NBN Co secretly overbuilding Telstra’s South Brisbane fibre with … more fibre
The NBN company is secretly overbuilding portions of the Fibre to the Premises network which the nation’s biggest telco Telstra built in the several years up to 2013, in a move that calls into question whether the Telstra FTTP infrastructure will ever become part of the National Broadband Network.
Budde says he warned Turnbull about Optus HFC cable issue
Veteran telecommunications analyst Paul Budde late last week said he publicly warned Malcolm Turnbull that the HFC cable network which the NBN company bought from Optus for $800 million was not suitable for use as part of the National Broadband Network, but that the Prime Minister had ignored the analysis, surrounding himself instead with "yes men".
NBN G.Fast “more hype than reality”, says Budde
Veteran telecommunications analyst has described the G.Fast technology which the NBN company plans to deploy into its network from 2017 as "more hype than reality", questioning whether it will actually be able to deliver on its close to a gigabit speed promises.
“National security matter”: Third agency caught unilaterally blocking web sites
The Federal Government has acknowledged that a third agency, beyond ASIC and the Australian Federal Police, has been using the Telecommunications Act to unilaterally block certain websites, with bureaucrats refusing to disclose which agency was involved, apart from stating that the issue was "a national security matter".
Optus a “disgusting” company, says AFL chief
AFL chief Andrew Demetriou has reportedly blown his stack over Optus' appeal in the ongoing legal drama over the telco's TV Now Internet TV recording system, labelling the company "a disgusting organisation" which was undermining the rights of sports companies.
Delimiter has been approved to join the Press Gallery in Canberra
I just wanted to drop readers a brief note to let you know that yesterday I was approved to join the Federal Parliamentary Press Gallery in Canberra.
Assange registers Wikileaks party; targets Victorian Senate seat
Crusading Internet activist Julian Assange has delivered on his promises to run for Australian political office in the upcoming Federal Election in September, reportedly registering the WikiLeaks Party in Australia yesterday and flagging his intention to become a Senator representing Victoria.
Labor demands TSSR bill revamp
Shadow Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has reportedly demanded that the Government provide a revised draft of its planned telco national security bill, in the wake of loud complaints from Australia’s entire technology sector about the controversial legislation.
Dallas Buyers Club won’t appeal piracy ruling, but may still seek large damages
In essence, what we’re seeing here is that Dallas Buyers Club and Marque Lawyers have decided to more or less accept Justice Perram’s ruling, but may be seeking to reword their approach to alleged copyright infringers to still target them for facilitating uploading of content online (as occurs in a BitTorrent situation, for example), rather than merely targeting them for downloading material.
Senate backs Greens motion for ‘refocus’ on electric cars in SA
The Senate has backed a motion from the Australian Greens calling on the government to "refocus" South Australia's car manufacturing industry on electric vehicles.
I WANT MY IPAD! Are our kids getting addicted to technology?
Are toddlers really becoming addicted to technology? There’s certainly a lot of media hype to suggest that they are. And there’s no question the footage of small children breaking down when their tablet is taken away is unsettling.
NBN Co launches social initiative with Men’s Sheds and Keith Schleiger
NBN Co has announced a collaboration with the Australian Men’s Shed Association that is aimed to highlight how access to fast broadband can help men "build supportive friendships and better connect with friends and family".
Australia extends global Internet piracy lead
Australia has dramatically extended its lead over other countries when it comes to the levels of Australians pirating popular US television shows, according to new statistics released overnight by TorrentFreak, with the limited availability of such content in Australia believed to be driving the trend.
Foxtel’s IPTV launch delayed already
In late September last year, national pay TV giant Foxtel announced a new online service dubbed ‘Presto’, which was to see consumers charged $24.99 per month to access “a regularly updating collection of great films”, all streamed through the Internet, as opposed to its existing pay TV platform. However, according to the Financial Review, the launch of the service has already been delayed.
Aaron’s Army fights the Trans-Pacific Partnership
The case of Aaron Swartz highlights the need for a reconsideration of punitive and excessive intellectual property enforcement provisions in trade agreements.
MyNetFone demands NBN ‘level the playing field’ for mid-sized ISPs
MyNetFone has demanded that the NBN "level the playing field" for mid-size telcos in Australia by taking several measures it said would bring healthier competition in the telecoms industry.
Truth: We’re building an NBN that only a mother could love
The reality that is becoming increasingly apparent is that the MTM – or, more specifically, its emphasis on trying to breathe life into a dog's breakfast of creaking old and unproven new technologies – is going to cost nearly as much as the original FTTP plan and do nothing at all to improve Australia's broadband to anything that can be called remotely 'world-class'.
Battle royalty: Is this the end of online radio streaming?
Online streaming of radio broadcasts may be a thing of the past after the Full Federal Court yesterday handed down a ruling that will result in radio stations paying higher royalties to the recording industry.
Telstra “unable” to sell South Brisbane FTTP to NBN Co
Negotiations appear to have broken down over the planned sale of Telstra’s Fibre to the Premises network in South Brisbane to the NBN company, with the Government stating that Telstra has been “unable” to reach an agreement for the infrastructure to become part of the National Broadband Network.
How to keep more girls in IT at schools if we’re to close the...
The world is increasingly embracing digital technology, and so too are our schools. But many girls are still missing out on developing IT and programming skills.
Once again, Australia sets new Game of Thrones piracy record
It probably won't come as a surprise to those who have followed Game of Thrones piracy news over the past several years (an important genre in technology journalism in its own right), but Australia appears to have set a new record in terms of copyright infringement of the flagship HBO series.
Coalition makes $60m election promise to fix mobile blackspots
The Coalition Government has announced that it will invest an additional $60 million in the Mobile Black Spot Programme if it is returned to power in July's federal election.
Victorian Government sets up expert panel to boost innovation
The Victorian Government has set up an Innovation Expert Panel aimed to boost the state's position as an innovation and technology hub.
NBN gridlock: Peak hour congestion takes down FTTN for some
Some early adopter users of the Coalition's preferred Fibre to the Node technology on the National Broadband Network are seeing their broadband service slow to a crawl during peak hour periods, leading to questions about the fitness of model for permanent use on the NBN.
Introducing Australia’s (eventual) game classification system
Those of you with a long memory will recall that Australia’s video game classification systems hasn’t precisely always been without controversy. Well, in what looks like a good move on the surface, Australia appears set to join a new international system for video game classification.
I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore. Let’s fix...
For far too long, Australia's political sector has gotten technology policy completely wrong. I'm mad as hell, and I'm not going to take this anymore. Let's take Delimiter into the Canberra Press Gallery and literally write the book on tech policy while we're there.
How far should Australia go for Julian Assange?
Australians are constantly finding themselves in trouble overseas and turning to their government for assistance. But there is a limit to what Australia is legally required to do.
House Foxtel: Unbowed, Unbent and Unreasonable
The argument by pay television giant Foxtel that the launch of its new Play IPTV streaming video service will cause Australians' objections about the lack of legitimate access to popular shows such as Game of Thrones to "vanish" is nothing short of ridiculous and strongly indicates that the company still has no idea why the nation is so frustrated with it.
ISP and content industries ask Govt to place piracy code on ice
Remember that pesky Internet piracy industry code? The one that Attorney-General George Brandis and then-Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull asked the ISP and content industries to develop, on pain of having one developed for them? Well, it appears as though the code has more or less been permanently shelved at this point.
NSW wants to ban smartphone, tablets, from courts
The New South Wales State Government has flagged plans to amend court security legislation to ban the use of devices such as smartphones and tablets to communicate events inside courtrooms to those outside, in a move that could squash see a trend towards using Twitter to report court events live.
Australian Bitcoin mining probably not worth it
You may recall that MacTalk founder and all-round geek Anthony Agius has been conducting something of an experiment to determine whether an Australian Bitcoin miner could make enough money to justify the practice. Well, the results are in: And the answer is: “Most likely not”.
Copper rapidly losing ground to fibre in global broadband figures
IT market intelligence provider Point Topic has released new figures revealing that the numbers of people using fixed broadband globally climbed in the third quarter of 2015, with the numbers using copper-based technologies to connect taking a sharp downturn and fibre rapidly on the way up.
Greens call for public surveillance inquiry
The Greens have called for the Federal Parliament to hold a wide-ranging inquiry into Australia's electronic surveillance efforts, as pressure grows on the nation's intelligence agencies to come clean on their covert activities in a manner similar to which is being seen internationally, and revelations by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden continue to create aftershocks in Australia.
Four months later, data retention funding model still incomplete
It turns out that four months after the legislation passed, the Government still hasn't quite worked out the funding model for its data retention package.
New analysis shows FTTN NBN areas significantly delayed
Analysis conducted on the NBN company's latest set of rollout plans has shown that around 105 areas currently slated to receive the Coalition's Multi-Technology Mix approach to the project are significantly delayed, in a move that will affect almost 300,000 premises.
Electoral silence on digital rights from both politicians and journalists
We’ve had #stopthenotes, #suppositories, and #sexappeal to keep us amused, but since the election campaign period began there has been very limited reporting in the mainstream media (MSM) of the electoral relevance of the digital rights issues faced by Australian citizens.
AFP FOI review keeps filter info secret
An internal review has backed a decision by the Australian Federal Police to prevent the public from ascertaining the identities of ISPs participating in the Federal Government’s voluntary filter scheme for child abuse materials, through supporting the redaction of the ISPs’ details from relevant documents released under Freedom of Information laws.
Music industry moves to block KickassTorrents over piracy concerns
Members of Australia's music industry have teamed up to block peer-to-peer file-sharing site KickassTorrents over piracy concerns.
