The strategic expansion will boost the company’s ability to deliver high-speed data and internet services across its retail, business, and wholesale segments, reinforcing its position as a leading provider in the telecommunications sector.

Acquisition adds over 2,000 kilometres of high-capacity fibre assets, including 800 kilometres of owned duct, to Superloop’s network.

Currently, Superloop serves more than 455,000 retail, business, and wholesale customers, having gained around 80,000 customers in FY24.

Founded by Bevan Slattery, the company is rapidly growing its retail consumer base, which reached 323,000 by the end of FY24, with a goal of surpassing 500,000 by FY26.

The Uecomm fibre network spans Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane-Gold Coast central business districts and metropolitan areas, providing Superloop with access to over 1,900 buildings and approximately 50 data centres.

“The location of the assets also boosts our Smart Communities ambitions, lowering capex connections to new buildings and broadacre developments,” says Superloop CEO Paul Tyler.

The post Optus Sells Uecomm To Superloop For $17.5 Million Following A Strategic Review appeared first on Tech Business News.

The initiative aims to protect Australians from fraudulent text messages often used by scammers to impersonate trusted organisations like CommBank, Linkt, and MyGov, targeting victims to steal personal details.

To support the program, the Albanese government has allocated $10 million to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) to establish a national register of verified companies.

Register will make it harder for scammers to misuse legitimate sender IDs, offering an added layer of security for Australians against text-based fraud.

Under the new system, SMS messages will be checked against the register, with unverified messages either blocked or flagged with a warning.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) will oversee the register as part of the Albanese government’s strategy to make Australia “the toughest target in the world for scammers.

“We’ve all received scam messages on our phones purporting to be from reputable sources – and it’s costing Australians millions of dollars every year,” Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said.

The post New SMS Sender ID Register To Protect Australians From Scams appeared first on Tech Business News.

According to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese the legislation is needed to protect young people from the “harms” of social media, something many parent groups have voiced.

However, critics say questions over how the ban will work – and its impact on privacy and social connection – have been left unanswered.

The decision has sparked significant debate, with the critics accusing the government of rushing the bill through without adequately addressing its practical implementation.

The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has voiced strong objections, stating the legislation was hastily introduced without refining critical details.

“The government has pushed this through without taking the time to get the details right—or even knowing how the ban will work in practice,” the AHRC said.

Despite these concerns, the ban enjoys overwhelming public support. A recent poll reveals that 77% of Australians back the restrictions, which proponents argue are necessary to protect young users from online harms.

The post Australia Passes New Legislation To Ban Social Media For Children Under 16 appeared first on Tech Business News.

At the heart of this transformation is the AIIA’s refreshed vision: To lead Australia to become a global leader in ICT innovation, fostering a dynamic digital economy powered by cutting-edge technology and a diverse talent pool.

Underpinning this vision, the AIIA has adopted four strategic pillars:

• Advocacy.
• Inclusion.
• Innovation.
• Awareness.

These pillars form the foundation of our strategy, as it engages with decision-makers, promote diversity and inclusion, foster innovation and raise awareness about key priorities critical for the tech industry

Through the delivery of initiatives under the AIIA’s strategic pillars, the AIIA seeks to achieve its overarching purpose, which is to lead a diverse, thriving and innovative digital Australia by connecting and advocating for our SME and corporate members and volunteers across the public and private sector.

The AIIA’s new brand identity reflects this forward-thinking strategy. Central to the design is a new logo featuring two interlinked icons above the AIIA name. These links symbolise the AIIA’s mission:

• Being the link to Australia’s tech industry and supporting its pursuit of digital excellence.
• Fostering connections and partnerships across the ICT ecosystem.
• Creating a circle of influence to advocate for members and the broader tech industry.

Ms Angela Fox, Chair of the AIIA, said, “Our new strategy reflects the diligent work of the AIIA Board and the Strategy Sub-Committee, who consulted widely with stakeholders, including AIIA State Councils, to ensure it reflects the critical role of technology in the evolving landscape,”

The post AIIA Unveils New Brand Identity and Vision to Drive Australia’s Digital Future appeared first on Tech Business News.

By the end of FY29, NBN Co aims to complete over 500,000 full-fibre connections annually, up from around 285,000 in FY24.

While the company will wrap up its fibre-to-the-node (FTTN) and fibre-to-the-curb (FTTC) overbuilds, it hopes to boost the conversion rate of customers from these legacy services to full fibre.

NBN Co is also preparing for a sharp increase in fibre lead-in installations to support the growth.

According to NBN Co the upgrade of the network serving 3.5 million FTTN premises is expected to be complete by December 2025, the work to connect individual premises to the FTTP network

“The work to connect individual premises to the FTTP network (both in that footprint and for the further 1.5 million premises in the FTTC footprint) will continue for some years,” it said.

NBN Co is also allocating $2.2 billion in capital expenditure from FY27 to FY29 for fibre lead-ins and customer connections as part of its upgrade programs from FTTN and FTTC to FTTP.

