bernard Keane argues at Crikey that Conroy is akin to one of science fiction’s greatest villains.
Wireless clause? Not an issue, says Thodey
Telstra chief executive David Thodey has maintained a clause in his company’s $11 billion contract with Telstra and the Federal Government unveiled yesterday that will block wireless technologies being marketed as fibre alternatives would have negligible impact on Telstra’s business, despite other company leaders having slammed the clause as being anti-competitive.
Netregistry buys Distribute.IT
Netregistry this morning revealed it had acquired fellow domain name specialist and web hosting company Distribute.IT, offering the beleagured company's customers a lifeline following the destructive hack of its servers over the past few weeks.
Gillard’s ‘rip it out’ claims ludicrous, says Turnbull
Shadow Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has described claims by Prime Minister Julia Gillard this morning that a Coalition Government would "dig up" NBN optic fibre out of the ground instead of using it as "ludicrous" and "false".
Abbott would ‘dig NBN cables up’, says Gillard
Prime Minister Julia Gillard this morning claimed the Opposition was still determined to destroy her government's flagship National Broadband Network project, and would take a policy to the next election of literally ripping the initiative's fibre-optic cables "out of the ground".
NBN: Optus migrates HFC users for $800m
Not content to be left out of the limelight by big brother Telstra, the nation's number two telco Optus has also this morning announced a significant deal with NBN Co, with the arrangement to see parts of its HFC network shuttered and its customers progressively migrated onto the fibre NBN infrastructure at a total cost to NBN Co of $800 million.
IT’S DONE: Telstra inks $11bn NBN deal
As expected, Telstra this morning revealed it had signed what it described as 'Definitive Agreements' with NBN Co and the Federal Government which will make its infrastructure available to the fledgling broadband company and its customers progressively migrated onto the growing NBN fibre network over the next decade, at a cost to NBN Co of $11 billion.
Atlassian invests in Dutch SaaS firm
Australia-headquartered software group Atlassian has invested an undisclosed amount in Dutch software as a service business Cloud9, in the company's second investment since it took $60 million in venture capital funding in July last year.
Apple hikes Aussie Final Cut Pro X prices
Iconic technology giant Apple appears to have upped the price of its Final Cut Pro X software for launch in Australia, with locals to pay about $66 more for the exact same software -- delivered through the exact same online store.
EFA loses Jacobs to the Greens
The high-profile chair of Electronic Frontiers Australia has revealed he is set to leave his role for a role advising Greens Senator Richard Di Natale in Federal Parliament.
New cybercrime laws to land today
Federal Attorney-General Robert McLelland this morning revealed the Gillard Government would today introduce tougher laws tackling cybercrime, unifying Australia's approach with international legisation in the process.
4,800 DistributeIT sites “unrecoverable”
Beleagured domain name seller and web hosting group DistributeIT today informed customers who had sites hosted on a number of its servers that their sites and emails were now considered "unrecoverable", as fallout continued to rain down from a disastrous hack on the company's infrastructure over the past several weeks.
Qld Govt IT needs work, says auditor
Queensland's Auditor-General has warned the State Government it must pull its socks up when it comes to the governance of its IT projects and security of its IT assets, in the wake of a number of high-profile and damaging technology debacles in the state that have called into question how its $1.5 billion annual IT spend is administered.
Telstra’s Ultimate Wi-Fi: Get a closer look
In this video, Telstra gives customers a closer look at the dual-channel HSPA+, 802.11n-capable battery powered 3G Wi-Fi hotspot it launched this morning ... along with a few cameos of the Motorola Xoom tablet it's also selling. Looks like a pretty solid little device -- with quite a few more settings and a better management interface than previous Telstra offerings we've seen.
NBN Co hires music anti-piracy chief
The National Broadband Network Company today confirmed it had hired one of the most high-profile executives working for the music industry's Australian anti-piracy taskforce, Music Industry Piracy Investigations (MIPI).
Fujitsu wins NBN Co desktop deal
The National Broadband Network Company has inked a $25 million deal with Fujitsu which will see the Japanese technology giant take over support for the fledgling fibre startup's desktop PCs and laptops for the next three years.