Interpol filter scope creep: ASIC ordering unilateral website blocks
The Federal Government has confirmed its financial regulator has started requiring Australian Internet service providers to block websites suspected of providing fraudulent financial opportunities, in a move which appears to also open the door for other government agencies to unilaterally block sites they deem questionable in their own portfolios.
Libraries, education sector, tech giants welcome proposed copyright reforms
The Australian Digital Alliance (ADA) has issued a statement welcoming the Productivity Commission’s "sensible and much needed" proposals for changes to Australia’s copyright law.
MegaUpload user data soon to be destroyed
MegaUpload has received a letter from the US Attorney informing the company that data uploaded by its users may be destroyed before the end of the week.
Telcos still waiting on Data Retention funding, one year after bill passes
Communications Alliance, Australia's primary telecommunications industry body, has criticised delays over funding for telcos following the Federal Government’s mandatory data retention legislation a year ago.
Pirate Party launches anti-Brandis piracy petition
The Pirate Party Australia has launched a high-profile online petition inviting Australians to protest against two proposals reportedly set to be introduced by Attorney-General George Brandis to Federal Cabinet which could see Australians who pirate content online receive warnings and Internet service providers forced to block file-sharing sites such as the Pirate Bay.
NBN “exceeding targets”, says Government
The Federal Government has said that the National Broadband Network rollout is "exceeding its connection and financial targets", following the release of NBN Co’s latest full-year results.
Government “botched” NDIS IT systems, says Labor
Labor has said the Coalition Government has "botched" the rollout of the IT systems for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) healthcare programme.
Defying the Federal Police: iiNet refuses to implement Interpol filter
National broadband player iiNet today revealed it had not implemented the Federal Government’s limited mandatory ISP filtering scheme based on a list of offensive sites supplied by Interpol and had no immediate plans to do so, in a move which appears to represent a total reversal of the ISP's position on the matter and defiance of the Australian Federal Police's wishes.
Delimiter files FOI request seeking rationale for NBN sell-off
Technology media outlet Delimiter today filed a Freedom of Information request with Infrastructure Australia, seeking to determine the organisation's undisclosed rationale for its recommendation today that the Federal Government split up the NBN company into chunks and privatise the whole lot.
Back off: Optus, TPG tell Govt on Telstra pricing
Major telcos Optus and TPG have joined the rest of Australia’s broadband sector and sharply warned Malcolm Turnbull’s Department to stop interfering in the competition regulator’s decision to cut Telstra’s wholesale pricing by 9.6 percent.
Labor targets Turnbull’s NBN record with election mailout
The Opposition has directly targeted the record of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on the National Broadband Network project, in what appears to be the first of a new wave of mailouts to voters designed to influence its electoral results, mimicking its approach during the last Federal Election in mid-2013.
Crowd-funding legislation reaches parliament
New laws aimed to provide a framework for crowd-sourced equity funding (CSEF) have been introduced into Parliament.
NBN gridlock resolved: FTTN congestion fixed for some
Some of the early adopters of the Government's preferred Fibre to the Node NBN rollout model have now resolved their problems and are achieving the speeds they were promised on the service, following pressure on the issue from Delimiter and the Opposition.
NBN finally overhauls damaged CVC pricing model
The NBN company has finally overhauled its controversial 'Connectivity Virtual Circuit' (CVC) pricing model in an attempt to unlock further uptake of its infrastructure and reward retail Internet service providers who provide adequate broadband capacity to their customers.
Amazon mulls Aussie distribution centre
According to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald, giant international Internet retailer and cloud computing giant Amazon is considering deploying a distribution centre -- Amazon-speak for giant warehouse filled with goods to ship to customers -- in Australia.
Richard Branson tells Turnbull OneWeb satellites could save Australian broadband
Just when you thought Australia's broadband scene couldn't get any more absurd, along comes something which breaks the mold yet again.
Snowden an “American traitor”, says Australia’s Attorney-General
Federal Attorney-General George Brandis has reacted to the revelation of what a Queen's Counsel lawyer has stated are borderline illegal surveillance tactics by the Australian Signals Directorate by supporting the agency and accusing NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden of being an "American traitor".
Vic IT Minister requests inquiry into “grave allegations” of ABC NBN gag
Victoria's Innovation Minister has written to the ABC's Managing Director requesting a meeting and internal investigation regarding what he described as "grave allegations" that the broadcaster had gagged its former technology editor Nick Ross from reporting on the National Broadband Network.
Iranian refugee goes from a ‘boat’ to working for Google Australia
Michael Ascharsobi arrived by boat in Australia as an asylum seeker. Now he works for Google and teaches at the University of Technology, Sydney. Not a bad effort -- not bad indeed.
Fifield hits out at Labor over AFP raid comments
Mitch Fifield, Federal Minister for Communications, has hit out at the Labor Opposition following comments made by Senator Stephen Conroy following an Australian Federal Police (AFP) search at Parliament House on 23 August.
Pauline Hanson to fix NBN “white elephant” with FTTN/Wi-Fi combo
Senator-Elect Pauline Hanson wants to use a combination of Fibre to the Node and a wireless technology similar to Wi-Fi, it has emerged, as the One Nation Leader takes a step into the national spotlight courtesy of her victory in the Senate over the weekend.
Can Game of Thrones help save Quickflix?
Struggling Australian streaming-media provider Quickflix has taken a punt on the hugely popular HBO series Game of Thrones, securing an electronic distribution deal that will allow online users to watch the series even if they aren’t Quickflix customers.
Read in full: Mike Quigley launches devastating critique of MTM policy
Founding NBN chief executive Mike Quigley this evening launched a devastating attack on the Coalition's controversial Multi-Technology Mix model, using detailed analysis to show that the policy has set the NBN back years and resulted in cost blowouts to the tune of tens of billions of dollars.
NBN overbuild based on “fairer competition”, says Turnbull
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has issued a statement to the effect that the NBN company’s alleged “overbuilding” activities were based on regulatory decisions to ensure “fairer” competition in the broadband market that would allow the NBN company to compete with commercial providers.
Turnbull allows Aussie TV stations to broadcast in HD
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has introduced a bill which would allow Australia’s free to air television stations to broadcast their primary channel in high definition, in a long-awaited move which will finally unlock the full potential of Australia’s huge fleet of HD-capable television screens.
Beattie “ashamed” of Australia’s Internet piracy
Former Queensland Labor Premier Peter Beattie has published a strongly worded article stating that he is "ashamed" of Australia's record on Internet piracy, in the latest sign that the two major sides of politics may be in agreement about the need to tackle the issue through new legislation.
Qld Govt to legalise ride-booking services like Uber
The Queensland Government has announced it will overhaul the state's personalised transport industry regulations to create a more "level playing field" for ride-booking services like Uber.
Mobile blackspot nominations deadline extended
The government has announced that the deadline for public nominations for Round 2 of the Mobile Black Spot Programme has been extended from 31 December 2015 to 15 January 2016.
MyRepublic full of “bullshit”, says CommsDay publisher
Your writer has been pretty supportive of the controversial comments made by MyRepublic chief executive Malcolm Rodrigues about the Coalition's version of the National Broadband Network. However, not everyone shares the same views. One very well-argued piece of detailed analysis comes from the founder of Communications Day, Grahame Lynch.
Netflix speeds show Turnbull’s NBN is “flatlining”, says Labor
The latest Netflix ISP Speed Index shows that Australia's Internet speeds are "flatlining" and demonstrates the need for a "proper" National Broadband Network, Labor has said.
AFP blocks FoI access to social media info
Some five months ago, Pirate Party Australia founder Rodney Serkowski made what many would consider to be a fairly standard Freedom of Information request with the Australian Federal Police, relating to data collected through social media channels. The request has been denied in its entirety.
Melbourne IT knocked Twitter URLs offline
No doubt there are some red faces at Melbourne-based web hosting and IT services firm Melbourne IT this morning, after the company admitted a human error by one of its staff yesterday resulted in an outage which took down the URL shortening service used by global social networking company Twitter.
Abandon all hope: Turnbull’s win screws the NBN permanently
Rumour has it that a number of NBN staffers have given the company's HFC cable upgrade the nickname 'Operation Clusterfuck'. Over the next decade, I can confidently predict that we will need to extend this label to the whole NBN project.
Australia’s Internet freedom being eroded, Greens warn
The Australian Greens have issued a broad statement warning Australians that their Internet freedom is being steadily 'eroded', with a wide swathe of government initiatives in areas ranging from surveillance to data retention, to the freedom of expression and privacy set to affect the nation over the coming years.
Labor NBN FTTP policy an “expensive joke”, claims Financial Review
The Financial Review newspaper has launched an extraordinary attack on Labor’s Fibre to the Premises-based National Broadband Network policy, describing it as an “expensive joke” and a “Kevin Rudd vanity project”, claiming that Labor has “no credibility” when it comes to broadband.
‘Presto’: Foxtel launches movies on demand
National pay TV giant Foxtel has launched a new online service dubbed 'Presto', which will see consumers charged $24.99 per month to access "a regularly updating collection of great films", all streamed through the Internet, as opposed to its existing pay TV platform.
Back off, AFACT: Changing the law is not the answer
The Federal Government should ignore the pathetic demands of the film and TV industry for new legislation to "exterminate" Internet piracy and fix the blatantly obvious problems with its commercial model, following its latest loss in Australia's High Court. Australia's copyright law works well as it stands, and does not need changing.
Great example of how politics can destroy necessary IT projects
To my mind, this situation reflects the perfect example of politics interfering with sensible IT project delivery.
Europe says no to data retention, so why is it an option in Australia?
