News

• Telecom shareholders approve demerger

  New Zealand Telecom (ASX: TEL) shareholders have overwhelmingly voted in favour of demerging its infrastructure business Chorus to allow the company to participate in the country’s Ultra-fast Broadband Network (UFB) project.

• VHA wary of NBN customer lock-in

  While offering neither fixed line calls or fixed broadband services, Vodafone Hutchison Australia (VHA) believes the National Broadband Network (NBN) will still deliver the telco an increase in business.

• AARNet launches five-year plan

  The Australian Academic and Research Network (AARNet) has announced a wide range of initiatives around network upgrades, collaboration, and mobility as part of a new five-year plan.

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  OPEL would be serving bush broadband today: Turnbull

  Federal opposition communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull has used his National Press Club address to argue the decision to scrap the Howard government’s OPEL network for an NBN has denied the bush broadband services over the past three years.

• NBN costs 'thousands less' than today's fibre: Quigley

  At the launch of the next trial site of the National Broadband Network in Kiama, NSW today, NBN Co chief Mike Quigley said concerns about pricing for Internet access are unfounded as fibre connections cost "thousands" already.

• Huawei tipped for NZ's 'NBN' network

  Huawei is expected to be shortly named as preferred supplier for New Zealand's $1.2 billion Ultra Fast Broadband (UFB) network.

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  NBN tendering announcement expected soon: Conroy

  Communications Minister, Stephen Conroy, expects NBN Co will make an announcement about rollout tendering processes soon, after it suspended them in April.

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  Test customers go live on Armidale NBN

  The first mainland National Broadband Network (NBN) services have gone live, with users in Armidale reporting operational fibre access to the $36 billion network.

• Collaborative gastrointestinal research gets boost via AARNet broadband

  Australia’s Academic and Research Network (AARNet) has used its high speed broadband network to share gastrointestinal e-health research with practitioners in parts of Asia.

• NBN Co chief attempts knock-out blow in fibre vs wireless fight

  NBN Co chief executive, Mike Quigley, has sought to drive the final nail into the fibre versus mobile wireless contest stating that politics surrounding the technology debate had become “sterile”.

• NSW Education completes fibre rollout as usage spirals upwards

  A $280 million fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) rollout to all NSW public schools and TAFE institutions is expected to be completed by the end of the year, Minister for Education and Training, Verity Firth announced this week.

• Fox Sports taps fibre upgrade for competitive edge

  Fox Sports will tap its high-speed fibre network to deliver more sports events online and in 3D next year as the content producer pushes its credentials at the time when the major sports codes are deciding their broadcast futures.

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  Point-to-point fibre installation cost viable: Study

  A study into the roll out of next generation access networks has found a point-to-point fibre deployment would cost only 10 per cent more than the passive optical network (PON) technology currently being used to roll out the National Broadband Network (NBN).

• Wireless trumps fibre for City of Albany

  Sometimes wireless just makes sense as an alternative to fibre. At least, that was true for one Western Australian local government with a hill located smack bang in the centre of town.

• Telstra fibre not enough: NBN Co

  Though Telstra is believed to own and operate one of the most extensive fibre networks in Australia, it isn't nearly enough for the National Broadband Network (NBN), according to the head of corporate affairs at NBN Co, Kevin Brown.