Telstra launches dual-channel HSPA+ hotspot
The nation's largest telco Telstra has launched another 3G mobile Wi-Fi hotspot to support its flagship Next G network, with the device to be the first to support higher speeds through dual-channel support for the HSPA+ technology used on the telco's network.
Foxtel on T-Box lands 27 June
Telstra's T-Box IPTV set-top box will receive a fresh injection of content next week, with the telco revealing today that significant amounts of content from its Foxtel pay TV joint venture would be available on the T-Box from 27 June.
Watch out, Victoria: NSW wants to lead Australian ICT
Victoria looks to have a dogfight on its hands to retain its title as Australia's technology capital, with the new Coalition State Government in NSW today vowing it would lead the nation when it came to the sector.
$800m gorilla: Telstra seeds its cloud
The nation’s largest telco Telstra today started throwing its sizable weight around in Australia’s burgeoning cloud computing market, throwing down a $800 million investment in the space and revealing a tranche of new corporate customers.
You’ll get the NBN: Conroy promises Tassie schools
The Office of Communciations Minister Stephen Conroy has reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to bringing the National Broadband Network to Tasmanian schools, in the wake of news yesterday that schools in early stage rollout zones in Tasmania had not had the NBN fibre switched on a year after it was connected.
COO Yuile takes AAPT’s Broad reins
Telecom New Zealand subsidiary AAPT this morning revealed its chief executive Paul Broad had resigned, with his post to be taken up from 1 July by the company’s chief operating officer David Yuile.
WA Govt has zero IT security, says auditor
Western Australia's auditor-general has handed down a landmark report which details the fact that none of a wide range of government departments and agencies in the state are currently able to prevent basic cyber-attacks against their IT infrastructure -- or even detect that they had taken place.
Payroll problems overshadow Queensland budget
The Queensland Government has unveiled a raft of moderate-sized technology projects in its state budget handed down this week. However, all are dwarfed by a substantial tranche of funding allocated towards the highly public problems suffered by its disastrous payroll systems implementation at Queensland Health.
One year later: TASSIE SCHOOLS NOT ON THE NBN
Almost a year after the National Broadband Network was officially switched on in Tasmania, the State Government has been forced to concede that no school in the early stage release towns of Scottsdale, Midway Point and Smithton have actually been connected to the next-generation fibre Internet the project will provide.
Telstra’s Craig Middleton … or David Attenborough?
Ever wondered what Telstra spokespeople get up to on their off days? Wonder no more, gentle viewers, but instead watch the video above, where Telstra’s Craig Middleton, a gentleman of our long acquaintance, does his best impression of naturist David Attenborough.
AGIMO finalises telco management panel
Federal Government agencies now have a centralised way in which to purchase telecommunications management services, with the establishment this week of a new panel featuring seven suppliers.
Nextgen’s wholesale ‘no magic bullet’, says Hackett
A service launched yesterday which will aggregate National Broadband Network capacity across Australia was "no magic bullet" which would completely resolve perceived issues with the NBN's pricing model, according to Internode managing director Simon Hackett.
Android tablets: Weaker sales than expected
Apple will take an even stronger slice of Australia's fast-growing tablet market than previously expected, one of the nation's major technology analyst firms said today, with Android vendors slow to bring their devices to market and not having different enough features to take much away from the iPad 2.
Nextgen launches NBN aggregation service
National wholesale telco Nextgen Networks today revealed a new product for retail telcos which it has billed as the first service to aggregate its own capacity together with access to the fledgling National Broadband Network rollout, in order to facilitate smaller ISPs providing NBN services with a footprint across Australia.
CA loses Australian chief
Technology giant CA this morning confirmed its local managing director Brenton Smith had quit to join another local technology vendor, with the company looking for a replacement.
linux.conf.au finally controls domain name
It's taken several years, quite a lot of negotiation and the use of alternatives to get it through an uncertain period. But Australian open source conference Linux.conf.au has finally permanently secure the rights to its own domain name.
YouTube reinstates Problogger account
YouTube has taken quick action to reinstate the account of Melbourne-based web entrepreneur and blogger Darren Rowse, acknowledging it had made "the wrong call" when it yesterday summarily suspended the account for six months for perceived violation of its terms by a single video published by his Problogger site.
