Optus’ CEO is frustrated by the debate around the NBN. The telecommunications industry faces a “critical period”, he says, but the discussion is little more than a polarised argument about whether to build it.
National Broadband Network
Wireless obsession gets in the way on broadband
The conviction that wireless is a viable fast broadband technology is getting in the way of accurate coverage of the NBN.
Rural Australia: don’t fear the NBN
The Australian have boldly accused the government’s NBN program of invading and mutilating NSW’s Wingecarribee Shire. However, the idea that the NBN will destroy the “way of life” of rural Australian communities is sheer balderdash, says Renai LeMay.
Egypt and the NBN: the internet, it’s made of people
Egypt’s recent internet shut-down and Australia’s NBN have one thing in common: ultimately their success or failure depended — or will depend — not on technology but on people, a US telecommunications policy advocate says.
Telstra deal puts more momentum behind the NBN
The Telstra-NBN deal announced this morning puts more weight behind the broadband network, leaving the Coalition ever further behind.
Hosing down the hype on wireless internet technology
There are two reasons the opposition is such a fan of wireless broadband. One is political: fibre equals National Broadband Network equals Labor equals something to destroy. The other is that the Liberals are being sucked in by the wireless vendors’ glossy brochures.
Fund flood recovery with NBN ahead of a levy, say voters
Essential Report’s latest poll offers bad news for Labor, with voters backing delaying or scrapping the NBN, and delaying a return to surplus, over a one-off levy, reports Bernard Keane.
Why you won’t hear calls for a CBA of the post-flood reconstruction
Post-disaster reconstruction illuminates the irrational, but humane, approach we sometimes adopt to infrastructure provision.
Abbott’s dodgy correlation between floods and the NBN
Tony Abbott’s recent call for the government to scrap the National Broadband Network in order to fund floods recovery programs is oh so convenient, according to Group Think.
NBN sparks piracy fears
With the business plan for the NBN announced earlier this week, there has been considerable discussion on video distribution online as being one of the benefactors of higher internet speeds. Dan Barrett explains.
Televised Revolution Podcast – Episode 19
This week on Televised Revolution, Dan and Simon chat about the changing face of television in the shadow of the looming spectre of the NBN, the public appearance of someone named Jimmy Giggle, the US adaption of Wilfred and more.
Kohler: now THAT’s a broadband business plan
After reading the NBN business plan it’s actually a bit hard to remain aloof and unexcited.
Political snippets: Labor pains in New South Wales
That NSW opinion poll verdict — A remarkable thing about that Newspoll verdict today on politics in New South Wales is not just how poorly Labor is doing but just is how few of the discontented Labor voters have actually turned to the Liberals and the Nationals. The predicted Labor vote is down a massive 15 percentage […]
At last, the NBN Business Plan
The government has finally released the NBN Corporate Plan that caused so much fuss while Parliament was sitting. It unveils a 7% rate of return and lower-than-expected wholesale prices as part of a set of conservative projections over the next 30 years.
Essential: Broadband support strengthens, Labor wedged on gays
Australians think the NBN is important and will benefit the economy, businesses, themselves and their kids, the latest Essential Report reveals. And on gay marriage, Labor finds itself caught between the two sides.
Mungo MacCallum: Gillard’s welcome show of strength on Telstra
It was a fitting climax to Labor’s tumultuous parliamentary year. Julia Gillard finally brought off a big win with the passage of the Telstra legislation, but hostile commentators were still able to spin it as a defeat.
So, what does the Coalition stand for?
All the focus has been on what Labor stands for. Yesterday it looked a lot like it was the Coalition that was adrift and lacking policy.
NBN business case: curiouser and curiouser
If the government secures passage of its bill to separate Telstra, it will have achieved an historic telecommunications reform. Typically, everyone’s talking about something else.
NBN Co business case — truly a curiously inadequate document
“It is a curiously inadequate document,” wrote Malcolm Turnbull of the NBN Co Business Case Summary. He’s right. A business case that doesn’t, y’know, present a case for the business, supported by proper numbers? WTF?
Political snippets: Boredom Baillieu’s only hope
The only thing Ted Baillieu can hope for is that feelings of boredom cause voters to do something strange on Saturday.
The Australian in NBN-induced meltdown
The Australian is in National Broadband Network induced meltdown today, with the gang mercilessly hacking into Gillard and Conroy’s NBN plan. Their attacks reek of partisanship and they fail time and time again to come up with compelling arguments, writes Dave Gaukroger.
Jericho: Gillard is playing funny buggers with NBN
One of the big questions surrounding the government’s release of its NBN business plan was why it took so long for them to do it. It’s hard not to think that Gillard was playing shifty politics, writes Greg Jericho.
Xenophon extracts NBN plan from govt
Crikey Media Wrap: Despite the government previously insisting that its NBN business plan could not be released, Julia Gillard and Communications Minister Stephen Conroy finally coughed it up yesterday after pressure from independent senator Nick Xenophon.