Last week the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) ruled that data retention regulations, as they currently stand, are not in accordance with EU law and the European Parliament voted in favour of introducing net neutrality into EU telecoms regulation the week before. As Australia is currently in the midst of a data retention inquiry – the second in three years – what effects will this ruling have on the debate?
Optus and TV Now: Will copyright law catch up to the cloud?
A legal decision which forced Optus to shut down its time shifting service TV Now may eventually lead to reform of existing copyright law to cater for cloud technology.
Labor slams Govt over personal data breach notifications
The Labor opposition has strongly criticised the federal government over its failure to pass legislation on personal data breach notifications, saying Australians currently have no recourse if their data is hacked.
NBN statement not Coalition’s final NBN policy
The Coalition has confirmed that a statement issued late last week does not constitute its final National Broadband Network policy for the Federal Election, hosing down speculation that it was the last it would have to say on the matter ahead of the Election in July.
Coalition failed to resource NDIA properly, PwC report finds
A new report by 'Big Four' auditor PwC has levelled criticism at the Coalition Government over failures in the way it resourced the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and cast doubt on its ability to transition to full service.
Pirate Party to contest Rudd’s seat
The Pirate Party Australia has signalled it will contest the Griffith by-election for the seat of formr Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, in another sign that the party which has achieved electoral success in Europe on digital rights and civil liberties issues is increasingly serious about gaining a higher slice of the popular vote in Australia.
NBN launches HFC network, two days before election
The NBN company today officially launched its new HFC cable infrastructure, in a move that may further breach the Caretaker Conventions that govern the pre-election behaviour of public sector organisations.
Truth: The MTM NBN business case is unravelling by the day
Senator Mitch Fifield has only been Communications Minister a matter of months. And yet, if his performance in the Senate this afternoon is any indication, he has already gotten to the point of attacking anyone who dares to even question the Government's controversial Multi-Technology Mix NBN model.
Labor accuses Coalition of copying policy on startup accelerators
The Labor Opposition has hit out at the Coalition Government, accusing it of "mimicking" its own policies on startup assistance.
Major tech firms, Australian startups back new innovation organisation TechSydney
A group of local startups and global tech giants, including Atlassian, Airbnb and LinkedIn, have offered support for a new not-for-profit organisation that aims to "turn Sydney into Australia’s Silicon Valley".
Pirate Party launches anti-surveillance petition
The Australian division of digital rights movement the Pirate Party has launched an online petition through which it is collecting support from Australians who object to the wide-ranging new tranche of surveillance and data retention powers currently being proposed by the Labor Federal Government.
Spotify finally launches in Australia
news In the realisation of one of the worst-kept secrets in Australia's new media and technology sectors, Swedish music streaming Spotify has launched locally,...
Turnbull “stuffed up” NBN costs, says Labor
The Labor Opposition has responded to the release of NBN Co's Corporate Plan 2016, saying that that document confirms that "every assumption [Prime MInister] Turnbull made when he was Minister responsible for the NBN was wrong".
Truth: Turnbull didn’t “fix” the NBN, Mr Fletcher — he turned it into a...
Malcolm Turnbull didn’t “fix” the National Broadband Network … but he did do an extraordinarily successful job at turning what was formerly a visionary nation-building project into an incredibility politicised, tragic mess.
Govt email may not be more secure, says Turnbull
Malcolm Turnbull has advised the public not to assume that Government email services are more secure than private systems, in the wake of news that the new Prime Minister will continue to use non-Government email and instant messaging platforms for communication.
Mandate self-driving cars and support Uber, Telstra tells MPs
The nation’s largest telco Telstra has recommended the Parliament assess the potential benefits of mandating the use of self-driving cars in Australia and support new transportation models such as Uber, as the Parliament’s inquiry into the use of ‘smart ICT’ in infrastructure gets up to steam.
Assange forms Wikileaks party for Senate bid
It's been in the works for a while, but Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has finally come right out and confirmed that he's definitely forming an Australian Wikileaks political party with the intention of backing his bid to run for the Senate in 2013.
The Inside Track: How will G.Fast actually work on the NBN?
How will G.Fast actually be implemented in the NBN company's network in a practical sense? How will it be installed? Who will benefit? When will it be installed? How will the whole process work? What can Australia's broadband users expect from G.Fast? It's these questions with respect to G.Fast that we'll try to answer in this issue of The Inside Track: Not the debate or the hype, but the granular details about this controversial standard which will affect people's lives.
US ambassador begs Australians: Stop pirating Game of Thrones
US Ambassador to Australia Jeffrey Bleich has published an impassioned statement appealing to Australians to stop breaching the copyright of US cable giant HBO by illegally downloading its popular Game of Thrones television show in record numbers.
Fifield leaves door open for greater NBN FTTP rollout
Senator Mitch Fifield appears to have opened the door for the NBN company to change its percentage mix of broadband technologies, in his first interview since being sworn in as Malcolm Turnbull’s replacement Communications Minister on Monday this week.
Worst of the worst: Send us all your FTTN node photos
Right around Australia, right now, the NBN company and its contractor are deploying thousands upon thousands of brand Fibre to the Node cabinets and micronodes. But sometimes it stuffs up and places them in terrible locations. So send us all your node photos and we'll publish the "worst of the worst".
Redacted: AFP cuts ISP details from filter docs
The Australian Federal Police has sought to prevent the public from ascertaining the identities of ISPs participating in the Federal Government's voluntary filter scheme for child abuse materials, through redacting the ISPs' details from relevant documents released under Freedom of Information laws.
Julie Bishop wants to store Australian passports in “the cloud”
With Malcolm Turnbull's ascension to the Prime Ministership, sometimes your writer feels as though the whole Federal Government has gone technology-mad. It's a good feeling -- so much is being discussed at high levels that the technology sector has been trying to get on the table for years -- but things are also getting deeply, deeply weird.
NBN Co, Telstra help Greg Hunt out with election campaign event
The NBN company join Telstra at an election campaign event to be held by Environment Minister Greg Hunt in his electorate of Flinders in late March, Delimiter can reveal, in a move that further calls into question the NBN company's independence in the pre-election period.
Turnbull’s NBN “hardly on target”, says Labor
The Australian Labor Party has criticised a Government statement saying NBN Co has "exceeded" its targets for the financial year 2016, suggesting that the national broadband network is actually "hardly on target".
Screwed: Australian PS4, Xbox One lack basic functionality
Are you one of those Australians who lined up at midnight to buy some of the first next-generation video game consoles to go on sale? Have you spent some time exploring your new PlayStation 4 or Xbox One? Then you would be aware that when it comes to Australian support for their new consoles, both Sony and Microsoft appear to have screwed Australians pretty badly.
Global eyes are watching: EFF condemns Australia’s new Internet filter
The global Electronic Frontiers Foundation has harshly criticised the Federal Government for allowing departments and agencies to unilaterally block websites suspected of containing illegal content, saying that it "beggars belief" that such a system could be in place after the previous mandatory filter policy was defeated.
Turnbull’s NBN: Why it’s slow, expensive and obsolete
The Coalition sold the Australian public a product that was supposed to be fast, one-third the cost and arrive sooner than what Labor was offering us. Instead the Coalition’s NBN will be so slow that it is obsolete by the time it’s in place, it will cost about the same as Labor’s fibre-to-the-premises NBN, and it won’t arrive on our doorsteps much sooner.
Sensis to chop 50 percent of staff?
Telstra's online and directories business Sensis hasn't been a great place to work for a while now. Executive departures and job cuts have proven to be pretty much the norm at the once-great home of the White and Yellow Pages empire over the past several years. But according to The Australian, we may not have known quite how bad things were.
‘War’ on tax avoidance overlooks some obvious legal fixes
This article is by Antony Ting, Associate Professor, University of Sydney. It originally appeared on The Conversation.
opinion/analysis The war on tax avoidance by multinational...
NBN FTTN kills off ADSL for metro customer, to be replaced with satellite
The NBN company has confirmed plans to terminate the ADSL connection of a customer living in metropolitan Adelaide and replace it with a high-latency satellite connection, due to the installation of Fibre to the Node services to neighbours in the same street.
Virgin wants in on Australian IPTV scene
It seems that no matter where you look, someone is trying to fix the Australian Internet television market. Attorney-General George Brandis, as his Labor predecessor Mark Dreyfus did before him, is trying to block Internet piracy. Quickflix and FetchTV are still trying to create viable competitors to Foxtel's pay TV operation. And Foxtel itself is obviously trying to make as much hay as possible while its sun still shines. Into this fraught situation comes Richard Branson's Virgin Group.
Tasmania can pay for its own FTTP NBN, says Fifield
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield yesterday issued a statement stating the broadband situation on the West Coast of Tasmania was already being handled through the NBN company's Technology Choice policy, which allows for Australians to pay for their own NBN upgrade.
The iPhone 15 is (almost) unimaginable
With half the worlds population now connected by mobile phone and even short periods of time disconnected from the global network leaving many with withdrawal symptoms, the next stage of human evolution is approaching fast and if you're having trouble keeping up, look to nature.
Dyson Heydon doesn’t have a PC … but he does have an iPhone 5
You may recall how earlier this week it was revealed that Dyson Heydon, former High Court judge and now head of the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption, had admitted he did not use a computer at either of his offices and did not know how to send and receive emails. Well, the plot thickens.
Queensland will be first to get NBN HFC cable, says Fifield
Minister for Communications Mitch Fifield has announced that residents in Queensland will be the first to experience the NBN's "superfast" HFC cable broadband service when the network goes live in June.
What it means: Five key points from the Senate’s Digital Currency report
Last week the Senate Standing Committee on Economics handed down a detailed report following its inquiry into Australia’s emerging digital or crypto-currency sector. The release was hailed as a “watershed” moment for this financial technology — here’s why it matters, in five succinct points.