YouTube kills Problogger account
YouTube has unexpectedly suspended the account of Melbourne-based web entrepreneur and blogger Darren Rowse, who runs the high-profile Problogger and Digital Photography School sites, among others.
NBN Co kicks off fibre extension trial
The National Broadband Network Company has started contacting a number of Tasmanian residents on the edges of the planned fibre coverage area, inviting them to request a quote to have the NBN fibre extended to their premises at their own cost.
Facebook PR chief’s first job: Quelling Queensland
We were encouraged to note that Facebook has finally decided to hire some brave soul to act as an Australian spokesperson.
Simon Hackett needs one of these babies
Eagle-eyed Twitterer Eric spotted this little hot rod being towed around Adelaide this afternoon. Our only question is, does Internode MD Simon Hackett drive it himself? Obviously he’s already got his Tesla Roadster … but this baby looks like it’d be fun as well.
AICD’s membership data stolen
Australia's peak organisation for company directors has warned its members to be on the lookout for attempts at identity fraud, after today disclosing that a computer had been stolen from its offices which may have contained data on its many thousands of high-profile members and clients located around the nation.
Replace RSA tokens, DSD tells agencies
The Federal Government's peak security agency has recommended departments and agencies accept the offer by troubled security vendor RSA for replacement copies of its SecurID keyfob identification tokens, as the fallout over a security break-in to RSA's headquarters continues to be felt in Australia.
Cisco’s Williamson takes APAC role
The long-time leader of Cisco's Australian division has been promoted to take on responsibilities for the US networking giant's newly created Asia-Pacific operation, with the company planning to appoint a successor for the local lead role "in the near future".
It’s Toshiba’s turn for an Android tablet
Toshiba has joined the long queue of international manufacturers launching an Android tablet in Australia, revealing late yesterday that its AT100 tablet would reach Australian shores at the end of this month.
Are NBN Co execs paid too much?
Debate is swirling in the telecommunications industry this week about whether NBN Co executives are paid too much, with one newspaper and the Opposition criticising the company's remuneration structure, but the company itself highlighting its achievements so far and the need to pay commercial salaries to attract the right talent.
HP Touchpad to hit Australia ‘later this year’
Global technology giant HP has given the first indication of timing about when its flagship tablet device would be launched in Australia, revealing in a statement overnight that Australians would be able to buy the device "later this year" after it launched in a range of other countries first.
Shifting sands as RSA disaster confuses Australia
The approach that a number of major Australian companies and government departments are taking to RSA's revelation that the integrity of its widely used SecurID two-factor authentication system had been compromised is changing hourly, as the nation's major banks and other organisations discuss the matter with the security vendor and their customers.
Symantec lets Australian engineers go
Global security giant Symantec this morning confirmed plans to make some of its Sydney-based engineers redundant, with the roles to go offshore.
Two views on Australian PlayBook adoption
On 20 June, Research in Motion’s BlackBerry Playbook will become the first non-Android competitor to enter the Australian market and challenge the dominance of Apple’s flagship iPad tablet. But will the PlayBook be a fast-seller or a failure? We asked several industry experts for their opinion.
BlackBerry PlayBook due 20 June, from $579
Research in Motion's BlackBerry PlayBook tablet will launch through all of Australia's major mobile carriers as well as retailer Harvey Norman in three different models from 20 June, the Canadian company said today, with recommended retail prices starting at $579.
Telstra doubles bundled data quotas
The nation's biggest telco Telstra has fired a new shot across the bow of its broadband rivals, allocating customers more value from existing bundled plans by doubling or more than doubling the amount of data quota they can use.
Jetstar to shift most staff to Google Apps
Low-cost airline Jetstar today revealed plans to implement a multi-pronged email strategy that will see most head office staff continue to use Microsoft's Outlook/Exchange platform, but about 2,200 support staff shifted onto Google's Apps platform, which features as its core the Gmail messaging app.
Australians locked out of iTunes Cloud
Apple has limited access to its new iTunes Cloud and iTunes Match services announced overnight to US residents only, with timing on any Australian launch for the services so far being unclear.
