It’s believed that 49 new estates across Victoria’s metropolitan and regional areas with another 42 estates in New South Wales and 20 in Queensland, will now have new fibre broadband services installed free-of-charge over the coming months and well ahead of schedule.

In Victoria alone, the revised December increase means that 4636 premises have now been touted in the NBN Co Greenfield construction plans which is well up from the initial target of 1780 premises.

Read more at theage.com.au: Victoria’s new estates win in NBN rollout

That is the price tag that iiNet paid to snap up a pre-boxing day bargain and catapult the respective ISP into Australia’s third largest Internet Service Provider position.

The 190,000 customer transaction also brings the iiNet broadband customer base close to 900,000 subscribers (15.5% market share) which is only about 100,000 behind Optus who sits on 1 million.

Internode now joins an impressive list of Telecommunication acquisitions that iiNet have made in the past 18 months that includes the likes of TransACT for $60 million, Netspace for $40m and the consumer customer base of AAPT for $60m.

This latest purchase also appears to be a very timely and strategic move. One that not only has been brought about to strengthen iiNet’s position for the inception of the NBN, moreover a move that could also fend off a possible takeover from rival Telco TPG.

What does this mean for consumer? Well it should in turn benefit the consumer also and ease any concern in regards to any inflationary or sharp rises in costs for broadband, phone and IPTV services in the same period. However, just because the NBN has frozen prices for five years it doesn’t mean that retail service providers (E.G. Telstra, Optus, iiNet etc..,) will freeze their prices over the same duration.

Remember this article in coming years and think twice when you hear of any NBN service provider making an announcement that talks about about jacking up prices.

This means the entry level wholesale price would not rise until at least July 2017, and then increase by no more than 1 to 2 per cent per year after that, depending on inflation.

However NBN Co cannot guarantee retail service providers would not increase retail prices independently of wholesale prices.

Read more at smh.com.au – NBN reveals 5-year fixed price plan

Nicknamed the ‘Nerve Centre’ the new facility will be an information hub for consumers and service providers for all things NBN and in addition, host the Network Service Operations Centre (NSOC), the National Test Facility (NTF), the Service Activation Centre (SAC) and the Discovery Centre.

Learn more about the NBN Co’s new operations and demonstrations facility at computerworld.com.au – NBN Co opens new facilities in Melbourne

The initiative is part of the Regional Backbone Blackspots Program (RBBP) with the completion announced yesterday by Stephen Conroy, the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy. Mr Conroy stated that the new link would provide greater competition, better value services and faster broadband throughout the stretch of 1150kms that the link entails.

The RBBO will provide retail service providers the ability to offer better broadband services in the following towns:

Gawler
Tanunda
Angaston
Nuriootpa
Kapunda
Dutton East
Waikerie
Wigley Flat
Barmera
Berri
Renmark
Morcalla North
Merbein
Mildura
Coombah
Broken Hill
Red Cliffs
Chippendale
Robinvale
Kyalite
Swan Hill
Mystic Park
Kerang
Cohuna
Torrumbarry
Echuca
Moama
Kyabram
Mooroopna
Shepparton

Source: dbcde.gov.au

VHA chief executive Nigel Dews confirmed the agreement with the NBN Co and said that plans to conduct trials would commence in Armidale in Northern NSW in the coming months.

Plagued by mobile network issues and customer complaints, Vodafone is currently in the process of upgrading its mobile network while continuing to roll out new services to cater for an increased uptake of mobile customers.

Source: AustralianIT

It’s expected that Burnie, Devonport, Launceston and more suburbs of Hobart are to be flagged as the next locations to be connected. Ms Gillard stated that more than 800 jobs will be created and that a further 90 thousand households will be connected as a result of this latest roll out.

End update

——————————————————————————————
The NBN Co has just announced the next stage of towns to be provisioned with the national broadband network roll out. The towns (as seen below) include approximately 11,500 homes and business and will be connected to the new fibre broadband network starting from the respective dates.

Location – Premises (approx) – Start date
Triabunna – 500 – Late May
Sorell – 1500 – Late May
Deloraine – 1400 – Early July
St Helens – 2200 – Late July
Kingston Beach – 950 – Late August
George Town – 2600 – Late September
South Hobart – 2000 – Early October

More information, including network coverage maps, can be viewed at the NBN Tasmania website by visiting here.

Beset by many obstacle such as the recent financial crisis, funding uncertainties, Industry threats along with many knockers who stated the project could not be achieved, Pipe Networks displayed commendable resilience (thanks to support from ISP’s Internode, iiNet and co). A new broadband cable pipe of PPC-1′s capacity will in effect, break the current duopoly that the likes of Optus and Telstra have through Southern Cross and Australia Japan Cable.

Industry experts are split on whether or not the PPC-1 cable prospects are enough to curve the exorbitant prices that Australian’s pay for the Broadband Usage Data. Compared to the U.S., Australians are paying around the same for their Broadband plans (if not more), however we don’t have true ‘unlimited’ usage within our Broadband contracts or additional fully fledged services such as IPTV either.