The post NBN Co Expecting 500K+ Premises Upgrade To Full Fibre Connections A Year From FY27 appeared first on Tech Business News.

iseek’s portfolio includes seven co-location data centers across Queensland, South Australia, and New South Wales, currently serving over 500 customers with 6MW of installed IT capacity. Plans are underway to boost this capacity to 34MW to meet rising demand.

Post-acquisition, iseek will become part of a newly formed real estate investment trust (REIT) called DigiCo Infrastructure, which will list on the ASX.

DigiCo’s combined portfolio will feature 13 tier 1 and tier 2 hyperscale and co-location data centers across Australia and North America, establishing a robust presence in both regions.

According to iseek CEO Scott Hicks and founder, executive director Jason Gomersall the deal would “accelerate iseek’s next phase of growth”

“A significant portion of the acquisition proceeds will be taken in scrip in the DigiCo Infrastructure REIT IPO which is a testament to our strong conviction in the REIT’s investment strategy and growth runway,” they said.

HMC Managing Director and CEO, David Di Pilla, said, “iseek is a leading colocation data centre platform with a high quality and diverse customer base across government, hyperscale and enterprise customers.,”

The post iseek Acquires Asset Manager HMC Capital For $400 Million appeared first on Tech Business News.

The platform’s development took into account feedback from over 1,100 government buyers, 2,200 sellers, and various industry stakeholders to enhance procurement processes.

Special attention was given to small and medium-sized enterprises during the design of the platform, incorporating features specifically aimed at boosting their participation in government contracts.

According to Digital Transformation Agency (DTA) chief executive, Chris Fechner the Digital Marketplace Panel 2 is a pivotal part of our strategy to transform the way the government procures digital products and services,

“It is important to note that the Digital Marketplace Panel 2 is not a one-off opportunity,” Fechner said, pointing out that new suppliers can apply when the platform reopens for applications in late November 2024.

The existing Digital Marketplace Panel will remain in operation until January 31, 2025, to facilitate a seamless transition to the new system.

The post Federal Government Unveils Second Version of Digital Services Marketplace appeared first on Tech Business News.

Compensation for the service disruption emerged as a significant concern among customers, who primarily received additional data allowances as restitution.

In her testimony to the inquiry, former Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin indicated that the majority of customers were likely entitled to only minimal financial compensation, typically ranging from just $1 to $2.

During her remarks in mid-November of the previous year, she noted that 8,500 customers had submitted claims amounting to $430,000, yet Optus had only disbursed $36,000 of that total.

The newly released data reveals that a specific group of claimants—1,154 individuals—successfully obtained compensation from Optus for “lost income.”

Collectively, the customers received $481,038 in cash, alongside $761,843 in service credits, bringing the overall compensation figure to $1.24 million.

Notably, 90 percent of the successful claimants were individual consumers. On average, each claimant received around $474 in total compensation, though cash payouts constituted a relatively small portion of this amount.

The post Optus Pays $1.2 Million In Compensation For “Lost Income” After 2023 Outage appeared first on Tech Business News.

With a $17.4 million investment from the Cook Government, significant upgrades will improve the operational technology responsible for managing vital infrastructure, enabling the import and export of over 37 million tonnes of trade through WA’s southern ports.

Meanwhile, Accenture has been awarded $13.6 million to enhance the performance of more than 22 major assets across the ports of Albany, Bunbury, and Esperance through advancements in hardware and software.

Ports Minister David Michael said, “Our economy relies on port infrastructure to facilitate trade, so continued advancement of these assets across our regional ports is vital,”

“These operational technology upgrades will deliver more efficient, future-ready gateway ports capable of meeting future trade demands of a diverse global market.” he said.

The improvements aim to boost the efficiency of ship loaders, rotary car dumpers, and conveyors that transport trade products across various facilities.

Southern Ports has an asset base with a replacement value of approximately $1.6 billion, the project will ensure these assets are prepared for future trade demands.

The post Cook Government Invests $17.4 Million To Enhance WA Southern Ports Critical Infrastructure appeared first on Tech Business News.

The upcoming legislation, set to be introduced in Federal Parliament, seeks to prohibit any future sale of the NBN and puts pressure on the Coalition to clarify its stance on the potential privatisation of the network

The Government’s proposed legislation signals an important turning point for the NBN and raises broader questions about the role of privatisation in telecommunications. It prompts a crucial discussion about the NBN’s future and the implications of privatisation in a rapidly evolving sector.

“The Coalition rushed to declare the NBN ‘complete’ so they could put it on the block for sale – selling out Australian consumers and regional communities,” the three Labor members of parliament said.

The federal government is convinced its move to ban the privatisation of the NBN Co is a potent new weapon to discourage middle-of-the road voters from straying back to the Coalition at the next election.

The Albanese government has long maintained its commitment to retaining the NBN

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland made this clear over two years ago, just eight weeks after the May 2022 election, when she stated that the company would not be privatised during her tenure.

“We know that the Coalition wants to sell the NBN. Just like they sold Telstra,” Rowland declared during Question Time in answer to one of at least five questions from backbenchers to government ministers and the prime minister on the topic.

The post Labor Government Introduces Bill To Keep NBN In Public Hands appeared first on Tech Business News.