‘Why am I here?’ wonders Brumbies player
We couldn't help but be amused by this video shot at the opening of CA's new Canberra office. Not only does Senator Kate Lundy wax a little too lyrical about "one of the most exciting projects I've seen for a long time" -- the implementation of CA performance analysis software for the Brumbies -- but we couldn't help feeling Brumbies player Patrick Phibbs probably wished he was somewhere else during the entire process. Uncomfortable, much?
Congrats to Jeremy Kime, iPad 2 owner!
After quite a few weeks of tangling with Apple's retail staff, we have managed to purchase one of these little babies, and today I'm happy to announce the winner: Queensland software developer Jeremy Kime!
DDoS attack knocks Atlassian offline
A distributed denial of service attack against Atlassian's hosting provider took the company's software as a service platform down for a few hours this morning, with services returning this afternoon.
The IPv4 sky isn’t falling, says Internode
That hotspot of broadband goodness Internode has criticised what is says are “Chicken Little” views of an Internet “IPocalypse” due to the number of available IPv4 addresses running out — and the global online community taking too damn long to shift to IPv6.
Amazon CTO hits Australia in cloud push
The chief technology officer of global retailer and technology giant Amazon has scheduled in a trip to Australia in mid-July to spruik the company's cloud computing offerings, as interest in the burgeoning field of online cloud platforms continues to boom.
Brumby, Downer, to guide Huawei
Chinese technology manufacturer Huawei has appointed two former heavy-hitting politicians to its Australian board of directors as it continues its drive to demonstrate the independence of its Australian operation.
Fibre to the node would do 60Mbps: Turnbull
Shadow Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull yesterday claimed about half the cost of the Government’s flagship National Broadband Network project could be chopped and...
Govt commissions cyber-security whitepaper
Three of the Gillard Government's heaviest-hitting ministers have teamed up to announce this morning that their respective portfolio departments will work together to develop a major new white paper to map out the nation's response to cybersecurity issues which they say continue to build in importance.
Kogan launches early Chromebook
Maverick consumer electronics manufacturer Kogan has once again stolen a march on his big global rivals; launching a laptop in Australia running the open source version of Google's Chrome OS before companies like Samsung and Acer have brought their products to market.
Telstra switches on Brisbane fibre
The nation's largest telco Telstra yesterday began switching on the new fibre broadband services it has recently installed in the South Brisbane exchange area, as it continues its project to replace its copper network in the area.
“IT needs a voice,” Wadeson tells successor (video)
Check out the video above filmed by ZDNet.com.au, in which retiring Department of Human Services deputy secretary of ICT Infrastructure and long-time Centrelink CIO John Wadeson advises his successor — whoever that winds up being — that IT needs a voice in the department, and it’s not just “a tool, as some people like to call it”.
Telstra’s structural separation: It’s here
Depending on who you talk to, it's been coming since deregulation in 1997. Yesterday Communications Minister Stephen Conroy released draft versions of the regulatory instruments through which Telstra will be forced to structurally separate its operations into different whole and retail divisions, a process which will likely mainly be achieved though the rollout of the National Broadband Network.
CeBIT: Victoria NBN opt-in policy ‘short-sighted’: Bartlett
Former Tasmanian Premier David Bartlett has described the decision by Victoria's State Government to pursue an 'opt-in' policy regarding connecting residents and businesses to the National Broadband Network as "very short-sighted", arguing for much broader government engagement and focus on the network to maximise its positive outcomes.
CeBIT: Watch the videos
A number of media outlets filmed videos at the CeBIT trade fair and conference series in Sydney this week.
NBN wireless latency ‘the same as 3G’
The National Broadband Network Company today provided further details of how its Ericsson-backed national wireless network was expected to perform technically, with chief technology officer Gary McLaren stating the network was expected to perform at least on par with existing 3G mobile networks when it came to network latency.
NBN Co inks wireless, construction deals
The National Broadband today signed several major billion-dollar contracts that will allow it to proceed to roll out its planned fibre network in several major states, as well as its wireless network covering a smaller proportion of the population nationally.
LG Optimus Black lands next month
The wave of high-end Android smartphones hitting Australian shores in mid-2011 has just risen a little higher, with Korean manufacturer LG confirming this morning that its Optimus Black handset will launch locally this month through Optus and Vodafone, and in July through Telstra.