The Broadband and Telecommunication Industry is certainly an up and down ball game. On one hand we’re witnessing Pipe Networks introduce a new cable which is expected to reduce Broadband costs (or raise limits) by providing more International data, whereas on the other hand this project appears to be countered by the ACCC who have done a recent back flip by confirming that Telstra will be able to inflate their Unbundled Local Loop Services (ULLS) prices over the next three years.

Nonetheless, after further testing is completed at locations that include Papua New Guinea, Tokyo and San Jose, it’s believed that the new Pipe Networks PPC-1 Submarine Cable will become operational this coming 8th October, 2009. It’s just a pity the celebrations may not last long for the consumers who are looking forward to cheaper Broadband. I guess we’ll have to wait and see what eventuates.

Prepare yourself for the ‘TV Wars’, and the new content delivery methods which are rapidly emerging with it. That’s right, your good ‘ol beaut TV set and the way in which your favourite shows are transmitted to you could soon become obsolete as new content devices and technologies appear on the horizon.

Channel Seven’s today tonight recently aired a segment that was meant to showcase Kerry Stoke’s latest marvel – TiVo. At the same time it appeared to take a swipe at FOXTEL’s Pay TV services by educating the masses on where to watch much of the content that currently appears on Pay TV. If you guessed WWW, your exactly right! Much of the content that’s currently airing on FOXTEL and AUSTAR can be viewed on the Internet, and for free! Seek and ye shall find.

Terms such as IPTV, TiVo and VOD have, uptil recently, only been used by the internet savvy and broadband enthusiast alike. However this is all about to change as the mainstream gets a taste of things to come in the realm of Broadcast TV content and delivery.

Internet TV is just that. TV content that is stored online and of which can be streamed (downloaded) from the Internet to you. The ABC’s new iView service acts as an Internet TV library that allows you to watch anything that was aired on the ABC/ABC 2 over the past 30 days. The service if completely free, all you have to pay for is the data usage. 

TiVo is a device which has been pretty much over marketed as a Pay TV competitor, although it’s more of an indirect alternative to such. It’s a brand of digital video recorder that basically gives a user the ability to capture TV shows (with time shift recording) onto a hard drive. There is also an electronic TV Guide which many people will find quite useful along with many other flexible and helpful features. Perhaps the biggest draw card for TiVo over that of Pay TV is it’s future potential with Internet compatibilities. This can be best described by it’s ability to connect to a local area network and download content from the internet. The TiVo device is set to become an extremely popular content media portal down the track.

IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) uses the Internet to transmit digital television telecasts (opposed to radio waves).  Television content is delivered through network infrastructure often using broadband connections. Many people nowdays use media centres and LCD/Plasma TV’s to watch content downloaded from the Internet. IPTV is becoming very popular in countries such as the United States and is usually packaged within broadband type services.

VOD (Video on Demand) services can either stream content (for real time ‘live’ viewing) through a set-top-box, or allow content to be downloaded to a device such as a PC or Digital Video Recorder (e.g. TiVo). It appears to be a very practical method for watching content on demand such as new release movies and live entertainment/sporting events.

Pay TV in Australia has been around for quite a number of years and has enjoyed growing popularity more recently. These other services are relatively new to the scene and still play second fiddle to Pay TV. There is an enormous ‘X’ factor here that is bound to effect the respective industry in the not so distant future. This factor plays a huge role in the prospects and protocols of many of the services discussed in this article. It’s called Broadband, more importantly ‘Bandwidth’.

With a new national network just around the corner which is expected to bring robust broadband speeds and capabilities, a flourishing broadcast industry will be sure to follow. So expect these services, and more like them, to bob up and down from time to time, and once the NBN kicks in over the next couple of years, it will be “beam me up Scottie!”

The Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) has unveiled their new iView service which gives users the ability to watch ABC1 and ABC2 programs online for free and up to 30 days after appearing on TV.

iView is a free service that requires nothing more than a high speed internet connection (ABC recommends 11Mbps for optimal viewing) and audio. Despite streaming a resolution that appears to be below that of standard television, even though the ABC has advertised it as ‘high definition’, iView still transmits a very good quality picture and has a great potential as a free resource nonetheless.

What I would like to point out and make clear to unsuspecting users is, that although the service may be free to use it’s still going to guzzle through your usage limit. So unless you’re with a provider such as iiNet who doesn’t count download usage from the ABC, you could incur a very hefty monthly bill from your ISP if you’re not careful.

For example, watching an average iView program could use approximately 300MB per hour (or per episode). For users who are on a basic broadband plan, even one episode could blow your monthly limit. What’s worse, if you with a provider who charges (opposed to shapes) your broadband internet connection after you exceed your limit, the charges could be severe.

E.g. Watching 3 x 1 hour iView programs online whilst on a 500MB limit that charges 10c per MB for excess use, could end up and cost you an additional $50 for that month!