Labor to take NBN beyond the node, but ignores HFC
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten today said Labor wasn't satisfied with the Coalition's Fibre to the Node technology for the National Broadband Network, but stopped short of commenting on Labor's plans for the up to a third of the NBN that will be covered by HFC cable technology.
Labor pledges Data Retention policy review
The Australian Labor Party passed a motion at its National Conference on Friday that will see it formally review the Data Retention legislation passed earlier this year — despite the fact that such a review is already enshrined in the legislation itself.
Vodafone urges voters to appeal for more mobile black spot funding
In a new campaign, Vodafone is calling on voters in regional seats to use social media to raise the "urgent need" for more funding for mobile black spots with their federal representatives and candidates ahead of the coming 2 July election.
As NBN visits, Verizon insists FTTP is “superior” to HFC
One of the US telcos visited by the NBN management this month, Verizon, has deployed a new advertising campaign with the aim of 'making it clear' to Americans that "there is a difference" between the dominant HFC cable broadband service and Verizon's own "superior" FTTP-based 'Fios' offering.
Turnbull opens “cutting-edge” UNSW quantum computing lab
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has officially opened a new "cutting-edge" quantum computing lab at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), airing the hope that it could ultimately lead to a commercial, "super-powerful" quantum computer.
Doubts remain about NBN Gigabit HFC upgrade
Questions have continued to arise about whether nbn’s planned Gigabit upgrade of the HFC cable networks it is acquiring from Telstra and Optus will be able to deliver on its speed promises, with a number of telecommunications industry sources pouring cold water on the long-term capacity of the ageing networks.
Data retention goes back to drawing board: Parliament’s report criticises AGD secrecy
The Parliamentary Committee examining the Government's controversial national security reforms has recommended that the data retention segments of the reforms go through the committee process once again and criticised the Attorney-General's Department for the cloak of secrecy it has hung around the issue.
Australian agencies have NSA encryption access
Remember how international media outlets The Guardian, The New York Times and ProPublica revealed last week that the US National Security Agency had developed the ability to break some commonly used forms of Internet encryption? Scary, huh? Well, what you may not have realised is that Australia’s own intelligence agencies reportedly have access to the technology.
US doesn’t want Assange, says ambassador
Remember those high-handed statements and protests which erupted last week in Australia about the possibility of Australian citizen Julian Assange being extradited from Sweden to the US? Well, it turns out the US actually has no interest in extraditing the Wikileaks founder.
NSW announces Opal app top ups, credit card “tap in” trial
The NSW Government has announced that customers using its Opal smartcard ticketing system for public transport services can now top up via its "new and improved" Opal Travel app. Also announced were 2017 trials of a scheme that would allow commuters to tap "contactless" credit and debit cards as an alternative to the Opal card.
ASIC blocked “numerous” sites over 9 months
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission revealed tonight that it had in fact blocked "numerous" websites over the past nine months which it suspected contained illegal material, as fears about the extent of the agency's covert Internet filtering scheme continue to grow.
Google protecting pirates, says film giant
Film and entertainment giant Village Roadshow is decidedly unhappy with Google Australia for taking what the search giant believes is a realistic approach to dealing with Internet piracy. Go figure.
Labor promises $4.5m to inspire women to learn coding
The Australian Labor Party this morning announced that it would put $4.5 million towards a grants program to promote, encourage and inspire more Australian girls to learn coding, if it wins power in the upcoming Federal Election.
Copyright Review will be published by March
The Attorney-General's Department has stated that it believes the Government has an obligation to publish by the end of February the full report which the Australian Law Reform Commission has painstakingly generated over the past several years into whether the Copyright Act is adequate to handle the new digital environment.
Truth: Labor’s new NBN plan is pitch perfect
Labor's new NBN vision is a comprehensive, well-thought out policy with no downsides, based solidly on comprehensive research and supported by a huge amount of detail.
UK court strikes down data retention bill
The English High Court appears to have struck down the United Kingdom’s hastily enacted data retention bill due to its lack of compliance with European laws, in a move that may force the UK Government to add extra safeguards into its approach to the retention of telecommunications data.
The ACCC has killed off Australia’s broadband competition
The ACCC’s move to allow TPG’s buyout of iiNet is an appalling decision which will finally complete the long-running, gradual death of actual competition in Australia’s broadband market. The tragedy of the situation is that the well-meaning regulator has nevertheless contributed to the process at several key points along the way.
Ludlam demands clarity on GST Internet filter report
The Australian Greens have demanded that the Government clarify its stance on a reported new policy that would see it block foreign sites not paying Goods and services Tax (GST) on sales in Australia.
Australian Govt pledges action on Google tax avoidance
The Australian Government has outlined a series of new legislative initiatives with which it will attempt to protect its corporate tax base and rein in the tax minimisation strategies of corporations such as search giant Google, which expects to pay just $74,000 in corporate income tax for the 2011 calendar year in Australia, despite making an estimated $1 billion in local revenue.
Labor issues detailed evidence for Turnbull’s MTM delays, cost blowouts
The Opposition has published a detailed and referenced comparison table which appears to conclusively show that Malcolm Turnbull's version of the National Broadband Network project is behind on almost every measure by its own measurements, as well as having blown out in costs substantially.
Labor slams Turnbull’s record on tackling multinational tax avoidance
Shadow Assistant Treasurer Andrew Leigh has slammed Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's record on tackling multinational tax avoidance, following a massive leak of documents from a Panamanian legal firm.
Govt packs innovation and science panel with industry heavyweights
The government has strengthened the lineup of the new Innovation and Science Australia Board, adding a number of heavyweight members with a proven track record across science and industry.
Govt to fund innovation policy research through StartupAUS
The Federal Government has announced that it will fund research on entrepreneurship and innovation by not-for-profit organisation StartupAUS.
Defence kicks off SAP-based ‘largest’ ERP project in Australia’s public sector
The Department of Defence has officially kicked off what it describes as the "largest ERP program implementation of its kind in Australian Government", in a SAP-based initiative that will see several thousand business applications consolidated down sharply.
Greens call on ABS to rule out census fines
The Australian Greens have called for the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) to "rule out" fines for people that do not wish to provide their name and address when completing their census forms.
Budget 2016: Major Child Care, Veterans’ IT reform projects approved
The Federal Government has approved several hundred million dollars' worth of funding to reform key IT platforms in the Department of Human Services and Veterans' Affairs, in moves that will unlock substantial IT transformation packages of work.
Turnbull knows the MTM NBN won’t cut it, says Budde
Malcolm Turnbull deliberately kept the Coalition's Multi-Technology Mix from being mentioned in this week's National Innovation and Science Agenda because the Prime Minister knows the model won't meet Australia's innovation needs, veteran telecommunications analyst Paul Budde said this week.
Labor should just leave the MTM NBN alone, says M2
It hardly comes as a surprise that the head of M2 Group, Geoff Horth, is calling for a bit of bipartisanship on the NBN from here on in.
Labor needs “a good explanation” to change NBN, says Morrow
The chief executive of the NBN company has made an extraordinary intervention into the pre-election national political debate over the National Broadband Network, warning Labor that it would need "a good explanation" to change the NBN model imposed by the Coalition.
Attorney-General releases data retention grants list
The Federal Government has revealed the details of grants aimed to assist companies with the cost burden of compliance with data-retention legislation.
Aussie email provider FastMail says it is exempt from Data Retention law
Australian email provider FastMail has claimed it will not be subject to the Data Retention law which is shortly scheduled to come into force in Australia, due to the fact that it is not a telecommunications carrier and does not operate hosting infrastructure in Australia.
NBN controversy mars Turnbull’s innovation launch
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was this morning forced to answer questions about the Coalition's controversial National Broadband Network policy, in the context that his much-hyped Innovation and Science Agenda released today barely mentions the foundational infrastructure it will rely on.
TPG’s FTTB rollout still progressing extremely slowly
news Retail broadband provider AusBBS has released new statistics showing that the Fibre to the Basement network which Australia's third-largest telco TPG is deploying...
Fifield keeps pressure on Labor for ‘lack of NBN policy’
Mitch Fifeld, Minister for Communications, has once again hit out at Labor over what he called its lack of policy on the NBN and the technology that best supports it.
Watch Delimiter’s article on Turnbull read out in Parliament
As you may remember, when Malcolm Turnbull seized the Prime Ministership from Tony Abbott two weeks ago, I took the chance to publish an examination of the Member for Wentworth’s history leading the Communications Portfolio over the past five years for the Coalition. What you may not have known is that it was also mentioned on the floor of the House of Representatives.
Devil’s Advocate: Is the political innovation obsession a giant waste of money?
Eventually we'll look on this madness the same way as we did the first technology bubble: Unsustainable hype. It'll be a great party while it lasts, fuelled by billions of dollars in taxpayer money. But eventually it'll all come crashing down.
“$40bn waste”: Coalition kicks off NBN smear campaign
The Coalition appears to have kicked off a campaign designed to discredit Labor's management of the National Broadband Network project, with at least one Liberal MP relying on party-supplied material to claim that "$40 billion was wasted" during its early days.
Turnbull and Clare: Best of mates
If you attended the Australian American Leadership Dialogue in Melbourne over the weekend, you might have caught a most unusual sight: Australia's noble Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull, and his Shadow, Jason Clare, breaking bread together in a most congenial display of bipartisanship.
Fifield redacts large chunks of NBN info in ‘Blue Book’ release
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield today released a version of the 'Blue Book' incoming ministerial briefing he received from his department when he became Communications Minister, with the sections relating to the National Broadband Network having been heavily redacted.