CeBIT 2011: Photo gallery
We wandered around CeBIT all of today, taking in the sights -- and there were many of them. Dozens of companies, IT celebrities, and just some amazing products. CeBIT 2011 has it all.
Oxygen-fuelled SAP cloud achieves lift-off
German software giant SAP doesn’t appear to have placed a big emphasis on selling its applications in Australia over the past few years under the new style of software-as-a-service or cloud computing model. But all that might be about to change, courtesy of an offering launched last week by one of its largest local partners.
CeBIT: Bartlett slams ‘uninformed’ NBN media sideshow
The former Premier of Tasmania and one of the architects of the early National Broadband Network rollout in the state has slammed what he has described as “stupid, uninformed debate” from much of Australia’s media over what he saw as tiny issues in the rollout of the network over the past year.
CeBIT: Optus wants ACCC controls on Austar buy
Optus chief executive Paul O’Sullivan has requested the nation’s competition regular intervene in the proposed $1.9 billion merger of pay TV giants Austar and Foxtel, repeating earlier warnings that the next battlefield for Australia’s telecommunications sector in a National Broadband Network world would be “open access” to content and applications.
CeBIT: Conroy releases Digital Economy strategy
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy this morning released the Federal Government’s Digital Economy Strategy, a document which aims to lay out a vision for how the nation will best take advantage of the Government’s flagship National Broadband Network project.
Human Services advertises top CIO role
He might have successfully attracted hundreds of millions of dollars for ICT infrastructure from this year's Federal Budget, but it appears as if Department of Human Services technology chief John Wadeson won't be around to see the projects delivered that the money will fund.
Traffic spat disturbs group buying market
A war of words has erupted in Australia's fast-growing group buying market, after new entrant Groupon claimed it had already secured the lion's share of local web traffic in the category, despite having only launched in mid-February this year.
BlackBerry PlayBook to hit Australia in June
Research In Motion (RIM) has confirmed that its BlackBerry PlayBook tablet will launch in Australia in June this year, but has not yet been able to confirm any further pricing or availability details.
Austar/Foxtel deal strengthens Telstra, warns Optus
The nation's number two telco Optus yesterday raised concerns about Foxtel's multi-billion dollar bid to acquire fellow pay TV operator Austar, claiming the merger would strengthen rival Telstra's ability to exploit bundled services. However, not everyone agrees with the SingTel subsidiary.
Telstra’s HTC Desire S and Wildfire S launch
Call us suckers but we quite like this video shot by Telstra at its launch this week of HTC's Desire S and Wildfire S phones.
Conroy trusts public’s “common sense” on filter
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy this afternoon said he trusted Australians to get the mix of content to be blocked under Labor's controversial mandatory internet filter project right, and that the Government remained committed to the initiative.
Quigley smears are “Godwin Grech revisited”: Conroy
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy this morning laughed off questions about the appointment of Mike Quigley to lead NBN Co, describing issues raised by his shadow Malcolm Turnbull as being a "pathetic" smear campaign and "Godwin Grech re-visited".
Foxtel makes $1.9 billion bid for Austar
In a move long reported to be in the wings, Foxtel has made a bid to acquire fellow pay TV operator Austar, in a move which would create a much larger consolidated company which would dominate the subscription entertainment market in Australia.
HTC Desire S hits Telstra 31 May
The nation's largest telco Telstra last night confirmed launch pricing and availability for the mobile phone which many see as the successor to last year's popular HTC Desire.
Freshtel shuts up shop after seven years
More than seven years after it was founded during a national wave of interest in internet telephony, and after burning through millions of dollars in investment, Australian company Freshtel has revealed it will finally get out of the Voice over IP market and go into mining instead.
Federal Govt releases R18+ game guidelines
The Federal Government this afternoon released draft guidelines which would support the introduction of an R18+ classification for video games, as it continued its push to convince the states and territories to bring video game classification in line with other mediums such as film.
Federal Parliament warms to the iPad
Liberal MP Jamie Briggs has one. Labor MP Ed Husic read his maiden speech from his. And Malcolm Turnbull is famous for using his all the time. But officials in Federal Parliament are only gradually beginning to concede that it might be OK for Apple-obsessed politicians to connect their iDevices to the parliamentary Wi-Fi network.