The ABC’s iView service is very convenient and a leap in the right direction toward IPTV, however, if you intend of using this service be absolutely sure you know how much data you’re going to go through! More importantly, know what you’re excess usage conditions and limitations are with your Broadband plan otherwise you could be watching nothing online for sometime to come!  

source: http://www.abc.net.au/iview

Broadband Guide is pleased to announce the introduction of iPrimus broadband plans to the site. The new iPrimus Internet products deliver ADSL2+ speeds along with exceptional usage limits and value for money such as that witnessed with the iPrimus ADSL2+ Big Kahuna plan. This plan boasts a massive usage limit of 200GB and can be purchased at a low price of $69.95 when bundled with home phone and mobile services!

Browse and Compare this plan and more iPrimus Broadband 2+ plans right here http://iprimus.broadbandguide.com.au

Naked DSL Broadband Internet is a rapidly growing broadband alternative as it gives a user the ability to save extra money by ditching the traditional home phone service. It’s popularity is growing so much that it’s caused an unexpected profit for iiNet. Subscribers are now ridding themselves of a Telstra landline in favour of their mobile phone, or for those who used their home phone more frequently, a VoIP (Voice of Internet Protocol) Broadband Phone service.

iiNet’s Managing Director ‘Michael Malone’ recently stated that the company is signing up around 1,000 Naked DSL subscribers per week. He also added that iiNet has been very surprised with the Naked DSL uptake as they thought the new service would only appeal to the tech savvy broadband enthusiast therefor remaining a niche product.

If you’re interested in Naked DSL and considering an iiNet Naked DSL plan, click on the link below and compare iiNet Naked DSL Internet against other Naked DSL Providers right here at Broadband Guide.

http://iinet.broadbandguide.com.au/adsl/plans

Iinet is claiming Naked DSL subscriber numbers of “over 23,000″ customers, from a total customer pool on iiNet DSLAMs of 170,209 customers. So, roughly thirteen percent of iiNet’s customers are now living without a PSTN phone line.

“We initially saw Naked DSL as a very niche product”, he said. “We expected that the tech geek crowd who loves broadband would go for it, along with Generation Y and their mobile phones. Instead, it’s appealed to a much broader audience who don’t want to pay line rentals. They see it as dead money. It’s not so much to do with saving money as it is not wasting it.”

source: iiNet profits bulge from unexpected naked growth

Very high speed digital subscriber line, otherwise known as VDSL2, has been touted as the broadband technology type that will be used by the winning tender for the new national broadband network.

VDSL2 is capable of broadband speeds in excess of 100Mbps and similar to it’s predecessor ADSL, will drop off over short distances. One exciting prospect of VDSL2 is the symmetrical rate that it offers which would make it highly sort after by peer-to-peer enthusiasts and the business sector alike.

With some ISPs either currently marketing VDSL2 as their next upcoming broadband product to be released, or conducting extensive research and testing, VDSL2 appears to be in the box seat as the technology type to be used for the upcoming NBN….. but by whom?

Read more about VDSL2 Broadband at Wikipedia

Competition or no competition, that is the answer! The deconstruction of Telstra as a vertically integrated Telecommunication company could be nigh as the push for it’s structural separation gains momentum. In a report released by ‘Competition Economists Group’, who were commissioned by Telstra’s arch rival Optus, key findings suggested that Telstra (if not structurally separated) would have very powerful incentives to damage competition in the Telecommunication Industry if it were to win the National Broadband Network bid.

As reported back on April 1st, the Structural Separation of monolithic Telco companies in the UK, Europe and now New Zealand are solving anti competition dilemmas. But what about Telstra and it’s shareholders? Well it seems that conjecture and speculation cause investors to be weary and that structurally separating Telstra into retail and wholesale divisions could actually ease the uncertainties behind Telstra’s future and  restore or even improve market confidence.

“This means that if the NBN is owned by a vertically integrated Telstra, then discrimination — and damage to competition — will be a much bigger problem under the NBN than today.”

Today’s report is expected to be the first step in a concerted campaign led by Optus to lobby the Government for a forced split of Telstra.

source: news.com.au

Although not made from earth, the name TERRiA is rock solid and has been adopted (less the Firma of course) as the new name for the group of carriers formerly known as the ‘G9′ (or should I say the G8).

The consortium is made up from Optus, AAPT, iiNet, Internode, Primus, Macquarie Telecom,  SOUL and TransACT with the the ninth member ‘PowerTel’ now owned by AAPT, and to avoid further discrepencies down the track, it makes timely sense that the group come up with the new name of TERRiA. 

Michael Egan recently announced the new name, which is a contraction of ‘Terra Australis’, and said that it also phonetically the same as a terrier which eludes to tenacity and energy.  TERRiA also took the opportunity by saying they will develop a structurally separated model, however, had not yet responded to the current version of the NBN RFP.

“We …like the fact that it’s phonetically the same as terrier which hints at the energy and tenacity which will be needed to win the best communication outcome. In a word it sums up both our determination and the scale of the National Broadband Network with the commitment of coverage across the land.”

source: itwire

If Britain, Europe and now New Zealand are anything to go by in the Telecommunication’s Industry, then surely it might nearly be curtains for Telstra as a vertical integrated company? In the latest structural separation of a monolithic telecommunication’s company, Telecom New Zealand has finally gone under the hammer for a three degree separation. The effect of this is meant to make Broadband Internet access cheaper for the consumer and grant ISP’s easier access to Broadband networks thus pushing competition, efficiency and paving the way for a stronger economy. 

