From CommsDay of 31 July 2026
Our Story of the Week was published in CommsDay today.
But first, the breaking industry news is that the ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority) has initatiated court action to impose fines on Optus for outage in September 2025 that affected Triple Zero access by 1,005 services. This is a big deal because each alleged offence (each service impact is an alleged offence) can incur a fine of up to $250,000. This has been well covered in today’s CommsDay, but, because it has been picked up by the broader media, we have not reprinted the article here. We are sure to hear a lot more on this case as it progresses.
The article reprinted below relates to the initiatives of the NSW Telco Authority and the NSW Fire Service to add Amazon LEO satellite communications to its fire tender fleet. A number of TelSoc members and colleagues are particularly interested in emergency communications, and in the infrastructure that supports emergency services, especially in fire services. After the formal enquiries into the Black Saturday bushfires in Victoria, and the apportionment of blame for starting blazes to the electricity grid, some power companies have taken precauutionary measures to cut their power on extreme bushfire risk days. The result is that terrestrial telecom networks in these areas switch to battery back up. Unfortunately bushfires can rage for weeks, long beyond typical battery life. The other background consideration is that organisations need to have multiple sourcing for critical operational communications in the event of a terrestrial network outage. That was one lesson reinforced during the Telstra mobile network failure on 8 July – a story well covered in CommsDay. In this context, the NSW initiative is significant.
NSW Telco Authority plans Amazon Leo trials
As part of its next series of customer trials the NSW Telco Authority is planning to examine the resilience, traffic prioritisation and enhanced encryption capabilities of Amazon’s LEOsat constellation.
The authority has already carried out a range of work leveraging SpaceX’s Starlink constellation, including trials with firefighters that led to the decision to invest in vehicle-as-a-node technology to support the NSW Rural Fire Service.
“Around 5,000 vehicles are being equipped with a range of communications options, including our Public Safety Network, LTE and satellite to enable realtime communication and data sharing among firefighting vehicles,” executive director, digital, technology and innovation, Craig Parnham said.
Parnham was a keynote speaker at this week’s Digital Leadership Day NSW, of the Public Sector Network’s Government Innovation Week.
Parnham noted that the authority had also developed ‘connectivity kits’ that incorporate a router, satellite dish and Wi-Fi access point that can be used to set up a wireless network in less than 15 minutes.
“We’ve strategically allocated kits across disaster-prone regions of NSW, with St John Ambulance, Surf Life Saving, and the Department of Customer Service among the key organisations hosting these kits,” he said.
Over the past year, the NSW Telco Authority has developed a new operating model to “enhance our customer centricity and work more closely with our customers to co-create solutions, and by leveraging platform design thinking, make these solutions more accessible for all our customers,” Parnham said.
It has extended its technology roadmap to 2030, and is sharing half-yearly updates with its customers to help it align its future capabilities with their needs, he said.
“Prioritisation becomes a challenge because we need to meet the needs of all customers – large and small, from combat agencies to government services,” he told the event.
“Some customers source their own tech solutions because what works for the majority can be hard to customise for their specific (system) needs. However, this can also lead to challenges around interoperating across agencies or affordability for others.”
He also revealed that the authority is planning customer trials focused on the use of encrypted wi-fi to assess how well the technology can support indoor real-time agency communications in situations where in-building coverage may be limited.
Rohan Pearce
IN TODAY’S COMMSDAY (Friday 31 July 2026)
Optus could face penalties of up to $502.5 million after the Australian Communications and Media Authority launched Federal Court action over the telco’s September 2025 Triple Zero outage.
Small regulatory reforms supporting telecommunications infrastructure deployment could deliver outsized productivity gains, particularly in regional areas and growth corridors, the Australian Telecommunication Alliance has told a Senate inquiry.
FIRST: Datagrid New Zealand has signed Alcatel Submarine Networks and OMS Group to supply and install a 2,300km submarine cable linking Invercargill with Melbourne, advancing a scaled-back first stage of its proposed Tasman Ring Network.
As part of its next series of customer trials, the NSW Telco Authority is planning to examine the resilience, traffic prioritisation and enhanced encryption capabilities of Amazon’s LEO satellite constellation.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is consulting on whether to approve an application by NBN Co to allocate dark fibre leasing costs associated with enterprise Ethernet services and new developments under its approved cost allocation manual.
Following a transformational fourth quarter, ActivePort expects to maintain its momentum heading into FY27, the company revealed in a market update.
The eSafety Commissioner has taken the provider of the Telegram messaging service to court, alleging a failure to detect and remove pro-terror material from the platform. The Federal Court civil penalty case accuses Telegram of non-compliance with systemic safety obligations under the Online Safety Act by failing to detect and remove content including videos of terrorist executions and mass shootings.
The average rack density of data centres is transitioning beyond 30kW per rack as new facilities targeting artificial intelligence workloads come online.
Singtel is reportedly looking at a dual listing of its Nxera data centre arm on Nasdaq and the Singapore Exchange.
SES has won a deal to supply LATAM Airlines with multi-orbit in-flight connectivity services across its fleet of Airbus and Embraer aircraft. The agreement will cover the installation of SES’s new low-profile electronically steered array antenna on more than 60 aircraft.
Korea’s LS Marine Solutions has upgraded the cable capacity of its GL2030 submarine cable-laying ship from 4,000 tonnes to 7,000 tonnes. The extra capacity allows the vessel to continuously lay 100 kilometres of cable, reducing the number of port visits and shortening project times.
Accenture-owned CyberCX and Monash University have announced a partnership to design and deliver a Bachelor of CyberAI degree.
Former 5G Networks sales director Garry White has joined Inligo Networks as group chief commercial officer. Inligo said White would lead global sales and oversee all commercial transactions, focusing on driving revenue growth, strengthening strategic partnerships and expanding the company’s international presence.
Former Telstra InfraCo CEO Brendon Riley will join the board of Ventia from 1 September as a non-executive director. Riley retired from Telstra in August last year.
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