Conroy slams Libs’ Tassie NBN “scaremongering”
A war of words has erupted between Communications Minister Stephen Conroy and Liberal Senator Guy Barnett, with the latter claiming the National Broadband Network rollout in his home state of Tasmania was taking longer than expected.
ACS hires CEO with no IT experience
Australia's peak organisation for technology professionals has hired a new chief executive without any direct experience in the technology sector.
Telstra to throttle mobiles after quota exceeded
The nation's biggest telco Telstra has revealed plans to start throttling data speeds on its customers' mobile phones once they exceed their monthly quota, in an effort to avoid the so-called 'bill shock' phenomenon that can occur when post-quota data is charged in increments.
ninemsn CEO Pollard resigns
Web joint venture ninemsn is on the hunt for a new chief executive, following the revelation this morning that its current leader Joe Pollard had resigned her role and would leave the company at the end of September.
First LTE base stations go live for Telstra
The nation's biggest telco Telstra this morning revealed it had switched on the first hardware using the Long-Term Evolution standard for faster mobile access to its flagship Next G network, as debate in the industry about the so-called 'fourth generation' or 4G of mobile networks continues to swirl.
Court throws Cohen’s iSOFT claim out
The New South Wales Supreme Court has thrown out a claim by former iSOFT executive Gary Cohen over a portion of the company which appears to be owned by investment house Oceania Capital Partners.
Jellema’s ZeroMail launches paid beta
An ambitious Australian technology startup attempting to overhaul the dated email paradigm has launched a beta version of its service, charging $100 for a lifetime standard account.
Catch of the Day wins Packer, Seek backing
A group of high-profile investors including James Packer and the co-founder of Seek have ploughed millions in investment capital into controversial Melbourne-based online retailer CatchOfTheDay -- which is also behind the Scoopon group buying site.
Contactless payment hits Woolworths
National retailer Woolworths this afternoon revealed plans to roll out the incoming generation of contactless payment facilities across all of its brands, providing yet another validation of the technology which has already been adopted by several major banks.
Samsung’s Galaxy S II hits Optus early June
Optus today confirmed the mobile phone which giant gadget blog Engadget has rated as possibly the best smartphone bar none will go on sale through its network in "early June", and will be available on a range of plans starting from $63 per month in total on a 24 month contract.
Winner announcement: Ninefold competition
You may remember that together with our friends at Australian cloud computing company Ninefold, Delimiter recently ran a competition. Here's the winner!
Conroy has “stuffed up” NBN pricing, says Hackett
In the latest salvo in an ongoing war of words with Stephen Conroy and NBN Co, Internode managing director Simon Hackett has accused the Communications Minister of having "stuffed up" the National Broadband Network pricing model in a way that will slow the growth of broadband in Australia.
CommBank deploys Lync to 32,000 staff
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has revealed it recently deployed Microsoft’s Lync unified communications server to some 32,000 staff across its operations, in one of the largest known roll-outs of the fledgling technology in Australia so far.
CenITex appoints new CEO
The Victorian Government's IT shared services agency CenITex appears to have nabbed the Victoria police force's head of technology to be its new chief executive.
Westpac poised to dump Lotus Notes
Westpac Banking Corporation, one of Australia's largest users of IBM's beleagured Lotus Notes/Domino ecosystem, has finally confirmed it is ready to dump the platform in favour of Microsoft's rival Outlook/Exchange system, in a move which constitutes the latest nail in the coffin for Notes in Australia.
Give Armidale numbers a chance, says Conroy
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy today said reports of low customer numbers on the fledgling National Broadband Network rollout in Armidale were "misleading and ironic", given the network only launched on the mainland yesterday.
Telstra wins Samsung Galaxy Ace
The wave of Android-based smartphones hitting Australian shores rose a little higher this morning with the news that another Samsung handset -- the Galaxy Ace -- would launch today on Telstra's flagship Next G network.
Abbott just doesn’t get the NBN, says Gillard
Prime Minister Julia Gillard yesterday morning accused Opposition Leader Tony Abbott of not understanding the technology behind the National Broadband Network, as the fibre-based project was formally launched on the mainland in the Northern NSW city of Armidale.