Vertical integration is almost a term of the past when it comes describing dominant telco companies. The irony behind the rise and rise of Telstra as Australia’s Goliath telco is the possible demise it now faces, or should I say ‘separation’. It appears that the only option left for the Government is to follow the lead of overseas constituents by dividing Telstra into retail, network and wholesale divisions. The Kevin Rudd led charge hasn’t got too many options left up their sleeve, and considering the quagmire of the telco industry as it now stands today with numerous anti competitive claims, law suits, exorbitant prices etc.., it just make sense to separate. Is there a choice? As either caging Telstra or separating them will still lead to endless courtroom battles of litigation anyway.  The latter part of 2008 will certainly bare some interest whatever the case may be.

Compare Naked DSL Broadband Internet Plans & VoIP Bundles by iiNet against other leading Australian Broadband Providers. iiNet is one of the first ISP’s in Australia to offer Broadband Plans that don’t require separate Phone Line rental.

Yes, that’s right if you’re new to Broadband and are sick and tired of paying for a phone line and rental that you don’t hardly use but want ADSL2+ Broadband speeds and a respective Plan to match, then try out iiNet’s Naked DSL Plans for size. For as little as $49.95 per month, you can have access to a Broadband ADSL2+ Plan, 2GB peak & 2GB offpeak (4GB) Usage Limit, Phone Line Rental Included, iiNet’s iiTalk VoIP Broadband Phone Service, Free Local and National calls and Free Spam and Virus Protection!

iiNet Naked DSL Broadband Plans & Services are available in most capital cities, however if you’re interested in taking up a Naked DSL service, it’s wise to make an enquiry about Naked DSL Availability and Naked DSL Connection turn around times first, as iiNet’s Naked DSL Plans are an extremely popular product.

Check out and compare iiNet Naked DSL Plans here!

The results are in!  A recent Australian Broadband Survey Report conducted in 07/08 stated that more than 50% of respondents clearly voted for the Government as the entity who should be behind the next generation internet access network (FTTN). Other significant results include: Most people suggesting that Broadband prices are just too high and would be greatly influenced to change ISP’s for a lower price, higher download limits and faster line speeds. The demand for VoIP is on the up and most Broadband customers are still very unhappy with the ability of ISPs to change ‘contract’ conditions at any time.The survey was conducted over a 4 week period (31.12.2007 to 01.02.2008) with 17,881 verified participants taking part.

Below are several examples of the feedback obtained in this years ABS that perhaps both Business (ISPs) and the Government should pay close attention to.

Which entity should be responsible for the next generation internet access technologies (e.g. fibre to the node)?

Telstra  5.7%
G9 consortium  21.4%
The government  51.9%
Other (e.g. Deutsche Telekom)  5%
Don’t know  16%


Do you support the government’s policy for mandatory ISP-level content filtering (opt-out)?

Strongly agree  2.9%
Agree  10.4%
Disagree  22.9%
Strongly disagree  51.5%
Don’t know  12.3%

From the following, what is most important for you in a broadband internet connection?

Fast speeds  39.2%
Ability to download large amounts  27.9%
It is always connected  14.9%
Lower service costs  11.7%
Low latency  3.5%
Frees up telephone line  2.5%
Exclusive content  0.1%

What would entice you to change ISP?

(ISP Average)
Lower prices 75.4%  
A higher download limit 56.7% 
Faster line speeds (e.g. ADSL2+) 50.4% 

See the full report here.

As expected, Pipe Networks have announced the go ahead of their $200 million submarine Internet cable project (PPC-1) which is due to open in June 2009. Federal Communications Minister ‘Stephen Conroy’ suggested that the new undersea cable would also open up the Broadband market and not only reduce costs, but moreover, increase Broadband speeds.

PPC-1 aka ‘Project Runway’ will rival Telstra and Optus Internet pipelines with Pipe Networks Executive Director ‘Lloyd Ernst’ referring to the scenario as a ‘Qantas’ v ‘Tiger’ type situation that could invoke a Broadband price war in the near future. Some of Australia’s leading Internet Services Providers such as iiNet, Internode & Primus are among those already signed up on PPC-1.

News of the Project Runway’s announcement is right up there with that of a new National FTTN Broadband network. This should give our current ailing and expensive Broadband Industry a right old shakeup with consumers the ones to benefit.  

At today’s launch in Melbourne, Senator Conroy said the new cable “fit very neatly” with government plans for a super fast fibre optic broadband network, by increasing the broadband carrying capacity from overseas.

It is due to open in June next year and Pipe Network executive director Lloyd Ernst today said PPC-1 was undercutting its competitors’ prices by 50 per cent.

Mr Ernst likened his company to budget airline Tiger Airways, saying he hoped to “disrupt” the broadband market and drive more competition.