Telstra still upgrading the HFC network it is selling to NBN Co
The nation's largest telco Telstra has revealed it will invest a significant amount of capital upgrading the HFC cable network it has contracted to sell to the NBN company, in a move which raises questions about the long-term future of the network.
Senate to hold inquiry into Census website failure
The Senate will hold an inquiry into the much-criticised failure of the Census website on 9 August.
Tassie Govt criticises TPG over Basslink Internet issues
The Tasmanian Government has expressed its disappointment over service interruptions for customers of TPG's Internet service provider brands following the cutting of the Basslink cable.
BitTorrent “not time-critical”: Telstra defends trial
The nation's largest telco Telstra claimed over the weekend that BitTorrent-style peer to peer traffic on its network was "not time-critical" and so could be slowed on its network "without significant consumer detriment", in an extensive statement defending highly controversial plans to trial several new network management practices.
ACCC letting NBN descend into retail “market failure”, says Macquarie
Top-tier business telco Macquarie Telecom has accused the ACCC of having little idea of what is going on in the competitive NBN market, in the wake of comments made by the competition regulator that it was not planning re-examine its controversial decision to set the number of points of interconnect with the NBN at 121.
WikiLeaks blockade based on Australia’s misinfo
VISA and Mastercard appear to still be relying on outdated comments by Australia's Federal Government to block the ability of Wikileaks to take donations.
Launceston city now has total NBN coverage
Launceston has become the first city in Tasmania to be declared ready for service on the NBN network, with all suburbs now "ready for service", NBN Co has announced.
“Breathtaking arrogance”: Labor slams Turnbull’s support for Ziggy breach
The Opposition has described Malcolm Turnbull's support for the decision by NBN chair Ziggy Switkowski to ignore the Caretaker Conventions as displaying "breathtaking arrogance", and having opened the door for public officials to display politically partisan behaviour during elections in future.
Labor’s NBN was a “fantasy model”, says Fifield, despite FTTP progress
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield has described the previous Labor Government’s near-universal Fibre to the Premises approach to the National Broadband Network as a “fantasy model” and “unachievable”, despite the fact that almost all of the progress on the NBN thus far has been based on that model.
Better public Wi-Fi in Australia? Let’s send a signal
If you can’t get a satisfactory mobile signal in Martin Place or Collins Street during peak hour, perhaps you should lobby the Sydney or Melbourne city councils, as well as your mobile phone provider.
Apple blames rights holders for Aussie price hikes
Technology giant Apple has blamed copyright owners such as film and music studios for Australian price hikes on content sold through its iTunes digital store, despite politicians at the Parliament's IT price hike inquiry pointing out to the company that its size as the world's largest company by capitalisation gave it substantial market power.
Herald Sun columnist McCrann gets key facts wrong in NBN attack
Herald Sun columnist Terry McCrann has published an article praising Malcolm Turnbull's stewardship of the NBN project as his "greatest and unqualified achievement in Government", but has based his argument on a number of inaccurate statements regarding the project.
Coalition calls for kids’ e-safety commissioner
In the wake of the death of Labor’s controversial Internet filtering policy, the Opposition has proposed creating a new Federal commissioner to coordinate a national approach to protecting Australian childrens’ safety online, with powers that would include forcing social media providers such as Facebook and Twitter to take down objectionable content.
Coalition front bench “technically illiterate”, says Ludlam
Greens Communications Spokesperson Scott Ludlam has described the Coalition's new front bench as "technically illiterate", in a wide-ranging speech in the Senate last week kicking off his campaign to be re-elected in the upcoming Senate by-election in Western Australia and attacking Prime Minister Tony Abbott over various tech-related issues, from Internet piracy to the National Broadband Network.
Hockey pays “tribute” to Labor’s NBN project in final speech
One of the Coalition’s most vocal critics of the National Broadband Network, former Treasurer Joe Hockey, has used his final speech to Federal Parliament to praise the previous Labor Government for initiating the project, which he described as “a very significant commitment”.
WikiLeaks Party demands investigation into Telstra’s secret FBI deal
The WikiLeaks Party has written to Australia’s Privacy Commissioner Timothy Pilgrim formally complaining about the recently revealed news that the telco signed a secret agreement a decade ago with US Government agencies such as the FBI and the Department of Justice that provided American law enforcement with access to all of the telco’s traffic passing in and out of the US.
‘Shelved’? No. Data retention will be back
Yesterday it was widely reported that the Federal Government had 'shelved' its data retention plans, walking away from the controversial proposal to monitor all Australians' communications. But the reality is the complete opposite: Data retention is still being actively considered as a policy and will shortly return to plague Australia once again.
Delimiter files FOI request for ICON sale scoping study
Technology media outlet Delimiter today filed a Freedom of Information request for the 'scoping study' which has been carried out into the potential sale of the Federal Government's Intra Government Communications Network (ICON), a fibre network which connects public service buildings throughout Canberra.
Govt releases geocoded national address and boundaries datasets
The Federal Government has released PSMA Australia’s Geocoded National Address File (G-NAF) and associated Administrative Boundaries dataset to the public.
Productivity Commission to conduct USO inquiry
The Federal Government has asked the Productivity Commission to conduct an inquiry into the telecoms industry's Universal Service Obligation (USO) that will examine the "role and relevance" of the arrangements in today's "evolving market".
Attorney-General’s Department misled Parliament on data retention bill
The Federal Attorney-General's Department has been forced to admit that statements it made in May in a Senate Estimates committee hearing that it had not drafted any legislation around the contentious issue of data retention were untrue, in a move which adds to existing questions about the department's integrity and transparency.
Now Jason Clare writes to ABC over Nick Ross ‘gag’
Shadow Communications Minister Jason Clare has stated that he is "very concerned" about claims that the ABC gagged its former technology editor from reporting on the NBN, and has joined his Victorian counterpart Philip Dalidakis in demanding answers from ABC managing director Mark.
Ludlam holds Senate seat in recount; But possible by-election looms
Greens Communications Spokesman Scott Ludlam has held his Senate seat in Western Australia following a controversial recount of the state's Senate vote in September's Federal Election, but the result is likely to be formally challenged by the rival Palmer United Party and may head to a by election because of the loss of 1,375 crucial votes.
‘Appalling treatment’: Vic IT minister to take Ross’s cause to ABC MD
Victoria's Innovation Minister has described the ABC's treatment of its former technology editor Nick Ross as "appalling" and has expressed a desire to meet with the journalist and take his case directly to the managing director of the broadcaster.
NBN company re-writes blog post to clarify copper condition
The NBN company appears to have slightly reworked a blog post it published yesterday defending the state of the copper network it is buying from Telstra, in effect removing its claim that it had not had to replace any copper to ensure the Coalition’s Fibre to the Node technology functioned correctly.
Dyson Heydon doesn’t have a PC, does not know how to email
The beleagured head of the Royal Commission into Trade Union Governance and Corruption has admitted he does not use a computer at either of his several offices and does not know how to send and receive emails, being completely dependent upon his personal assistant to do so.
Greens get their surveillance inquiry
Following several unsuccessful attempts, the Greens have successfully moved a motion in the Senate to establish a formal inquiry into Internet surveillance, through a review that will take place into the controversial Telecommunications (Interception and Access) Act.
Now all of Australia’s racing ministers are demanding metadata access
Australia's state racing ministers have reportedly agreed to form a unified front to demand that Attorney-General George Brandis give state racing regulatory agencies access to metadata under Australia's new data retention laws, following existing demands from the agency oversee the Melbourne Cup in Victoria.
“Pattern of secrecy”: Govt ‘buries’ data retention evidence
The Federal Attorney-General's Department has refused to release any documents relating to the development of controversial data retention legislation, in a move that follows a pattern of behaviour from the department that has led some onlookers to allege "a pattern of secrecy" at the organisation.
Australia Post plans blockchain-based e-voting system
Australia Post has aired plans to take voting into the digital era in a submission to the Victorian Parliament’s Electoral Matters Committee that would see it build a blockchain-based e-voting system for the state.
ACCAN CEO wins Charles Todd Medal for championing consumers
Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) CEO Teresa Corbin has won this year's Charles Todd Medal for her efforts representing consumer interests throughout her almost 20 year career in the telecoms industry.
Ludlam can actually DJ like a mad ****
Those of you who've been hanging around the tracks for a while may remember a famous piece of newspaper graffiti which was published a while back regarding Prime Minister John Howard and his musical abilities. Well, it's taken us a while, but we've now been able to find a Federal Politician who can actually DJ quite well. Or so it appears from these glamour pics of Greens Communications Spokesperson Scott Ludlam, who spent some time DJ'ing at a rave held to fundraise for his WA Senate campaign this month.
Digital Rights Watch calls for fair use, end of Internet censorship
Advocacy group Digital Rights Watch has called for the introduction of fair use legislation and the cessation of Internet censorship as the Productivity Commission prepares to undertake a 12-month public inquiry into Australia’s intellectual property system.
NSW drive to cut costs opens up ride-sharing for public servants
Transport options for public servants in NSW will now include ride-sharing services, as part of the state government's push to reduce overall travel expenditure.
NSW Govt launches inquiry into driverless cars
The NSW Government's Staysafe Committee has launched an inquiry into driverless vehicles and their potential impact on road safety in the state.
Truth: Fibre to the Node is dead
The FTTdp model proposed by the NBN company is cheap enough and fast enough for the Coalition, while having enough technical capacity and upgradability to satisfy Labor. It has the potential to bring both parties together in a relatively bipartisan view for the NBN.
