Just six weeks since Malcolm Turnbull became opposition communications spokesperson, he’s already sharpened up the Coalition’s broadband policy and provided politically-saleable points of difference from Labor’s national broadband network.
Stephen Conroy
Follow Crikey’s latest coverage of Stephen Conroy. Crikey’s Stephen Conroy coverage includes independent news, blogs and commentary.
Graeme Samuel’s NBN slug
As if Telstra didn’t have enough to deal with, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has raised the prospect it will do an about-face on its attitude to Telstra’s wholesale ADSL access regime.
The internet filter coming to the US — with barely any dissent
A deadlocked US Congress will do what the Australian Labor Party cannot — pass a mandatory ISP-based Internet filter by the end of the year. And the most remarkable thing is almost nobody dissents, writes Harley Dennett.
Conroy vs Turnbull: a battle of the martians
Now that Malcolm Turnbull has replaced Tony Smith in the shadow communications portfolio, the debate about the government’s proposed NBN will get wild and hairy. Why? Because Conroy is from Venus and Turnbull is from Mars, says David Braue.
NBN: why Conroy and his department are fibre zealots
The case for fibre to the home in Australia has been pursued largely by the beneficiaries, writes Peter J. Cox, of Cox Media.
Figures prove $250m Free TV rebate to be a total crock
The federal government’s decision earlier this year to give the major commercial TV networks a $250 million rebate on their licence fees to help fund Australian content has been exposed as a complete crock.
Conroy’s change of tack: make us pure, but not yet
Stephen Conroy has tried to take the heat out of the filter issue, and in doing so has given his critics a chance to articulate their core concerns, writes Bernard Keane.
Tips and rumours: Tips and rumours: Conroy hates the Twitter
He may be the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, but that doesn’t mean he likes social media.
A toxic relationship thaws, but Gillard will have News on her mind
Like all new governments, Julia Gillard’s rule has the chance to start afresh in its relationship with News Limited, which had become, to put it in understated terms, toxic under Kevin Rudd.
Caveats aside, Telstra deal is a big win for Rudd
It’s only a heads of agreement, and subject to further extensive negotiation, but the NBN-Telstra-Government deal isolates the Opposition and the government can claim a legitimate win.
Kohler: Telstra deal pays a political price
Telstra has finally agreed to sign an $11m deal for the NBN, with $9m coming from the NBN Co. and a final $2m sweetener from the government. The biggest winner here is Telstra, says Alan Kohler.
The regulator and the regulated: sorry, but the internet won’t play that game
Stephen Conroy rants at Google and Facebook. But he hasn’t worked out that they don’t play that game, and aren’t that interested in what governments think.
Google vs. Stephen Conroy
Stephen Conroy is taking on internet giants Google and Facebook over their recent privacy breaches. But is he just capitalising on the public sentiment against the two companies to take the heat off his widely-panned internet filter plans?
Conroy: We’ll block 50,000 sites
Stephen Conroy last night warned the Government would consider blocking up to 50,000 websites, before launching an attack on euthanasia websites and Facebook, reports Bernard Keane.
revealed 
The real cost of fibre-to-the-home
McKinsey and KPMG have just released their $25 million dollar study into Conroy’s fibre-to-the-home plan. But their suggestions aren’t exactly what the government was promising. Jock Given explains.
No sex, no YouTube, no Facebook — Conroy’s still watching you
Stephen Conroy’s controversial internet filter has been placed on the backburner in the hope that it won’t become a major election issue. But stay alert, writes Ross Fitzgerald, the internet filter will come back even more draconian than ever.
Google’s got Groggle by the goolies, squeezing hard
Google threatens a tiny Australian start-up, alleging trademark infringement. It’s classic David versus Goliath… but does Google have a choice?
Crikey Says: Conroy fighting internet battle on wrong front
Stephen Conroy slams Google for its hypocritical stance on the government’s proposed internet filter. But the Minister has a little China problem of his own.
A media review? Or a campaign against online and subscription TV?
Another media reform process will soon get under way. And “reform” is likely to mean the regulation of those media that have been most successful in recent years.
Time for Conroy to deliver
Where is Labor’s media policy? It was promised before the party came to government, but has never emerged. Now we are being treated to yet another Rudd review and consult exercise.
Government 2.0 #fail — spending $43b on an NBN in secret
Senator Stephen Conroy is unable to release the NBN implementation report. Further evidence that truly participative Government 2.0 is still a long, long way off. What happened to open government, Rudd?
Kohler: The NBN hangs up on Telstra
With the government offering billions less compensation than what Telstra wants for the NBN, any chance of a deal between them seems dead. But this might be the best outcome for both, writes Alan Kohler.
The bewildering search for Abbott’s agenda
The Senate obstructionism has hit the headlines this week, further highlighting that Tony Abbott has yet to figure out exactly what he stands for as leader apart from opposing everything the government suggests.
We must accept some of the ministerial responsiblity
It’s not fair to scapegoat ministers for programs which rely on community involvement. Peter Garrett shouldn’t take all the rap for the insulation mess, because the public failed too, writes John Warhurst.