Read the entire article at News.com.au

The past decade has seen a rapid emergence of Internet use that may in fact lead to a ‘meltdown’ by the time 2010 comes around. Analyst group ‘Nemertes Research’ conducted studies over the past year that suggests the Internet could drastically slowdown over the next 3 years due to core switching/routing bottle necks caused by excessive amounts of data transmissions. The studies show that Public Networks may overload, however they will not fail to operate, moreover suffer from slow access times and bandwidth restraints.  

Analyst house Nemertes Research Group has spent the last year analysing both data flows over the internet and the core infrastructure that carries it and concluded that in three to five years serious bottlenecks will occur.

The report echoes earlier warnings by the man who lead the team that built the internet’s predecessor ARPANET, Dr. Larry Roberts. He said last month that unless serious technological advances were achieved in networking then the internet was in trouble.

Read the entire article at ITNews.com.au

Australia has risen four places in Broadband world rankings which currently witnesses our position as 12th overall. That’s the good news. However, the latest OECD figures show that Australia has also started dragging the chain again and fallen behind other advanced countries due to the unresolved new FTTH Broadband Network status which the government has procrastinated with for quite sometime now.

Senator Coonan is bound to jump up and down about the elevated rankings position (whoopee do), but the real issues for Australians regards our future! The current progress Coonan and the Federal Government have made with the FTTH network development (or should I say lack of) overshadows any positives made from a higher world ranking. It’s not the jump to 12th place from 16th that we should be focused upon, it’s this lack of vision and progress (rated zero by the OECD) which places Australia way behind the likes of Japan and Korea. It’s this statistic that should be of major concern. Let’s get real here, we’re still very far from where we need to position ourselves on a ‘broadband level’ for this country to really power ahead as a prosperous nation and a potential world leader in technology.

Australia’s increased broadband ranking was the good news. The bad was that, with FTTH presently stalled, we are falling even further behind the most advanced nations.

Fibre connections account for 36 percent of all Japanese broadband subscriptions and 31 percent in Korea.” The figure in Australia was so low as to be rated zero!

Source: ITWire OECD article.

What type of Broadband Internet is right for you? Everyone has their own specific requirements for purchasing a Plan. For Example. ADSL, Cable, Wireless, High Speed, Usage Limits, Upgrading from Dial Up, Broadband Bundles, Cheap Broadband Prices, Broadband Special Offers and Deals etc.. That’s just some of the criteria that people select as a primary method of preference.

If you’re not exactly sure about what you want from a Broadband Plan or Bundle, or if you’re interested to see what other people are viewing and buying, how about checking out our Most Popular Broadband section as a guide. The list of products there are compiled from our data base which shows statistics ranging from Broadband Plan Searches, Broadband Plan Comparisons and joining Broadband Plans.

Most Popular Broadband Plans and Bundles at Broadband Guide

Other useful links at Broadband Guide:
Broadband Bundles
Upgrading from Dial Up
Cheap Broadband

We all want to protect the innocent from the online rubbish thats polluting the Internet nowdays, but just how to implement the best resource to do so is the question. Industry experts from Australia’s leading ISPs are suggesting the government’s proposal to ‘filter’ online content at an ISP level is simply ‘unworkable’. Common sense would also indicate that administering censorship would work more efficiently at a household level such as the case with anti-virus protection and that seen with TV programming. This latest radical plan has also prompted Labor party spokesman ‘Stephen Conroy’ to accuse the government of rehashing old announcements in an attempt to gain popularity in the lead up to the next federal election later this year.

filtering the internet at the ISP level, as opposed to installing filtering software on the home computer, was unworkable and would “affect the performance of the network quite significantly”.

Opposition communications spokesman Stephen Conroy accused the Government of rehashing old announcements in an attempt to portray a tough stance on internet safety in the lead-up to the federal election.

Read the entire article at SMH

Bandwidth prices are set to fall as Pipe Networks announce a new deal linking an undersea cable to Guam. An agreement with Tyco Telecommunication will pave the way to severing the current duopoly that has a stranglehold on local Internet quotas.

Telecommunication analyst ‘TeleGeography’ report that Australia’s Internet bandwidth costs were among the highest in the world, yet lower prices will not kick in until the completion of the undersea cable linkage which is expected late next year sometime.

Network infrastructure specialist, Pipe Networks, has selected Tyco Telecommunications to supply a new undersea cable linking Australia to Guam that is expected to break an international bandwidth duopoly suppressing local internet download quotas.

There are currently only two major international cable providers serving the Australia’s internet provider industry – Australia Japan Cable (AJC) and Southern Cross Cable (SCC).

Read the entire article here at Australian IT

While the current government has committed to a WiMax rollout for the bush, Labor communication spokesperson Stephen Conroy has suggested that providing these rural areas with wireless Broadband is a mistake and added that a fibre-to-the-node network would be much more faster and suitable. He goes on to say that the WiMax speeds will fall way short of the mark in which the government has advertised, and that a Broadband FTTN network will have minimum speeds that are 40 times faster than todays average.

Senator Conroy, writing today in The Australian, said that the government’s choice of fixed WiMax to supply broadband to bush users was a mistake, adding the technology will not provide the speeds the government has advertised — 20 to 40 times faster than those rural residents currently receive.