WikiLeaks to run in Vic, NSW and WA
Thought you wouldn't be able to vote for Julian Assange's WikiLeaks political party because you don't live in Victoria? Worry not. Come the September Federal Election, voters in NSW and Western Australia will also be able to back the transparency horse, according to an extensive press conference the party's Victorian headquarters held over the weekend.
Australian Privacy Foundation slams “Orwellian” census data retention
The Australian Privacy Foundation (APF) has strongly criticised what it calls the "Orwellian" storage of census data by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Paying a high price for embarrassing the government
This article is by Denis Muller, Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Advancing Journalism, University of Melbourne. It originally appeared on The Conversation....
With Bradley Manning convicted, what now for Julian Assange?
Bradley Manning’s conviction for espionage marks the closing stages in the US Army private’s personal battle. Yet for Julian Assange, founder of whistleblower website WikiLeaks and Australian Senate candidate, Manning is but a casualty in a much grander mission.
Wishful thinking? NBN CEO says HFC will do 30Gbps, FTTN 5Gbps
The chief executive of the NBN company this morning claimed the top-end speeds for the company's HFC cable network could be as high as 30Gbps and that its Fibre to the Node network could do 5Gbps, but without providing any evidence as to why this would be the case.
Uber is blocking Qld Govt inspectors from using its service … because it can
According to the Brisbane Times, Uber is fighting back against regulation by ... blocking the Queensland Government's inspectors from booking its services and thus being able to fine its drivers.
Consumer group ACCAN outlines telecoms priorities at Parliament House
The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) held its Meet the People Forum at Parliament House in Canberra yesterday to lay out its telecoms priorities for 2016.
“Get on with it”: Ludlam tells Govt on data breach notification bill
Greens Deputy Leader and Senator Scott Ludlam has filed a Senate motion demanding the Government "get on with" its plans to introduce mandatory data breach legislation, pointing out that the concept had multi-partisan support and would be likely to pass Federal Parliament in quick order.
NBN HFC trial to start in November
The NBN company has revealed it will conduct a pilot trial of HFC cable technology on the National Broadband Network starting in November this year and lasting until March 2016, in a move which appears set to finally provide some hard data around the performance of the HFC networks the company is buying from Telstra and Optus.
Google wants exemption from banks’ mobile payments ‘cartel’
In a letter to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Google has requested exemption from an effort by four major Australian banks to be able to collectively negotiate terms with, as well as boycott, third-party wallet app providers.
Delimiter files FOI request for Govt ICT Audit
Technology media outlet Delimiter has filed a Freedom of Information request seeking to retrieve the unreleased comprehensive ICT Audit which the Federal Government presented to Finance Minister Mathias Cormann in January this year.
Has Anonymous hacked an Aussie ISP?
A number of technology media outlets yesterday reported they had spoken to a member of the Anonymous collective of Internet activists, who stated that they had broken into a major Australian ISP and were preparing to release a vast package of internal data to prove that the Federal Government's surveillance and data retention plans weren't secure.
Productivity Commission IP reform recommendations likely to be lost in election haze
The Commission’s recommendations as a whole are thus very unlikely to be embraced by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, by his colleagues or by Bill Shorten. The Commission states that “Australia’s intellectual property system has lost sight of users”. We should ensure that the Government does not lose sight of the report.
1,375 votes lost in Western Australia: Ludlam recount stalled in bureaucracy
The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) has revealed it lost 1,375 votes during the recent Federal Election and will need to investigate the situation further before it can advise whether Greens Communications Spokesperson Scott Ludlam will keep his Senate seat or be replaced by the Palmer United Party.
Internet filter scope creep: Govt may censor offshore gambling sites
The Federal Government is considering extending its covert Internet filtering scheme to block offshore gambling websites, in a 'scope creep' move that has the telecommunications industry up in arms about the dangers of secretive Internet censorship.
Truth: The Govt’s data retention project has already spun out of control
The ridiculous number of agencies which have applied for unwarranted metadata access clearly shows that the data retention policy enacted by the Coalition and Labor was founded on a preposterous lie: That access would be limited. The truth is that scope creep was built into the policy's DNA.
Profiteers snap up Boston Marathon, Waco domain names
Australia’s tight domain name policies may have prevented opportunistic cybersquatters from cashing in on local disasters, but this week’s Boston Marathon bombing and Waco fertiliser explosion have had less luck avoiding cybesquatters, analysis by a local domain-name specialist has revealed.
Litany of problems: Internal NBN doc warns of FTTN failures
The NBN company is reportedly suffering a litany of issues with respect to Malcolm Turnbull's preferred Fibre to the Node technology, with an internal document warning the company's management that its FTTN rollout has gone badly off track due to a "plethora of faults".
Assistant Minister Roy pitches innovation policy ‘hackathon’
If you follow Australia's technology startup scene at all, you are probably aware of the 'Startup Weekend' or 'hackathon' events that are regularly held across the country. It's a lot of fun and a great way to get involved in the tech startup community. So much fun, apparently, that the newly minted Assistant Minister for Innovation, Wyatt Roy, wants to bring the concept to the public policy debate over innovation.
Cinema execs blame piracy for $20 ticket prices
If you've attended an Australian cinema recently, you'll be aware that $20 ticket prices are now a thing. If you just hit up a film every couple of weeks and avoid the cinema's high-priced junk food aisle (your writer habitually goes to Woolworths for some snacks beforehand), then this mark may not seem like such a huge deal. But if you throw a family into the mix, a night out at the movies can now seem a little too exorbitant for many. According to several cinema executives, one of the central reasons for the ongoing price increases is Internet piracy.
NBN to boost HFC broadband with DOCSIS 3.1 in 2017
NBN Co has revealed that it plans to launch super-fast HFC broadband services next year using DOCSIS 3.1 – a new technology that can produce up to 10 Gbps symmetrical data speeds over the hybrid fibre-copper cable networks.
Prysmian developing new cable tech for NBN
Prysmian, a manufacturer of telecommunications cables and systems, is developing new fibre optic cable that will become part of the "multi-technology mix" of the National Broadband Network, the government has announced.
Truth: The MTM NBN could have been so much better
Everyone knows that Malcolm Turnbull's Multi-Technology Mess is an absolute dog of a model for the NBN. But every dog has its day, and the truth is that even the MTM could have been implemented so much better than it has been.
Solar Movie is the content industry’s first site blocking target
As revealed by the Sydney Morning Herald and a number of other media this morning, the content industry's first target will be Solar Movie.
Labor claims Turnbull’s innovation package may encourage tax rorts
Labor has claimed that the government's recently announced package of innovation measures is "rushed" and could have weaknesses that would lead to abuse of the taxation system.
Pirate Party announces election candidates
The Pirate Party has announced its candidates for the 2016 Federal Election, following a pre-selection process.
Telstra says Govt policy forcing it to deploy brand new copper instead of fibre
The nation's largest telco Telstra today said regulatory decisions made by the Government were forcing it to install brand new copper in new greenfields estates, rather than the next-generation fibre-optic cables which many Australians would expect in new developments.
Telstra hires Turnbull’s sacked, foulmouthed MTM policy mastermind
Those of you who've been around the traps for a while may recall the name of Stephen Ellis, a former advisor to Malcolm Turnbull
iiNet’s Hollywood ending: what does its court victory mean for copyright law?
In what is being billed as iiNet versus Hollywood, the Australian internet service provider has come out an apparent winner after the High Court dismissed a copyright infringement case brought by industry movie studios. Nicolas Suzor, lecturer, Faculty of Law at Queensland University of Technology, explains the decision and what it means.
NBN CEO won’t talk South Brisbane, TransACT
The chief executive of the NBN company has flatly refused to comment on contentious situations with relation to the company's rollout in the South Brisbane and Canberra areas, where it appears to be overbuilding existing open access high-speed broadband infrastructure.
Detailed analysis of NBN Co’s finances shows FTTP better value than FTTN
A researcher from Monash University has published a detailed analysis of the NBN company's costs which appears to show that Labor's technically superior Fibre to the Premises model represents better financial value than the Coalition's preferred Fibre to the Node technology only a scant few years after FTTP was deployed.
Australian Govt says hands tied on Assange
The Australian Government's hands are currently tied when it comes to the fate of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, Federal Attorney-General Nicola Roxon said last night, with the maverick Internet publisher's Australian citizenship mattering little in the scheme of Swedish legal process unless a formal extradition request was made to shift him out of the European Union.
Digital Rights Watch group launches to fight for “free and open Internet”
A new advocacy organisation called Digital Rights Watch has launched with the aim of protecting the rights of Australian Internet users.
When depts disagree: AG ‘Blue Book’ censored
The Attorney-General's Department has declined to release under Freedom of Information laws the incoming ministerial briefing (known as the 'Blue Book') provided to new Attorney-General George Brandis, censoring the release of the entire document in a decision which appears to run directly contrary to a similar decision by the Department of Communications.
Break up the NBN? Wow. How about we actually build the damn thing first.
The National Broadband Network should not be broken up into smaller parts. It should not be set up to compete with itself. And it should most definitely not be sold off to the private market. There is only one thing that the Government should do with the NBN. It should damn well get on with the job of building it.
Liberal Democrats oppose data retention
Into the e-surveillance miasma comes David Leyonhjelm, the new Senator-Elect for the Liberal Democrats, who will take his chair in just six short weeks. In a piece for the Financial Review newspaper late last week, Leyonhjelm makes it very clear where his party will stand on this issue: In opposition to data retention and similar initiatives which erode Australians’ privacy.
“Desperate” Labor misrepresenting FTTP cost, says Fifield
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield this morning said an increasingly "desperate" Opposition was "misrepresenting" the cost of the NBN company deploying Labor's preferred Fibre to the Premises model, in response to new documents leaked from the NBN company this morning.
