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This week
IN THE NEWS: ACCAN AGM draws near, retail registration scheme up for consultation, and a deep dive into rural connectivity
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ACCAN’s Annual General Meeting will take place on Thursday October 12 from 4pm AEDT, online and in-person at the ACCAN office. We will have live captioning and Auslan interpreters available throughout this meeting. Please register your attendance and confirm any accessibility requirements, by Tuesday 10th October, 2023 at the link above. [ACCAN]
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A discussion paper released by DITRDCA last week is seeking the views of stakeholders on the establishment of a Carriage Service Provider (CSP) registration or licensing scheme. ACCAN wants to see the creation of an up-to-date register of providers to improve the visibility of market participants. We argue that the creation of a register will benefit consumers, regulators, and service providers. Read our full retail registration position here. [ITNews]
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This article from industry analyst Paul Budde weighs technical, historical, political, and economic causes of the connectivity gap in regional Australia. Budde identifies a potential solution in community-owned mobile networks, run by local councils or communities themselves, and outlines what is currently hindering the establishment of such networks. [Independent Australia]
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Aussie Broadband has submitted an offer to purchase Symbio, a cloud communications provider, in a deal which would value the company at $270 million. This comes just over a month after telecommunications rival Superloop offered $243 million for the company. [ARNNet]
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Optus has announced that 150 workers at their Adelaide-based call centre will be sacked as part of a ‘simplification’ of business operations. The move reportedly came as a surprise to Optus staff, who had seen the telco hire and train new employees only months prior. Meanwhile, News.com also features the story of an Optus customer’s long-winded attempts to cancel a mobile contract via an online chat portal. [News.com]
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ACCAN Deputy CEO, Dr Gareth Downing, was interviewed on Triple J radio this week about right to repair legislation in Australia. He put ACCAN’s view to host Dave Marchese that the federal government should implement a legislated right to repair by acting on the recommendations of the Productivity Commission in its 2021 Right to Repair inquiry report. Listen to the full interview at the link above. [Triple J]
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This article from Brisbane news site Westender updates South Brisbane residents on their longstanding broadband headaches, with many experiencing poor service through a transition from Telstra Velocity Fibre to the Opticomm Network. ACCAN’s policy team provided technical information for the benefit of readers. [Westender]
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BT Group, a major UK telecommunications group, have published a Digital Dictionary, an easy-to-understand explainer about commonly heard internet and technology jargon. Read the document above for simple explanations of terms such as ‘cookie’, ‘cloud’ and ‘hyperlink’. [BT Group]
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A staple of the flexible work era, Zoom has announced its Docs software, an integrated collaborative document workspace. The software is powered by Zoom’s ‘AI Companion’, which promises to assist users via summarising content, brainstorming new ideas and copy editing. Rollout is expected in the coming months. [ZDNet]
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ACCAN is looking for an experienced and highly motivated Disability Policy Officer to join our team! For more information and to apply, visit the link above. Applications are due by COB October 6th. [ACCAN]
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WebNews #630
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If you are Deaf, or have a hearing impairment or speech impairment, you can contact us on 02 9288 4000 through your preferred National Relay Service call number or access point.
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