http://austechblog.com A view of the Australian technology scene Fri, 08 Aug 2008 01:11:18 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Last January I commented on Commander's problems and made the point I thought they were doomed. Today they appointed official receivers. I've made a comment on my Cranky Tech blog about the tragedy that companies with brilliant assets like Commander managed to squander them, but there's many other lessons for Australian ... http://austechblog.com/?p=32 We've heard the promise of delivering TV over the Internet and now the ABC will follow the BBC with an IP TV service. Coupled with the increased downloads we'll see from the uptake of smart phones, we're seeing the end of most Australian ISP's business model of soaking users with excess ... http://austechblog.com/?p=30 Reports the iPhone has triggered a rise in mobile Internet use in the US raises an interesting question on its effects on the Australian market. Early this year Three Mobile touted their own report which found Australians were reluctant to do surfing the net on their phones due to the risk ... http://austechblog.com/?p=29 Apple's new store in central Sydney is certainly impressive. Ron Johnston's opening speech mentioned how it's their second biggest store after London and has the largest plate glass windows in the world. The plate glass windows are the key to how this store works. It showcases Apple's products beautifully and invites ... http://austechblog.com/?p=28 Apple's announcement the iPhone will be released in Australia through Optus and Vodafone sets the stage for a good fight in the mobile phone sector over the next twelve months. Leaving Telstra out of the deal is going to put a lot of competitive pressure on the big T, but their ... http://austechblog.com/?p=27 Telstra's new bundled plans offering a free laptop with their wireless plans is a good move to improve take up of wireless Internet. It's surprising none of the providers haven't offered these deals sooner given entry level laptops are cheaper than mobile phones and these plans have proved an resounding success ... http://austechblog.com/?p=26 The new Federal government's budget shows Canberra as lost on IT and communications issues under this government as it was under the Howard administration. An interesting development was the continuation of the Australian Broadband Guarantee.  This flags the likelihood that all the proposed broadband rollouts are really still born with the ... http://austechblog.com/?p=25 Australian Internet providers must be wondering what they did to upset the new government. Not only does the Rudd government want ISPs to filter the Internet, they are now considering forcing them to police copyright infringement. This idea that ISPs should monitor their customer's usage is bizarre, not only will increase ... http://austechblog.com/?p=24 One of the great features of the IT industry is how incoming ministers and Managing Directors stand up and announce how they can save some improbable amount of money on their IT spending. It always ends in disaster and usually ends up enriching one of the big multinational consulting outfits. The finance ... http://austechblog.com/?p=23 Will cutting senior management and 30% of the workforce be enough for Commander to survive? The recent travails of Commander Australia are a lesson for all managers and business owners in technology industries. When Commander were floated in January 2000 they had a wonderful position in the market with over 100,000 ... http://austechblog.com/?p=22