They did it
From this day on, whenever Australian engineers are facing a tough task, they should look up into the skies and remind themselves of the power of the Australian mind. If Australian ingenuity can put such a hunk of incredibly complex communications infrastructure into orbit to serve our broadband needs, purely on the strength of some clear thinking and a lot of hard work, then we truly can do anything. And we will.
AUSTRAC tracks every AUD-Bitcoin conversion
The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) admitted in a Senate Estimates session in Canberra this week that it is literally tracking every conversion between Bitcoins and Australian dollars. Wow. Talk about privacy-invasive.
EU rules that Apple must pay €13 billion in back taxes
Following a lengthy investigation, the European Commission (EC) has ruled that Apple must pay back up to €13 billion plus interest after Ireland gave the tech firm "illegal tax benefits".
ACCC invites feedback on NBN Co’s proposal to expand remit
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has published a consultation paper inviting feedback on NBN Co’s proposed variation to the way it provides services over the national broadband network.
‘The filter is back’: Blocked site tells its story
In a lengthy piece on the ABC’s The Drum website this afternoon, the convenors of the Melbourne Free University site tell their story and argue that the situation with Australian Government website blocking is just not good enough.
“Welcome to the 1940s”: Labor lampoons NBN Co for deploying new copper
The Australian Labor Party has lampooned the NBN company for its willingness to deploy brand new copper cables in some areas to ensure the Government’s Fibre to the Node model will succeed, welcoming the company back to the “1940’s”, when copper cables were regarded as state of the art technology.
Fibre optic broadband to last 50 years, says Budde
While technology is generally advancing at a furious pace, fibre optic broadband has nothing that is likely to replace it for as much as 50 years, telecoms expert Paul Budde has said.
IT more valuable than mining, says Gillard
news: Prime Minister Julia Gillard has hailed knowledge and the technologies used to create and share it as being the key factor determining Australia's future economic success -- even beyond the resources sector -- as she met with key figures from Australia's technology sector and set in place key 'Digital Economy' strategies for the nation's future.
BT follows NBN with ‘skinny’ fibre trials in UK
British telco BT has reportedly followed the NBN company in Australia and conducted trials of so-called 'skinny' fibre technology that could allow the telco to substantially cut the cost of deploying fibre throughout its network.
Labor unveils strong Digital Economy push with top political support
The Australian Labor Party has created a new internal policy group focused on building a “new economy” through fostering innovation, startups and entrepreneurs, in a move that appears to have support from the highest political levels within the party.
Government launches ad campaign to support Innovation Agenda
The government says it is launching a public information and community engagement campaign to support the National Innovation and Science Agenda and help boost Australia’s economy.
Government to retain ownership of Canberra’s ICON network
The Federal Government has announced it will not sell off the Intra Government Communications Network (ICON) – a fibre network connecting public service buildings throughout Canberra.
Conroy re-commits to filter, slams Lundy amendments
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has reiterated the Government's support for its mandatory internet filter policy after the change in Prime Minister and has slammed proposed amendments by Senator Kate Lundy that would allow Australians to opt in or out of the technology.
Insight: HFC is the gap in all of Labor’s FTTP NBN promises
Bill Shorten's statements about the National Broadband Network this week show that the Opposition Leader either doesn't understand the fundamental basis of the Coalition's Multi-Technology Mix for the NBN, or that Labor is planning to retain the HFC component of the network.
“Fibre zealots”: The Australian backs Ziggy’s Caretaker breach
A senior columnist at The Australian newspaper has backed what he described as Ziggy Switkoski's "well-aimed" breach of the Caretaker Conventions, supporting the idea that the NBN chair's action was necessary to deal with "rumourtrage" about the project.
Michelle Rowland appointed Shadow Minister for Communications
Labor MP Michelle Rowland has been appointed to the Shadow Cabinet, taking on the role of Shadow Minister for Communications.
WA FTTN launch marred as NBN leaves ‘node’ open to the elements
The official launch of the Coalition’s preferred Fibre to the Node technology in Western Australia last week appears to have suffered a minor setback, with one of the NBN company’s neighbourhood ‘nodes’ appearing to have been left with its door open, endangering the provision of broadband in its area.
Farce: Apple Australia pays extra $4m of tax on $1.8bn revenue gain
US technology juggernaut Apple has revealed it only paid an extra $4.5 million worth of corporate tax in Australia in its 2015 financial year, despite the company making an extra $1.8 billion in local revenue, taking its local taxes to a paltry sum of $85 million off record Australian revenues of $7.8 billion.
Labor MP tables anti-TPP petition with over 300,000 signatures
An anti-Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) petition with over 300,000 signatures has been has tabled before Parliament by Labor MP Melissa Parke.
NBN Co shifts 40k premises to fixed wireless to free up satellite capacity
The NBN company today revealed it planned to deploy its fixed wireless network to an additional 40,000 premises previously slated to receive satellite broadband, as part of an effort to free up capacity on the satellite network to meet its aim of a 150GB monthly download quota.
Funding “storm clouds” ahead for NBN, says Budde
Telecoms industry commentator Paul Budde has said that while the NBN rollout is currently "in a good place", "storm clouds" may lie ahead as a lack of investment causes issues further down the road.
DHS issues show Turnbull’s innovation talk just ‘spam’, says Labor
Labor has criticised the Turnbull government over recent IT and other issues at the Department of Human Services (DHS), saying they reveal that the Prime Minster's talk of Innovation is just "spam".
FTTN still causing massive outages in Newcastle, says Labor
The Coalition's Fibre to the Node technology is still causing substantial problems for the Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Labor said today, with issues such as speeds slower than ADSL and substantial outages, even for residents who are not yet connected to the NBN.
Even Telstra is not complying with the Data Retention legislation
Given that the Government's Data Retention legislation passed the Parliament some seven months ago, you would expect that Attorney-General George Brandis and his merry band at the Attorney-General's Department would have at least gotten all their ducks in a row at the nation's biggest Telstra. I mean, it would be an embarassment of epic proportions if even Telstra -- a multi-billion-dollar telco giant with about a million IT professionals on hand to help it with the implementation -- couldn't get this thing done. Right? Right?
“Mongrel network”: Waleed Aly consigns Turnbull’s MTM NBN to the trash
The outspoken host of Ten TV show The Project has taken a pickaxe to the Coalition's Multi-Technology Mix approach to the NBN, consigning the model to the rubbish box in a lengthy segment which also included appearances by founding NBN chief executive Mike Quigley.
It will take more than being ‘bouncy’ to fix Australia’s innovation system
It is a good sign that Turnbull is upbeat about innovation; but he appears not to understand that innovation is not a matter of pressing the right button and expecting that change will happen.
Watch: Turnbull implies he complained to ABC about “failed” NBN coverage
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull appears to have implied that he made the same complaint to ABC management that he has previously made in public before the 2013 Federal Election, stating that the broadcaster had "failed" to provide balanced coverage of the competing National Broadband Network policies.
Huawei thaws Coalition’s Chinese freeze
Huawei appears to have become increasingly successful at collaborating with senior figures in the Coalition, as the party gradually warms up to the Chinese manufacturer’s advances.
Foxtel to launch first Internet piracy blocking attempt in early 2016
National pay TV operator Foxtel has reportedly confirmed plans to launch an attempt early in the near year to have a specific website allegedly hosting pirated film and TV content blocked, in what is expected to be the first test of new legislation designed to tackle Internet piracy.
New Greens Leader holds firm on FTTP NBN policy
New Greens Leader Richard Di Natale has confirmed he will stand firm behind the original universal Fibre to the Premises version of the National Broadband Network, rejecting what he said was the “half-measures” being implemented by the Coalition Federal Government.
Australia top Game of Thrones pirating nation
Australia is the nation which most pirates the popular HBO television series Game of Thrones, new analysis released this week has shown, with time delays and cable TV lock-in being the primary culprits believed to be behind the nation's copyright infringing habits.
$1.4m of Bitcoin stolen. Another tale from the cyber frontier of … Hornsby, NSW?
In another episode of the ongoing rollercoaster of a story that is Bitcoin, about 4,100 of them have been stolen from an online bitcoin wallet site inputs.io. What makes this particular story more interesting is the fact that the person behind the site inputs.io is allegedly an 18 year old Australian going by the alias “TradeFortress” living in Hornsby, NSW.
Fifield gets serious about VDSL cross-talk issue
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield has registered a new regulation which will force Australia's broadband industry to develop its own industry code dealing with the thorny issue of cross-talk interference in the new generation of Fibre to the Node and Basement technologies.
Did Conroy’s AFP filter wrongly block 1,200 sites?
According to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, it appears that the limited ISP-based filter which several of Australia’s major ISPs (Telstra, Optus and Vodafone so far) have implemented with the assistance of the Australian Federal Police may have suffered a massive false positive event in early April and wrongly blocked some 1,200 websites, including community group the Melbourne Free University.
Labor, Greens slam Turnbull hypocrisy: PM pumps innovation but ‘trashes’ NBN
Labor and Greens politicians have this week labelled Malcolm Turnbull a hypocrite for pushing Australia's innovation credentials in the United States while simultaneously having "trashed" the National Broadband Network, as debate grows about the infrastructure's significant to the Prime Minister's innovation vision.
Brandis refuses to answer piracy questions
Federal Attorney-General George Brandis has flatly refused to comment on a report that the new Coalition Government has signalled plans to restart long-running talks between the telecommunications and content industries to deal with the issue of Internet piracy, with the Liberal Senator declining to answer any question on the issue.
RBA hasn’t been worried by “limited” Bitcoin risk
A research paper produced internally by the Reserve Bank of Australia 12 months ago has shown the nation's central bank was at that stage not concerned about the potential impact of the Bitcoin crypto-currency on Australia's financial system, due to what it saw as the "limited" impact of a "niche product".
