Not a luxury: Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association challenges ‘universal’ mobile coverage at Senate inquiry: ICPA
“Mobile connectivity in the regions is not a luxury; it is a critical and essential service.” That was the tone set at the Senate inquiry into the Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Universal Outdoor Mobile Obligation) Bill 2025 where the Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association (ICPA) gave evidence on behalf of remote families.
MLA backed project proves low cost satellite connectivity for whole of herd monitoring: MLA
Meat & Livestock Australia has announced the successful completion of an MLA Donor Company AgTech project that has demonstrated reliable and affordable two-way satellite connectivity for livestock and on-farm Internet of Things sensors across Australia. The project was led by eSAT Global, with Smart Paddock providing on-farm visualisation and Viasat delivering satellite connectivity.
Alice project for US defence firm
An American defence contractor, Lockheed Martin Australia, is seeking planning approval for a "global navigation satellite system reference station" in Ilparpa Road, near the popular claypans. The facility is part of a satellite based system pinpointing locations to the accuracy of as little as 10 centimetres, and while it is described as a civilian asset it clearly can have military applications.
Business spotlight – Nhill Post Office
Nhill's Licensed Post Office is welcoming customers under new ownership, offering a broad range of postal, travel and retail services for the local community. Along with everyday post office services, the Nhill Licensed Post Office provides passport lodgements and photos, foreign exchange, travel cards, travel insurance and complete travel solutions, as well as TattsLotto services.
NBN fixed wireless is coming to Wilcannia – where speed is the new data
Chris Elliot. Wilcannia residents in the space of less than 300 years have moved from the traditional wooden message stick that, while designed to carry a lot of data, had low transfer speed, as it depended on how fast the carrier walked. In 1866 it took 70 days for a letter to come from London to Wilcannia. Now, at current average speed of 80Mbps you can send a 2-million-word document per second from Wilcannia to London.
Tech giants driving rise in digital platform complaints: TIO
A new report by Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) reveals more than 1,500 people have come to the organisation since 2023 with complaints about social media and other digital platforms. The report, Digital platforms complaints insights, shows 71 per cent per cent of disputes are with the major tech companies Google, Microsoft, Apple, Hubbl, and Meta.
Australia Post fat cats: Webster, McIntosh, Violi
Shadow Minister for Communications, Melissa McIntosh said, “we’ve seen job cuts, price increases and reduced mail delivery but eight executives have taken home a whopping $6.8 million in bonuses and that’s on top of their $7.8 million in salaries.”
Mobile phone coverage must be included in Universal Service Obligation reform: Littleproud, Webster
Leader of The Nationals David Littleproud is reiterating calls to reform the Universal Service Obligation (USO), following another major mobile phone outage. Mr Littleproud said the latest Optus outage showed the vulnerability of the 000 service if a mobile phone tower goes down and the service does not divert to another provider’s tower.
Faster internet for regional Victoria: Hutchins
...The broadband towers are the first to be completed as part of Connecting Victoria’s Satellite to Fixed Wireless upgrades and provide the nbn Fixed Wireless service to more than 1700 premises. The new towers are also designed to allow for faster download speeds in future.
Mobile tower confusion
Of 27 mobile phone towers planned for the South East, Telstra only ever earmarked two for the Naracoorte Lucindale Council area, with parts of districts like Callendale, Spence and others remaining without services. As Telstra, since 2011, is a private company with service obligations to rural and regional people, the council opted following a 6-4 vote - not to put $140,185 of ratepayer funds into the telco giant’s project.
NBN Co selects Amazon’s Project Kuiper to bring low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite broadband to Australia
NBN Co and Amazon have announced an agreement to deliver high-speed, wholesale fixed broadband to customers in parts of regional, rural and remote Australia via Project Kuiper’s low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite technology. ARR.News had some questions for NBN Co and Amazon.
Staying connected when there’s no tower in sight
Picture this: you're out checking the back paddock, kilometres from the nearest mobile tower, when your phone buzzes with a text message. Not from a satellite phone or special device, but from your regular iPhone or Samsung, somehow managing to reach up to space and back down to deliver that simple "all good here" message ...
Mobile tower funding
Naracoorte Lucindale mayor Patrick Ross has set the record straight by explaining why the council chose not to allocate ratepayer funds to Telstra’s Limestone Coast Connectivity Project which had only two mobile base stations earmarked for the district ... it was not prepared to use limited public funds to subsidise infrastructure that Telstra—a major telecommunications provider—had a responsibility to deliver.
Glossop’s got mail (again)
Madison Eastmond. A Riverland town has regained its post office after almost 12 months without the service. Since opening KB'z Coffee recently, Kylee Bradford has brought back Glossop's mail service, with the drive-through-café now already home to 300 (and counting) postal boxes.
Telstra phone outage proves need for Universal Service Obligation reform: Littleproud
Leader of The Nationals David Littleproud is calling for Universal Service Obligation (USO) reform, as a mobile phone outage in the Western Downs continues to cause havoc. Mr Littleproud said a full shutdown and outage of mobile phones over the past week and a half is frustrating and worrying locals, due to a Telstra rebuild of the main tower serving Dalby, a town of over 15,000 people.
Starlink’s partnerships offer hope for rural Aussies
Starlink’s SpaceX satellite internet constellation is transforming telecommunications in Australia through partnerships with major telcos like Telstra and Optus. By leveraging its Direct to Cell (DTC) technology, Starlink will enable text and voice services in remote areas, addressing mobile blackspots and enhancing connectivity nationwide. Local farmer, Sam Chapman, said the technology has the potential to be a game-changer.
The great regional disconnect: Why the only towers getting funded are the ones that don’t make calls
The brutal truth? We’ve hit the wall on new mobile towers in the bush ... If the government wants to be taken seriously on regional development—and on spreading the half-million migrants arriving each year beyond our major cities—then it must stop treating mobile connectivity as a private-sector problem. It’s time to treat it like the essential service it is.
Australia Post works behind scenes on Narrandera Post Office location
Australia Post is working to establish ongoing arrangements for its Post Office in Narrandera and is grateful to locals for their patience and understanding.
Telstra 5G coming to Kaniva
Telstra will be upgrading its mobile base station that services Kaniva to bring new 5G coverage to the area ... Telstra Regional General Manager for Northern and Western Victoria Steve Tinker said "We know how important mobile connectivity is for Australians, whether you're in the city or the country. Bringing 5G to the area is a major mobile milestone."
TasFarmers calls for regional vision as federal election looms
As the 2025 Federal Election draws near, Tasmania’s peak body for primary producers is calling on all political parties to present a practical vision for the future of regional Tasmania, following the release of its Federal Election Scorecard.
Labor blames Liberals
The Albanese government considers the cost of living, access to secure and well-paid jobs, and infrastructure as the most pressing issues for voters in regional towns like Naracoorte. As Australia goes to polls on May 3, a lot is at stake for all political parties. Acknowledging that “people are doing it tough,” the current federal government of four years blames the current challenges to a previous decade of “Liberal neglect.”
Businesses seek compensation
Sarah Herrmann. A fight for justice has begun after revelations that neither ElectraNet nor SA Power Networks are required to compensate customers for the up to 20-hour power and telecommunications outages that hit Yorke Peninsula on Friday, March 14. Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis told the South Australian Parliament on Tuesday, March 18 there is no regulated compensation scheme for transmission network failures...