That is why Labor has proposed a national broadband plan that extends the superior technology, fibre-to-the-node, into rural and regional areas, to offer not just city comparable pricing but parity of service. The fibre-to-the-node service will deliver to 98 percent of Australians guaranteed minimum connection speeds that are 40 times faster than today’s average.

Read the entire article here at zdnet

Telstra’s shakedown of the government’s handling of the FTTN Network initiative has been taken another level. This time the telco giant is suggesting that the threat of ‘terrorism’ could loom if the fibre to the node broadband network tendering goes to the Optus led consortium who has links to SingTel (a foreign owned company). It appears there’s no stopping Telstra’s executives and the somewhat ‘extreme lengths’ they’re going to when trying to convince the government that a FTTN network developed, constructed, owned and operated by them is the way to go.

TELSTRA public affairs boss Phil Burgess has suggested Australia would be vulnerable to terrorist attacks if the telecommunications company didn’t get its way in the broadband debate.

Telstra has continually highlighted Optus’s foreign links through its parent company SingTel, which is majority owned by the Singapore Government’s investment vehicle, Temasek. 

Read the entire article at Australia IT

Telstra’s cheief executive Sol Trujillo recently indicated that Telstra could roll out a national fibre network regardless of any governement assistance as they did with their Next G wireless network. These comments have surfaced in light of Telstra chairman Donald McGauchie claims that Telstra could still withdraw from the governement’s FTTN tender process if it takes too long to make a decision. After criticising Optus and the WiMAX technology to be used by OPEL, Mr Trujillo went on to say that the Next G network could reach speeds of 40Mbps by 2009, which could then be superseded by speeds of 1Gbps by 2001.

Telstra chief executive Sol Trujillo said the carrier had “never set a date” on its plans for a fibre to the node network, indicating that Telstra could move to roll out a national fibre network without any government assistance, as it had done with its Next G mobile network.

Read the entire Australian IT article here

“TELSTRA has no immediate plans to pull out of a government tender process to build a high-speed broadband network, chairman Don Mcgauchie said.”

 Read the entire article here at Australian IT
 

Not completely satisfied with your Dial up Internet connection? A common misconception that Broadband Internet is considerably more expensive than Dial up is actually quite far from the truth. In comparison to Broadband, Dial-up is not much cheaper at all. When you take the many different pro’s & con’s of both Internet access types into consideration, you might then be inclined to think that Broadband is in fact a far better option regardless of price.

Over the past several years, Broadband Internet Access has become ‘the norm’ for the majority of Australian Internet subscribers (especially ADSL).  It’s been quite astonishing really, to see how much of a swing has taken place among Internet access types, as a preference, since 2004.

Toward the end of September back in 2002, more than 4.6 Million Aussie subscribers were accessing the Internet. This figure, broken down, translates into 4.2 Million (92%) using Dial-up Internet access technology, while only 350,000 (8%) were utilizing permanent non Dial-up (Broadband) connections. Two years later (Sept 2004) this figure rose to 5.7 Million in total. This was comprised of 4.4 Million (77%) on Dial-up, and 1.3 Million (23%) on non Dial-up technologies. This swing in trends rapidly continued toward early 2007, and according to the latest issue of ABS statistics (March 2007) – 4.34 Million Aussies were accessing the net using non Dial-up technology while only 2.09 Million remained on Dial-up.

What a huge reversal we’ve seen among Internet Access type trends over the past 18 months -2 years in Australia!  Broadband has now actually replaced Dial up as the dominant Internet Access type in Australia with approximately 2 out of every 3 Internet subscribers opting for non Dial-up means.  DSL (ADSL) technology has led the way with more than 3.36 Million subscribers accessing the Internet on this popular type.

For most Australians (in relative terms), Broadband Internet was an expensive luxury many years ago, there’s no doubting that.  Currently, however, unless you’re residing in a remote region of our vast country that’s reachable only by satellite technology, you shouldn’t have to spend big bucks on Broadband.  Let’s take a look at some fundamental points when comparing pricing differences between the following two hypothetical popular plans.

Monthly Fee                          $15-20 ($30+ inc. calls)    40 – $50

Usage Limit                           Unlimited                          5 – 10GB

Connection Speed                 56k                                    512/128k – 1500/256k

Ongoing Fees                        Dial-up Ph. Calls               N/A (shaped excess)

Set up/installation Fee          Modem/Conn                    Modem/Conn

Here is a comparison based on the breakdown of the two Plans.

Usually, Broadband would be more expensive than Dial-up  to set up, however taking advantage of the many deals and special offers that are currently available,  set up fees could be waived entirely.
 

20-30c phone calls apply for every time a Dial-up subscriber dials into the Internet.  Some Providers often disconnect your session after a 4 or 5 hour block. We could assume that the average Dial-up users would make 30-40 calls per month for Internet purposes (6 -$12). Broadband on the other hand has zero ongoing fees unless you join a Provider who only gives you the option of being charged for excess data usage. Otherwise users are shaped and speeds are generally slowed.  Popular Plans suggest that most Broadband subscribers choose the shaped option over charged.

