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Bird on a wire lashes out

Posted Sat 6 March 2010 @ 6:56 p.m. by Ernie

Usually you're safe from a Bird on a Wire unless you're directly underneath, but Theresa Gattung seems to be endangering everyone within a 360 degree trajectory.Media this weekend have reviewed various chapters. Its frustrating to see the book unveiled chapter by chapter but I guess its a part of the marketing mix - I'm told that media are expected to pay for the right to review a chapter. So maybe we're seeing the more sensational material in advance.According to the Herald she's slated the...

Categories: Broadband | Education | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | Light relief | Regulatory | TUANZ policy | Vendors | Wireless carriers

Revolutionising NZ education with fibre

Posted Thu 25 February 2010 @ 12:35 p.m. by Ernie

I’m having two interesting days here in Rotorua at Core Education’s annual http://www.core-ed.net/learningatschool. It’s a big event – 1300 participants including teachers, principals, education administrators, and ever-hopeful equipment vendors. ’m here exploring where TUANZ can best put our energies in this sector. We’ve achieved our goal of a national plan to roll out ultra fast connectivity with government money in support – there are a lot of bridges still to cross but there are good people...

Categories: Broadband | Education | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | TUANZ policy

Fibre responses lodged

Posted Tue 2 February 2010 @ 8:57 p.m. by Ernie

Friday last marked a huge milestone in New Zealand's telecommunications journey. Invitations to Participate in the government's $1.5 billion ultra fast broadband initiative closed.The Proposals themselves will remain under wraps for a while, but some of the participants have issued statements outlining what they have put forward. Rather than repeat what has already been covered in the media, here are links. PARTICIPANTS' MEDIA RELEASESRegional Fibre GroupTelecomVectorMEDIA COVERAGEComputerworld...

Categories: Broadband | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | TUANZ policy | Vendors

Posted Fri 29 January 2010 @ 10:52 a.m. by Ernie

Today’s the day – proposals to partner with the government for the national urban Ultra Fast Broadband project close. There’s a huge flurry of activity. If you’re having trouble getting hold of anyone in the industry, chance are they’re putting the final touches to a proposal. Once details are released, the $1.5 million question will be answered – will there be enough proposals, with a suitable geographic scatter, to enable the government to meet its objectives? My bet is yes – there won’t...

Categories: Broadband | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | TUANZ policy | Vendors | Wireless carriers

More on the XT crash

Posted Wed 27 January 2010 @ 7:38 p.m. by Ernie

Ok - an update from Telecom, along with an accolade and a brickbat for their handling of today's outage.Telecom has announced a full independent review of XT. They released a statement to that effect this evening, and Paul Reynolds rang me a few minutes ago to give me an update. That was appreciated. I suggested to Paul that they commit to expose as much of the results of the Review as possible to their major customers. In my books if you've inconvenienced people you should give them the most detailed...

Categories: Innovation | Wireless carriers

XT crashes AGAIN!

Posted Wed 27 January 2010 @ 4:49 p.m. by Ernie

What the hell is going on at XT?That's how one frustrated member opened a conversation with me this afternoon. And its a fair question.It seems the network from Taupo south went down late morning. Telecom implied it would be fixed around 1.30, but I don't know. For my own part as an XT user I seem to have had a lot more "Call Failed" responses than usual this afternoon.It’s a soft news day so the media is all over it. The standard question - "What compensation should users expect?'My answer...

Categories: Innovation | Wireless carriers

One 4g mobile network, many users?

Posted Mon 25 January 2010 @ 9:14 a.m. by Ernie

Could it work - a single 4g network shared by three or more mobile operators?The notion has been floated again this morning by Tom Pullar Strecker writing in the DomPost. And the Commerce Commission is clearly taking it seriously.I think it has real merit, provided the ground rules are clear. The devil of course, will lie in the detail.There are questions to ponder:- How will the costing formula work?- How will new operators be able to enter the market and join the shared network after inception;...

Categories: Broadband | Innovation | Regulatory | TUANZ policy | Wireless carriers

A great start for the new year

Posted Thu 21 January 2010 @ 12:18 p.m. by Ernie

I’m back! I’ve been out of the office, and New Zealand, for over 6 weeks – the longest time away I’ve had in my career. Spent most of it chilling out in an apartment in Barcelona. Just living the local lifestyle - though we tended to keep the lid on the red wine bottle until lunchtime rather than join the diehard locals in sipping over breakfast. It was great to get the re-charge. It left me with several strong conclusions, some of which are about telecommunications but most in a wider context: We...

Categories: Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | Light relief | Vendors | Wireless carriers

NZ has some of the world’s lowest use of mobile phones - Stanton

Posted Thu 21 January 2010 @ 11:22 a.m. by Ernie

John Stanton, Chairman of Trilogy which is the major holder of 2degrees Mobile, has been in New Zealand these past couple of days. This morning addressed a gathering of business leaders in Auckland – surprisingly well attended considering the time of year, though you could see the moths flying out of some of the business suits. He’s an immensely successful guy who’s made his pile by taking on monopolies and duopolies in the wireless industry. His address covered everything from the current plight...

