Anna Bligh remains keen to recruit an outsider to replace Mike Kaiser as her chief-of-staff, in an effort to halt the destabilisation campaign that has seen nearly every member of her inner circle linked to a mutiny attempt.
National Broadband Network
Crikey Says: Blatant spin from inside the Queensland Premier’s Office
Lies about the movements of Anna Bligh’s chief of staff, Mike Kaiser, to the National Broadband Network came without a hint of subtlety, greyness or a plausible get out.
Murdoch visits, spends a week talking to himself
Why do we keep listening to Rupert Murdoch? Is it because he doesn’t let us stop, with all interviews conducted by either employees or employees of an arm of News, directly or indirectly.
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Internet access: more than just smut and piracy
New data shows Australia’s young people are overwhelmingly using the internet for education more than anything else — yes, even porn — but their access to the web is strongly tied to socio-economic factors. Should the government started subsidising net access for low-income families?
My shovel’s better than yours: Rudd v Howard on infrastructure
Federal politicians are falling over themselves to claim credit for spending taxpayer’s money on infrastructure, writes Alan Moran. Too bad public projects are never judged with the same rigor as private projects.
Kohler: Rudd’s dividing and conquering, not leading, on ETS and Telstra
Kevin Rudd and his ministers seem to think they are all just playing a political computer game, in which the aim is to kill as many bad guys as possible. But broadband and emissions trading are both nation-changing issues.
graph pr0n Who is getting faster, cheaper internet than you?
Well, the Japanese for a start, who get an average connection speed of 61mbps (versus our 1.7mbps) at a fraction of the price. This great infographic compares broadband speed, price and penetration around the world. See how behind we really are.
Bartholomeusz: Will Conroy kill free TV?
The National Broadband Network could see a range of competitors to free-to-air TV emerge, as internet TV and video become more accessible and profitable. But whose interests will the Broadband Minister be protecting? asks Stephen Bartholomeusz.
Telstra split: good or bad idea?
Online reaction to Telstra’s not-quite-forced “structural separation” is split. Telstra shareholders are angry. Everyone else is quietly jubilant — especially Telstra’s key competitors.
Crikey Clarifier: What on earth is structural separation?
Til now, Telstra has exploited its monopoly as the buyer and seller of wholesale services to gouge the public and its struggling rivals. So the government’s forcing it to “structurally separate”. But what does this mean?
Hartcher: Rudd risks unpopularity for broadband
The forced Telstra split is a flash of steel from the government, says Peter Hartcher. PM Kevin Rudd and Communications Minister Stephen Conroy are unmoved by Telstra shareholders’ ire; they just want to get broadband moving.
Telstra has to morph into a different kind of beast
The Rudd government’s legislation is the stark choice being offered Telstra: split your wholesale and retail operations or you don’t get any more wireless spectrum.
Telstra to be split up
Stephen Conroy has today announced the government will require Telstra to structurally separate its wholesale and retail arms to increase telecommunications competition. Full text here. Telstra shares have dropped sharply in response.
Oz Post and Medibank the cream of the public sector earners
The high salary earners of the public sector are streets ahead of the best paid politicians, write Bernard Keane and Crikey intern Emily Finlay.
Decoding Rudd’s public service reshuffle
Governments might appoint mates and fellow travellers to authority boards, and diplomatic posts, but Public Service Secretaries are too important for that.
Dead Letter Office: Australia Post’s life beyond mail
Australia Post, and its traditional postal service model, is under threat from the National Broadband Network. What should it do to remain relevant and profitable?
Tips and rumours: The good goss on Business at The Oz
Inside scoops on the real job of the Business Editor at The Oz, Australia Post, broadband speed and more.
National Broadband Network: an issue of ideology, not economics
You can’t attack or defend the Rudd government’s NBN on purely economic arguments, because it’s simply too difficult to quantify, says Richard Chirgwin. Let’s be honest: the broadband debate is fundamentally an ideological one.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: The First Dog complaint form letter
A Crikey reader helpfully compiles a generic First Dog on the Moon complaint letter, plus other readers on The Wilderness Society, Melbourne Uni, the Fairfax Digital Puzzle Administrator and more.
Kev’s troubled typing: highlights from the PM’s Live Chat
Our new-media loving Prime Minister Kevin Rudd showed himself to be more typing twit than technical top dog in a patchy attempt at a live web chat about climate change today.
Telstra set to embrace National Broadband
The possible addition of Telstra means the dominoes are falling into place for the Federal Government’s National Broadband Network.
Who is Mike Quigley?
Mike Quigley may have missed out on the top job with Alcatel, but he’s the new chief executive of the National Broadband Network company.
Hypocrisy watch: Foxtel lectures Free to Air TV on competition
Foxtel CEO Kim Williams spoke yesterday about the need for greater competition in TV. Perhaps the problem is more that he’s just about to get some.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: More rubbish from Crikey: our readers weigh in
Readers let us have it over recycling, the NBN, being nasty to pollies and more.
Alston’s cold, dead hand still controls broadband
The National Broadband Network should be the solution to Australia’s commerical television woes. It isn’t.