512 & 1500k speeds are approximately 9 & 26 times faster than Dial-up respectively.  In relative terms, this can equate into a 5MB file (e.g. 1 song) taking 30 secs to download on 1500k connection, whereas it would take at least 12 mins on Dial-up.  No guesses  to who comes out second best with connection speed.

Dial-up appears to have the edge with unlimited usage allowance. But when you take a closer inspection and do the calculations in conjunction to a 10GB limit, Dial-up is grossly behind. E.g. What you could download using a 1500k connection in 3-4 hours would take you around 100+hours on Dial-up. That’s almost 4 continuous days straight!

Let’s break it down even further.  Let’s take away all Dial-up and Broadband start up prices. Now deduct any additional Broadband charges for extra data usage and base the Dial-up v Broadband equation on Monthly costs and convenience only. Yes, that’s right, convenience! Only the individual can put a price on convenience. I can provide statistics, facts and running costs, yet I cannot gauge how important convenience is to the individual.  That’s up to you! This is what we are left with….

On one hand you have Dial-up which is generally slightly cheaper overall (E.g. Calls + Monthly Fee = $25-35). On the other, we have a close Broadband equivalent – around $40-50. That’s $15-25 per month difference.  Pricing does appear to favor Dial-up, but it’s not much and you might need to work in your convenience factor.

If it comes down to the $, it’s Dial-up (just). If it comes down to the $ + convenience, it’s definitely Broadband. But hang on a sec, there’s more!  As like most forms of technology, it changes, and so does that of the Internet revolution and what we use it for.  Broadband Internet has the potential to change the course of communication, automation and entertainment in our lives forever. Websites, Media, Files, Picture, Movies and Songs (to name a few) are all now being optimized to enhance quality, enjoyment and convenience for the user.  This process also usually requires bigger file sizes and or new technology, thus faster Broadband Internet in which to view and receive it.

Dial-up Internet is quickly becoming a superseded product, and unusable at that.  Just like our 1 and 2 cent coins have been eradicated from circulation, so too will 56k Dial-up. It will soon become obsolete and a relic of our past. Most Broadband Providers are aware of the recent mind blowing statistics and along with new Broadband technology, are even choosing to remove the slower Broadband products such as 256/64k connections out of their list. 

The future is Broadband; however, if you’re happy with the price you pay for Dial-up, the inconveniences and limitations along with the inability to simultaneously access your home phone, then by all means stay with Dial-up.  As for those of you who are not satisfied with Dial-up and are seeking faster instantaneous Internet, new forms of entertainment and convenience, not too mention the ability of accessing and surfing regular contemporary website & features…. Welcome to the world of Broadband Internet! J

News of the expansion comes as a big surprise
considering the Government’s future intentions on implementing a
Fibre-to-the-Node network.  The potential new FTTN network
may supersede many Primus ADSL ports thus making them unnecessary.
 However, Primus Australia CEO ‘Mr Ravi Bhatia’ has suggested that the demand for high speed Broadband is extremely high and the roll-out will only strengthen Primus as one of Australia’s leading telecommunication operators.
 

“This deployment will increase our network reach by over 50%. This expansion of Primus infrastructure has been driven purely and simply by customer demand. Moreover, our infrastructure ownership allows us to guarantee quality and reliability to our customers”

“This investment is a vote of confidence in fair and balanced competition policy and regulatory environment in the Australian telecommunications market. Our new investment solidifies Primus’s position as one of the leading infrastructure based operators in Australia”

  
You can check out all the current Primus Broadband
Plans right here at Broadband Guide.

Regards,

The Broadband Guide Team 

If you wish to contact Broadband Guide you can do so by clicking here to e-mail us
 

Thank you & best regards,

The Broadband Guide Team

You can receive Internet Access almost immediately, along with extensive information on Broadband right now with our free to use service. No need to wait any longer or spend countless hours researching Internet Service Providers or Plans when everything can be explained in simple to understand English right here at Broadband Guide or by speaking to a consultant. 

Search, compare, and find the best Broadband Internet Plans right here within seconds!  Using Broadband Guide’s Search & Comparison Tools can be a very fast, efficient and informative avenue of finding a Broadband Plan thats right for you. Furthermore, once you’ve found a Broadband Product that you like, you then have the option of joining up to that plan right there and then! Searching for Broadband has never been easier.

Search & Comparison Features
The Broadband Guide site has been developed to help prevent the complexities involved with searching for plans and facilitating the process of making an informed choice. Below are some of the features you can use to find a plan thats right for you.

Quick Search - Search by ISP, Type, Speed & Limit. A simple yet fast and efficient feature for those who have a rough idea of what they want from a Broadband Plan.

Refine Search - After using the Quick Search function, users are then able to ‘refine’ their search returns by making a selection from the added criteria available – Contract Length, Bundle Options and Pricing.

Search Plans – This advanced method of search enables users to make customized selections by using a Dynamic Display Interface thats simple and enjoyable to use. Here you can choose from Region, Type, Provider, Speed, Download Limit, Contract Length and Price Range.