Categories: Events | Innovation | Regulatory | TUANZ policy | Wireless carriers

Rural Broadband Symposium - proceedings now available

Posted Sun 13 December 2009 @ 7:21 p.m. by Ernie

A comprehensive summary of the TUANZ Rural Broadband Symposium in association with Alcatel Lucent, written by Louis van Wyk, is now available on the "User News" section of this site. No password required.It was a ground-breaking event which will reverberate for many years. I'm looking forward to getting together with Federated Farmers in the new year to decide a next step.

Categories: Broadband | Education | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | Vendors | Wireless carriers

ECTA, and Net Neutrality (Traffic Prioritisation)

Posted Tue 8 December 2009 @ 9:09 p.m. by Ernie

’m at the ECTA annual regulatory conference here in Brussels. Yesterday was a workshop day, and in the afternoon I attended an interesting and insightful session on net neutrality/network management. It was sub-titled “Policy Issues for the Future of Net-Based Service Provision.” There were eight panellists, all with a different perspective to offer. But I found two in particular, useful to my understanding of the issues. At one end of the spectrum, so to speak, was the peripatetic Richard Feasey,...

Categories: Broadband | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | Regulatory | TUANZ policy | Vendors | Wireless carriers

A week of European conferences approaches

Posted Fri 4 December 2009 @ 3:14 p.m. by Ernie

I’m en route to Brussels and Paris for a week of industry conferences The first is the annual regulatory conference of ECTA, the European Competitive Telecommunications Association. It’s regarded as the best annual event globally on telecommunications regulation and always attracts several Kiwis, but I’ve never made it there before. Though I know several of the key people including Isla Godlovitch who TUANZ brought to Wellington three years back as keynote speaker for the TUANZ Telecommunications...

Categories: Broadband | Education | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | Regulatory

Paul Budde has it wrong!

Posted Thu 3 December 2009 @ 11:19 a.m. by Ernie

I usually look forward to Paul Budde's annual foray into NZ. But his scathing criticism of the government's Ultra Fast Broadband plans during his Roundtable this week and in subsequent media comments have left me, and TUANZ Chairman Chris O'Connell who attended in Wellington, perplexed and disappointed.Rob O'Neill has summarised Budde's views in today's Computerworld. The criticism of Minister Joyce and the Ultra Fast Broadband process is extravagant - "totally ridiculous" and "asking...

Categories: Broadband | Education | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | Regulatory | TUANZ policy | Vendors | Wireless carriers

Rural broadband symposium - Reflections on Day 1

Posted Fri 13 November 2009 @ 9:38 a.m. by Ernie

Yesterday was the first day of the Rural Broadband Symposium that TUANZ is running alongside Federated Farmers. It was a very stimulating day with some excellent speakers and a real buzz of anticipation around the prospect of a connected rural hinterland. Louis is preparing a comprehensive summary report. Meanwhile here were my three take-away recurring themes from the first day: Theme 1 – the Government’s Rural Broadband Plan • the concept is right• ...

Categories: Broadband | Education | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | TUANZ policy | Vendors | Wireless carriers

ComCom monitoring shows a stellar year for competition

Posted Fri 13 November 2009 @ 9:06 a.m. by Ernie

The Commerce Commission is producing really high quality market monitoring reports these days, based in part on the regular OECD benchmarks but adjusting for specific New Zealand characteristics. The Monitoring report it released yesterday is very heartening from a user perspective. While we’re still a long way from the TUANZ vision of “Top Ten in the OECD for Communications Technology” we’re moving fast in the right direction. Please scan the whole report. Here’s some of what you’ll...

Categories: Broadband | Education | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | Regulatory | TUANZ policy | Vendors | Wireless carriers

NEW - Fibre to the home Council to meet in Auckland

Posted Tue 10 November 2009 @ 1:59 p.m. by Ernie

The Fibre to the Home Council is to hold its first-ever meeting in New Zealand next week, reflecting the intensity of interest in this part of the world. There is space for a few professional participants to take part - contact John Nixon at this link to inquire.The Council is an increasingly effective body with chapters in Europe and Asia Pacific. I attended one of their meetings in Europe a few years ago and came back pumped up with the potential of the technology. I have no doubt this inaugural...

Categories: Broadband | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | TUANZ policy | Vendors

Catch Ernie at first NZ Comverse seminar

Posted Fri 6 November 2009 @ 11:12 a.m. by Louis

TUANZ chief executive Ernie Newman will be a guest speaker at the first Comverse APAC Vision Seminar to be held in New Zealand. Comverse is hosting the seminar in Auckland on 17 November to mark its recent entry into the local market, which has also seen it join TUANZ as a member. The company is a leading provider of software and systems enabling value-added services for voice, messaging, mobile internet and mobile advertising; converged billing and active customer management; and IP communications....

