NBN Co and Telstra reach Heads of Agreement

NBN – [Australia] NBN Co today said it had reached a Financial Heads of Agreement with Telstra that would provide access to Telstra facilities and the progressive migration of Telstra traffic onto the National Broadband Network, subject to regulatory approval. The agreement for these terms will have an approximate value of $9 billion.

Separately, the Federal Government has agreed to progress public policy reforms with an attributed value of approximately $2 billion.

“This is a sound outcome for NBN Co because when finalised it can maximise the use of existing infrastructure and accelerate the roll out of its network,” NBN Co Chief Executive, Mike Quigley, said today. more> http://bwbx.io/Vr7J

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• Senate committee decides: Scrap the NBN

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The Broadband Providers Doth Protest Too Much, Methinks

By Tony Bradley – A statement from Verizon following the FCC vote says “Reclassifying high-speed broadband Internet service as a telecom service is a terrible idea. The negative consequences for online users and the Internet ecosystem would be severe and have ramifications for decades. It is difficult to understand why the FCC continues to consider this option.”

Why? Why is it difficult to understand why a government organization tasked by Congress with regulating interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite and cable might want to adapt with changes in technology and communications and seek to clearly define the scope of its authority to carry out that mission? more> http://bwbx.io/7Ptu

related>

• FCC opens broadband proceedings to determine legal approach to regulation

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Telcos May ‘Agree’ To Net Neutrality Legislation… That They Like

By Mike Masnick – … suddenly reports are coming out that these telcos might be willing to agree to legislation on net neutrality. more> http://bwbx.io/gX2H

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New FCC Working Group to Tackle Universal Service Fund Reforms

By Joan Engebretson – Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski has announced the creation of a Universal Service Working Group aimed at implementing reforms outlined in the National Broadband Plan. Heading up the group will be Sharon Gillett, chief of the FCC’s wireline competition bureau.

In a blog post, Gillett said the group will include representatives from the consumer and government affairs bureau, the office of the general counsel, the office of the managing director, the international bureau, the office of strategic planning, and the wireless telecommunications bureau, in addition to the wireline competition bureau.

“It’s an axiom that broadband breaks down barriers, an axiom that is true at the FCC as well,” she wrote in the blog. more> http://bwbx.io/YYp3

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FCC opens broadband proceedings to determine legal approach to regulation

By Sarah Miley – The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) [official website] on Thursday opened a new proceeding [press release, PDF] to identify the legal approach that will best support its efforts to develop universal access to “high quality” Internet broadband services. The FCC was forced to revisit its method of broadband regulation under its National Broadband Plan [official website; materials] after the DC Circuit Court [official website] ruled in Comcast v. FCC [opinion, PDF] that the commission lacks authority to require broadband providers to treat all Internet traffic equally. more> http://bwbx.io/xmqc

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