[ptmQqoxw]

Wow, bit scary when your own goverment buys out the competition so it can lay out it's own broadband. I say big brother as I see things getting very Chinese regards your internet laws....Not only that but it must surely bring in some big privacy issues!

http://www.businessweek.com/news/201...band-deal.html

[SzefciuCba]

Biiig surprise it happened in Australia..[rolleyes]

[StizePypemype]

Wow, bit scary when your own goverment buys out the competition so it can lay out it's own broadband. I say big brother as I see things getting very Chinese regards your internet laws....Not only that but it must surely bring in some big privacy issues!

http://www.businessweek.com/news/201...band-deal.html

It has nothing to do with taking control, silly!

If you actually lived here you would understand that Telstra has had an unfair monopoly over the telecommunications network for years ever since it was privatised! It used to be government based anyway, until their 3-phase sale almost a decade ago.

The Australian government has been trying to install a 100+ megabit fibre channel network across the country for ages, but because Telstra refuses lose their monopoly they have been an anti-competitive menace ever since it was privatised! It has actually resulted in a significant slowing of this country's telecommunications and broadband infrastructure. Telstra charges over $100 for a 50gb/month plan... and that's only a 1.5 megabit ADSL plan!! It's a joke. And even if you go with another phone or internet company they have overheads because they must pay Telstra to use it's outdated copper network.

This was the only option the government had to allow our network to be upgraded, and I can guarantee you most people who actually live here welcome the change because Telstra is one of the most hated companies over here.

I think some of you really need to just cool it with regards to all this "OMG Australia is like China" bull crap, and stop reading all the online shock tactic headlines. Sure, we have a retarded minister for broadband who is trying to apply mandatory filtering, but with over 94% of the country's citizens opposing the plan, not to mention a fair chunk of the government body, you can be rest assured that there are enough intelligent people in high places who can make sure it doesn't happen.

[Saduyre9de]

Didn't they just put those filtering laws on the back burner? I could have sworn i read something about that.

[StizePypemype]

Didn't they just put those filtering laws on the back burner? I could have sworn i read something about that.

Yes... the whole decision is now under intense scrutiny ever since the public backlash, with the government's #1 priority now focused on upgrading our network with full fibre-to-the-home capabilities across 90% of the country, and advanced satellite capabilities to the remaining homes in rural areas.

Unfortunately, with our current prime minister Kevin Rudd losing ground in the polls, the opposition led by Tony Abbott (if put into power in the next election) will scrap the plans to upgrade our network. Just goes to show that despite Rudd's failings in other areas, he is far more forward thinking then most other people. If it wasn't for Rudd, we'd probably still be using a copper network with no plans to upgrade through to 2020.

[Averti$ingGuru]

Cubase, when you say they are implementing this for 97% of the country, do you mean 97% of the population or the physical country?

[Menierofe]

nice...[xmasbiggrin]

[StizePypemype]

Cubase, when you say they are implementing this for 97% of the country, do you mean 97% of the population or the physical country?

The population. Actually, let me revise my figures: It's 90% fibre coverage to residents with 100 megabits+, with the remaining 10% receiving wireless and satellite services of up to 12 megabits, according to this joint media release by the newly founded National Broadband Corporation: http://www.minister.dbcde.gov.au/med...eases/2009/022

And if you want to read the official press release relating to the recent deal with Telstra, this is where you can start: http://www.minister.dbcde.gov.au/med...eases/2010/060

As you can see, there is no mention of the mandatory filtering in either of those releases because the plan is not actually in the works. And even if it was, it would not begin implementation until after the network upgrade which is at least 6 years away.

[Weislenalkata]

Awesome news. Fibre here we come![thumbup]

[MizzDaizzy]

Wow, bit scary when your own goverment buys out the competition so it can lay out it's own broadband. I say big brother as I see things getting very Chinese regards your internet laws....Not only that but it must surely bring in some big privacy issues!

http://www.businessweek.com/news/201...band-deal.html

Think of it as being like a company that owns the roads, if other companies wanted to use it, they had to pay high tolls and drive at a low speed, whereas the owning company was able to use it for a very cheap rate and drive as fast as the road would let them.

What the Government has done is effectively buy the road and it will be allowing every company to use it at the same toll and speeds.

They've been proposing the same thing here for years for exactly the same reason, TELECOM are screwing any other networks wanting to use the lines!

[iuopyra]

Classic x+y=z misunderstanding.

[womberte]

Classic x+y=z misunderstanding.

Exactly

[Zwnkkvle]

Out of all the Australian big bother broadband news available, you decided to pick out the government buying infrastructure for a fibre wholesale network to enable faster internet?

[womberte]

Wonder why he's not been back to post in this thread?

[Weislenalkata]

I think it was just a misunderstanding. It would sound scary to Americans because they are capitalists where something like this happening is like some kind of infringement on their rights or some such. However Telstra was originally a state owned company and was sold off in 1997 and ever since has been the bane of peoples existence. It was a bad move to sell it and even a worse move to sell the infrastructure as well.

[bashansasasasa]

Think of it as being like a company that owns the roads, if other companies wanted to use it, they had to pay high tolls and drive at a low speed, whereas the owning company was able to use it for a very cheap rate and drive as fast as the road would let them.

What the Government has done is effectively buy the road and it will be allowing every company to use it at the same toll and speeds.

They've been proposing the same thing here for years for exactly the same reason, TELECOM are screwing any other networks wanting to use the lines!

why not just do what we do here in the states. Regulate the **** out of those lines. Enforce a price cap that is fair for other's to use the lines. It would have been far cheaper, and spurred just as much competition.

[Weislenalkata]

why not just do what we do here in the states. Regulate the **** out of those lines. Enforce a price cap that is fair for other's to use the lines. It would have been far cheaper, and spurred just as much competition.

Regulating what is already there will mean that telstra can still decide not to sell bandwidth to certain companies like they do now.

[bashansasasasa]

Regulating what is already there will mean that telstra can still decide not to sell bandwidth to certain companies like they do now.

uhh, no that isn't what I mean. What I mean is, over here, you have to let companies use your lines... and there is a cap on what you can charge them. Simply change the regulation there to where telestra has to open them up and has a capped maximum charge. Over here it works like that on all lines, from power lines to phone lines.

PS, that new chik PM of your's is pretty cute... i mean, as far as heads of state go. She sure beats Merkel

anyone else think she resembles tilda swinton just a bit?



maybe it is just me, or maybe it is that they are both gingers.

[Weislenalkata]

uhh, no that isn't what I mean. What I mean is, over here, you have to let companies use your lines... and there is a cap on what you can charge them. Simply change the regulation there to where telestra has to open them up and has a capped maximum charge. Over here it works like that on all lines, from power lines to phone lines.

PS, that new chik PM of your's is pretty cute... i mean, as far as heads of state go. She sure beats Merkel

Oh I see.. Well I think it'd be a bit unfair to do that as Telstra owns most of the lines and paid for them to go in. If there was anything less than a monopoly I could see that system as working. I believe we have that system on gas and electric lines.

As for the PM, I think she should have made her move as soon as the ETS (emissions trading scheme) fell down. Hopefully she doesn't screw it up and can win the next election.

Edit: Pretty flattering photo there...

[StizePypemype]

As for the PM, I think she should have made her move as soon as the ETS (emissions trading scheme) fell down. Hopefully she doesn't screw it up and can win the next election.

She was the one who brought the scheme down. Anyway, I just hope that the NBN scheme stays in place.