# Note - A Comparison feature can be used in conjunction with any Search function. Simply check the boxes that appear on the left hand side of each plan in the search results, then either scroll up or down to the ‘Compare Selected Plans’ button, then simply ‘click’. A new window will  then display a comparison of all the associated plans you selected. You can choose 2, 3, or more plans at one time to compare.

Browse Plans
Alternatively, for those seeking further information on Plans, our ‘Browse Plans’ section has an array of various components that lets users browse Connection Types, Popular Plan Types, Australia’s Broadband Internet Service Providers & Broadband Regions along with a Help Centre full of Resources.

Plan Finder Wizard
Another excellent plan search tool that we provide thats simple and fun to use. With its dynamic features and comprehensive information on Broadband, an informed choice is only steps away. Highly Recommend!

Tips
Broadband Guide Forums – Not sure about which plan to join, or perhaps you want some advice? Ask and answer questions, or add comments and concerns in our Broadband Forum. Joining is easy and instant. Also Highly Recommend!

Broadband Help Centre - Choose from a smorgusboard of topics. Technical; Services & Uses; Conversion Tables and much much more.

Which Plan? - If you’re not exactly sure about which plan to join? When in doubt consider starting on plan that has a smaller usage limit and slower speed. It’s usually ‘free’ to upgrade but not to downgrade.

Terms & Conditions - Its a must to read over, or inquire about a respective Internet Service Provider’s, or Individual Plan’s Terms & Conditions. There are quite often user guidelines or specific conditions that can be overlooked or interpreted incorrectly. A quick example is excess usage conditions (responsible usage and charged or speed limited usage conditions) and contract lengths (moving house, changing providers, early termination fees). Don’t get caught out!

Research - Ask friends or colleagues and surf the Internet for handy advice and feedback that could help you out. Using keywords in search engines can be very useful for finding out relevent information.
 

Good Luck!

Broadband Guide
 

Here’s are a few simple pointers that we hope will assist you when choosing a plan thats right for you.

Budget
How much are you prepared to pay per month? Try compare it to your home phone & mobile bills, or reach a figure that reflects the amount of time you intend on using Broadband Internet. * Remember, it can pay to start on a lower priced plan as it usually doesn’t cost anything to upgrade, but it can cost you to downgrade! Also keep in mind the length of your contract and what it means (or costs) to break it if necessary.

Usage
Perhaps one of the hardest choices to make when it comes to choosing a Broadband Plan revolves around the download usage limit. Again, how frequently are you intending on using the Internet and what for? Budget/New – Light Use: New, occasional, and light frequent users who intend on using the Internet for surfing, chatting, banking, paying bills and emailing will use a small amount of data. Popular/Light – Medium Use: Those intending on constantly using the Internet and to download files such as music and pictures will start pushing the limit a little further. Medium – Heavy Use: Then we have the heavy users, those that are always online and constantly download huge files such as Movies, Major Software Applications and regularly Stream Video.

Types
Availability aside, most ISP’s offer quality products and reliable services. ADSL is by far the most common choice of Broadband among Australians, as its infrastructure is already in place and can be installed quickly. Cable is next in line but is generally limited to metro/major regional areas. Cable is currently on par with ADSL2/2+ Speeds, however its robust nature also allows other services such as Pay TV to run parallel on the same line. After these types comes Wireless Broadband Internet. Its nowhere near as fast and robust as ADSL & Cable, yet its technology and coverage is rapidly growing and can be very appealing for its mobile flexibility.

Bundling
Bundling services like Mobile Phone & Home Phone accounts with your Broadband Internet can save you more than a few dollars every month. Reduced monthly Broadband fees and or other special entitlements can make bundling your Internet service attractive. Bundling is displayed on Broadband Guide products where applicable, so keep an eye out for these options.

Broadband Guide highly recommends that you visit the following sections. These guides plus heaps more Tips and Faq’s on Broadband related information can be found in our Broadband Help Centre.

Broadband Speed Comparisons - Find out about, and compare Broadband Speeds
Download Usage Guide – Facts, Figures and Measurements on Downloading

Good Luck!

Regards,

Broadband Guide

Are you working from home? Perhaps you may own and operate a small business. Did you know that Broadband Guide can assist you to find a suitable plan primarily for your business as well as your home? 

We’ve actually created a search feature designed specifically for Professionals, Network Share and SOHO (Small Office Home Office) type businesses. Based on research and feedback, we’ve compiled a list of popular products thats especially suited for these purposes. Simply click on this link or on the Small Business link found on our front page. It’s that easy.

We have been working hard over the past few months to bring you the new Broadband Guide website, broadband blog and a new forum to help you with all things broadband.  The new site will help you make an informed choice when looking for Internet Access as it has many tools to make the buying process easier. You can compare broadband plans from multiple broadband providers side by side. We have rebuilt the Plan Finder Wizard and have a new Advanced Search Tool. We also have a new Broadband Help Center with many tools and resources dedicated to Broadband.

Cheers

BBG