Categories: Events | Innovation | Vendors

Does Education Need a Rocket?

Posted Wed 4 November 2009 @ 1:05 p.m. by Ernie

“There’s a danger that New Zealand schools could become islands of pencil and paper in a digital world.” It was an unscripted throwaway line in the midst of a presentation by the Ministry of Economic Development’s Brad Ward. He was speaking to the Korea Australia New Zealand Broadband Summit here in Auckland this morning. And in my opinion he’s right on the money! Brad, along with colleague Nick Manning, gave an informative and professional overview of New Zealand’s plans for ultra fast broadband....

Categories: Broadband | Education | Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | TUANZ policy

Catching up on old friends

Posted Tue 3 November 2009 @ 3:06 p.m. by Ernie

Thanks to the government, I'm having a great week talking to old friends.Its not intentional. You see, the government introduced the ban on hand-held cell phones in cars. My hands-free was unsatisfactory so i invested in a new Blueant Supertooth 3 which clings to the sun visor, plays really nicely with the Blackberry, and works just fine.Fine, except for the data/voice conversion which can be a lottery on a bad day. I dont know whether the woman inside the Supertooth is dense, or...

Categories: Fixed line carriers | Innovation | Light relief | Vendors | Wireless carriers

Better broadband to break down distance learning barriers

Posted Tue 27 October 2009 @ 1:31 p.m. by Louis

TUANZ has long advocated the benefits better broadband can achieve in the delivery of education in New Zealand, but an article in the latest Education Gazette gives a good overview from educators themselves on how improved connectivity can boost distance learning. The article states that ultra-fast broadband would increase speed and capacity to schools’ internet connections and could increase the potential to personalise learning. It quotes Trevor Storr, e-principal of the Aorakinet e-learning...

Categories: Education | Innovation | TUANZ policy

Major milestone reached in fibre roll-out

Posted Wed 21 October 2009 @ 2:01 p.m. by Louis

Despite some anxiety about slow progress early on, TUANZ was very pleased to see the Government kicking off its search for partners in its ultra-fast broadband initiative today. Communications and Information Technology Minister Steven Joyce today released an “Invitation to Participate” in the partner selection process for its $1.5 billion investment initiative. The Invitation to Participate (ITP) document provides the terms and conditions of the government’s investment, and includes important...

Categories: Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | Regulatory | TUANZ policy

Copyright an issue in Europe also

Posted Wed 21 October 2009 @ 8:54 a.m. by Ernie

INTUG, the International Telecommunications Users Group,has alerted members this morning to the latest development in the attempts by the EC to develop a regulatory framework on illegal downloading of copyright material. (TUANZ's latest pronouncement on this is here.)Nick White, Executive VP of INTUG, says:"Agreement on the European Regulatory Framework review has been held up because of disagreement between the Council and Parliament. "Following an expected rejection of the second reading next...

Categories: Education | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | TUANZ policy

Fast broadband to become a legal right in Finland

Posted Mon 19 October 2009 @ 4:43 p.m. by Louis

The Finns are famous for many things, such as the sauna and this humorous advert, but from next year they will be able to claim to be living the first country whose citizens will have a legal right to fast broadband. The country’s Ministry of Transport and Communications has announced that Finland's citizens will have the right to a 1 Mbps broadband connection as of July 2010. From this date, a 1 Mbps internet connection will be defined as a universal service. This means telecom operators defined...

Categories: Innovation | Regulatory | TUANZ policy

Mobile VoIP: an opportunity for users, a challenge for carriers

Posted Tue 13 October 2009 @ 4:18 p.m. by Louis

A new service add-on from Vodafone in the Netherlands that allows mobile VoIP services is a good case-study of how carriers should approach this emerging technology. Dutch telecommunications news site, Telecom Paper, has published this report on the new service, which serves as a good analysis of mobile VoIP and the challenges carriers face. On the face of it these are rather obvious. Users want to make calls for as little as possible, and many are already used to making free or inexpensive VoIP...

Categories: Fixed line carriers | Innovation | TUANZ policy | Vendors | Wireless carriers

Report on MED Workshop on Fibre Deployment

Posted Tue 13 October 2009 @ 8:13 a.m. by Ernie

Yesterday TUANZ Chairman Chris O'Connell and I attended the first of the MED's series of three seminars to present its paper "Facilitating the Deployment of Fibre Infrastructure.”There was a mixture of good and bad.On the good side, the paper itself is a very solid start in identifying and dealing with a wide range of complex issues - land access. differing forms of infrastructure, RMA and many more. In a sense the paper is the first part of the National Digital Architecture that TUANZ...

Categories: Events | Fixed line carriers | Innovation | ISPs | TUANZ policy | Vendors

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