Stories by James Hutchinson

IT behemoths, Microsoft and Google, have for years been embroiled in battles over who would control the move by different industries to the Cloud. Since at least 2007, Australian universities and education authorities eager to outsource their email have turned to either provider in lieu of limited competition from the market. For the next battle, however, the stakes are higher. Both Google and Microsoft are betting all of their chips on a sector that is likely to prove much more lucrative than any before it: Enterprise.

Optus has warned amendments proposed to National Broadband Network (NBN) legislation proposed by communications minister, Senator Stephen Conroy, last night would be a step backwards for the telecommunications industry.

Despite increases in the number and capability of botnets for distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, social engineering remains one of the largest cyber security threats to IT infrastructure according to the Australian Federal Police (AFP).

Regional pay television operator, Austar (ASX:AUN), is developing a cross-platform user interface that could aggregate and beam content to multiple devices simultaneously, in an effort to maintain the company’s viability under the National Broadband Network (NBN).

Though only two months in the role, RMIT’s newly appointed executive director of IT services already has big ideas for the university.

Though self-admittedly lagging on a trend most universities completed in the past few years, RMIT in Melbourne has committed to migrating its student and staff email accounts to a hosted solution.

CSIRO’s hopes of commercialising its Ngara fixed wireless broadband technology for use in the National Broadband Network (NBN) may be hampered by radio spectrum recently purchased by the network wholesaler, researchers have warned.

Queensland treasurer, Andrew Fraser, has pledged not to dictate specific cuts or targets for government ICT activities, despite a floundering economy in the face of recent natural disasters striking the state.

Fibre backhaul provider, Nextgen Networks, has completed the second link in as many weeks of the Federal Government’s $250 million Regional Backbone Blackspots Program (RBBP), with the 129 kilometre link in South Australia going live.

Following a wave of migration to Cloud-based email systems for students and staff, Australian universities are preparing for the next migration trend, outsourcing instances of the popular Blackboard student resources portal to the vendor’s own servers.

The Australian Government’s lead procurement agency to soon announce preferred vendors for a number of tenders forming part of the government’s 15-year data centre strategy in an attempt to progress from interim arrangements.

After 20 years at the helm of information systems at the University of Western Sydney, IT director Mick Houlahan will retire this week. The trials of the past two decades, however, are likely to retain their mark on his for some time.

A report released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has found a direct link between the “sophistication” of a business’ use of ICT and its ability to innovate in improving its products and processes.

Newly instated minister for science, innovation and technology, David O’Byrne, is relying on a meeting with the Digital Futures Advisory Council this month to provide direction on the future of ICT in the state’s policy and economy.

An incoming NSW Liberal government would establish a new ICT governance body and consulting committee with the private sector to provide advice on key projects, including potential migration to a Cloud computing model, if elected in March.