Fact Check: Is ridesharing no safer than hitchhiking?
The claim that ridesharing is no safer than hitchhiking is not supported by empirical data. Much of the data used by critics of Uber rely on anecdotal data and media reports to support their view ridesharing puts passengers at personal risk.
Xenophon boycotts name details in census protest
Nick Xenophon, Independent Senator for South Australia, has said he will fight for the right to privacy by refusing to provide his name in the 2016 census, despite the risk of prosecution the protest will bring.
Qld Govt airs plans to boost electric vehicle uptake
The Queensland Government is developing a strategy aimed to "encourage and facilitate" electric vehicle (EV) uptake, according to the state's Energy Minister, Mark Bailey.
Winning DataStart entry uses data to maximise healthcare efficiency
The winner of the DataStart incubator program has been named as CohortIQ – a startup that aims to use government and private data to maximise hospital and public health service efficiency.
Labor’s new policy won’t delay NBN again, says Quigley
Enacting Labor's new NBN policy wouldn't cause further delays in the project, Mike Quigley said in a press conference with former MP Tony Windsor, because it will primarily focus on established technologies such as Fibre to the Premises, unlike the Coalition's Multi-Technology Mix switch in 2013.
Truth: Trial shows why HFC cable is unsuitable for the NBN
The results of the NBN company's first trial of HFC cable show why this technology was always a poor fit for the National Broadband Network and should be abandoned as a dead end -- as it already was by Telstra and Optus more than a decade ago.
Labor will dump FTTP NBN policy, says Fifield
Minister for Communications Mitch Fifield has hit out at Labor's stance on the NBN's underlying technology, saying the opposition party could to be preparing to abandon its position on fibre to the premises (FTTP).
New tax incentives bill aimed to promote innovation and risk taking
The Federal Government introduced a new tax bill into Parliament yesterday that is aimed to drive investment, economic growth and job creation by "encouraging innovation, risk taking and an entrepreneurial culture".
Palantir exposed: Crikey reveals surveillance giant’s Aussie operations
According to a wide-ranging expose on Palantir Technologies published by Crikey, it has become clear that the firm is rapidly growing its operations down under.
Photos: Nodes Behaving Badly (when FTTN placement goes wrong)
Today, Delimiter is proud to present a photo gallery entitled Nodes Behaving Badly, in which we highlight some of the worst Fibre to the Node infrastructure placement that Australia has to offer.
The Inside Track: DataStart is much older and smarter than it looks
The truth is that those criticising DataStart as a lightweight program are off the mark. I like Stilgherrian, but in this case he's wrong. Behind the scenes, this initiative involves a great deal more than it appears to on the surface, and it wasn't put together overnight. It may never set the world on fire. But for a few Prime Minister keen to get some wins, DataStart may eventually turn out to be the little engine that could.
Ruddock committee finds data retention may breach journalists’ rights
The Federal Parliament's human rights committee chaired by Liberal MP Philip Ruddock has found that the mechanisms in the recent data retention legislation for protecting journalists and their sources may be inadequate and may breach human rights covenants.
Tiger Airways joins growing list of spamming corporations
Tiger Airways is likely to face further damage to its reputation, after joining a growing list of big corporations being fined for breaching the Spam Act.
It’s time to future-proof Australia’s copyright laws for the 21st century
The proposed reforms will enhance consumer rights, competition policy, access to knowledge and Australia’s ambitious National Innovation and Science Agenda and “ideas boom”.
Govt “determined” to stick “head deep in the sand” on tech policy, says Atlassian...
Much has been written about the general lack of understanding which Australia's political sector has when it comes to setting good technology policy. But few have put it as bluntly as Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes did last week in an interview with Business Insider.
CIA cufflinks in the PM’s office? Turnbull hires Data Retention guru
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has reportedly brought in one of the chief architects of the controversial Data Retention legislation -- an advisor who was known to have worn CIA cufflinks into the Senate Chamber -- to act as one of his key security advisors.
NBN Co delays FTTN rollout for further testing
The National Broadband Network company has acknowledged it is significantly delaying its rollout of Fibre to the Node technology in order to better test its own systems involved in the deployment, as debate continues to swirl around the controversial broadband rollout style.
NAB’s Bitcoin ban a symptom of the digital currency threat
Virtual currency Bitcoin is not a subject that ever draws neutral reactions. Against those who see the radical possibilities of a frictionless payment system designed for the internet, there is a growing resistance to the currencies that threaten existing business models and the perceived traceability of our current currency systems.
Union slams Telstra health records deal
The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) has criticised the Coalition Government for its decision to put a private company in charge of the management of confidential and highly sensitive health records for thousands of Australians.
NBN: Disastrous for the music industry … really?
The time has come for the music industry to find common ground with consumers, not do business in spite of them.
Turnbull to restore some NICTA/Data61 funding a year after it was chopped
According to Financial Review correspondent Phillip Coorey — currently travelling with now Prime Minister Turnbull on an extensive overseas trip stopping off at Germany — Turnbull is set to reinstate at least some of the funding chopped from NICTA.
NBN says customers just as happy with FTTN or FTTP
The NBN company today stated that customers using its Fibre to the Node service were just as satisfied with their broadband service as those using Fibre to the Premises services, on the basis of the industry standard Net Promoter Score rating.
Govt considers abolishing capital gains tax on startups
If you've ever started your own business (hint: it isn't easy, but it's worth it), you're probably familiar with the fact that you suddenly have to pay a great deal more tax than you previously had to. Australian companies are taxed on their profits, they usually have to collect GST, and that's just the start. Well, now a backbench Coalition MP who has previously been involved with the national technology sector has put forth a proposal which appears to be gaining strength in Government ranks: Remove the annoying capital gains tax when applied to investors in early stage startups.
Govt releases assurance policy for migration to NBN
The government has released a Migration Assurance Policy (MAP) that sets out its plans to limit disruption during the switch-over to the National Broadband Network.
The final leaked TPP text is all that we feared
Today's release by Wikileaks of what is believed to be the current and essentially final version of the intellectual property (IP) chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) confirms our worst fears about the agreement, and dashes the few hopes that we held out that its most onerous provisions wouldn't survive to the end of the negotiations.
Budget 2016: Govt establishes joint taskforce to fix myGov
The Government has established a joint taskforce to remediate its troubled myGov digital identity and verification platform, bringing in experts from a number of government departments and throwing $50.5 million at the project.
AFR claims on NBN sale just plain “wrong”, says Fifield
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield today flatly rejected claims by the Financial Review newspaper that the Government was in talks to sell the bulk of the National Broadband Network to Telstra for as little as $20 billion, stating: "There are no plans to sell NBN".
Truth: Will NBN Co be rolling brand new copper in some places to deal...
The NBN company has recently been putting out conflicting messages about what it will do when faced with sections of Telstra’s copper network which are too degraded to use for Fibre to the Node. But when you did a bit deeper, the truth is that the company appears to have a preference towards remediation or even replacement of the copper rather than upgrading it with fibre.
Fact check: Pyne misleads Q&A audience on key NBN facts
Industry, Innovation and Science Minister Christopher Pyne appears to have inadvertently misled the ABC's Q&A program about key facts regarding the National Broadband Network project, repeating a set of common misconceptions about the initiative on air last night.
Pandora’s Box: Inquiry opens universal surveillance floodgates
A move by the Greens to set up a Senate inquiry into the potential reform of Australia's surveillance laws appears to have opened a giant Pandora's Box of debate about the issue, with Australian law enforcement agencies using the process to demand massively increased electronic surveillance rights, including data retention of users' communications.
Government closes in on legislation over serious data breaches
The government has released an exposure draft of a bill that will define what it considers a 'serious' data breach and place notification requirements on some businesses or organisations should they suffer from such an attack.
China’s Aussie ambassador denies Huawei spying
If someone has some direct evidence that Huawei has been spying for the Chinese Government, then let them come forward with that evidence. So far all we have is hearsay and innuendo. And that is not enough, as Huawei and China’s Ambassador to Australia have clearly stated, when we’re talking about billion dollar contracts and the reputation of one of the world’s largest technology vendors. As Huawei has said, on this issue, “put up, or shut up”.
Govt introduces Innovation and Science legislation
The Coalition Government has introduced its Innovation and Science Australia Bill to parliament, a move it said will place innovation and science at the centre of its plan for Australia’s future economic prosperity.
Enough is enough: We demand a Royal Commission into the NBN
This is an open letter to Australia's politicians demanding a Royal Commission be held into the politically motivated destruction of the NBN project. If you agree: Sign this petition, note your support in the comments below this article, and forward this letter to your political representatives.
Data retention secrecy: AFP unable to disclose journo, MP metadata requests
The Australian Federal Police has refused to answer questions from a Federal Senator about whether it has recently accessed the metadata of journalists, politicians or political staffers, on the basis that doing so would be illegal under new Data Retention legislation.
Europe’s data retention story not clear cut
Over the past several weeks Attorney-General Nicola Roxon has publicly compared the Federal Government’s controversial data retention proposal to a similar system enacted in Europe. But the truth is that Europe’s data protection bureaucrat has heavily criticised the scheme, and a number of countries have struck it down as being unconstitutional.
Devil’s Advocate: The gaping holes in Labor’s new NBN policy
Labor's new National Broadband Network policy appears to be a pitch perfect plan for Australia's future broadband needs. But what if it's not?
ACCC raises competition concerns over NBN’s Telstra HFC deal
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has expressed concerns around Telstra’s involvement in the rollout of the NBN network, saying it poses a threat to competition.