Word-whore. I write 'em. I talk 'em. Information, politics, media, and the cybers. I drink. I use bad words. All publication is a political act. All communication is propaganda. All art is pornography. All business is personal. All hail Eris! Vive les poissons rouges sauvages!
The House of Representatives was sitting this week, but it was mostly routine stuff. Some telco data legislation, some ACCC recommendations, and yeah more data breaches.
Continue reading “Digital developments from Canberra 13”
There weren’t any big-ticket items this week. It’s the calm before next week’s storm of a Budget session of Parliament. That’s why there’s so many reports to read. Next week will also see reforms to the Privacy Act.
Continue reading “Digital developments from Canberra 10”
This week’s big-ticket items are public service reform, the new post-Optus telco regulations, robodebt and a bunch of audit-related activities.
Continue reading “Digital developments from Canberra 9”
I was planning to skip this week, but the fallout from the Optus data breach means there’s a few things worth mentioning. There’s also a quantum thing… or is there?
Continue reading “Digital developments from Canberra 8”
Over at ABC’s The Drum opinion website, I’ve written a piece that argues the National Broadband Network won’t kill competition in the telco industry.
They did the headline, not me, but I do like it.
The article explains the structure of the telco industry before getting to the key points.
In most parts of Australia, the only CAN [customer access network] has been Telstra’s copper network. The NBN will replace that with NBN Co’s optical fibre CAN — at least for 93% of the population, roughly any location with a population of 1000 or more. In other words, the NBN replaces an ageing CAN that’s reaching the limits of its capacity technically, with a new one that provides vastly increased capacity for the future.
What doesn’t change is the fact that customers, both domestic and business, can still choose whichever retail telco offers the best deal for them. That is, there’s still the same capacity for competition between telcos. The only difference is that those retail telcos are provisioning their services via NBN Co fibre rather than Telstra copper.
[I give a few examples and then…]
[T]o claim that telco competition will end because of an “NBN monopoly” is as silly as claiming there’s no competition in the road transport industry because everyone has to use the same monopoly public-funded roads. Different freight companies use those same roads to deliver different styles of service at different prices, and competition seems healthy enough.
The Australian Communications Consumers Action Network just described it as the most factually accurate piece they’ve seen in weeks. That’s flattering but seems over the top. But I will say that I’m happy the article — particularly as this morning broadcast radio arsehole Alan Jones is claiming the exact opposite. And we know what he’s like with facts.
There’s also an article by Alan Kohler that analyses the Telstra-NBN deal from a financial perspective. Well worth a read.
Stilgherrian’s links for 30 March 2009 through 04 April 2009, gathered with the assistance of pumpkins and bees: