CommsDay Live

In this episode, Grahame Lynch talks with a telco at the centre of the AI revolution: Mark Rafferty of FibreconX which connects hyperscale and cloud DCs in Sydney and Melbourne with major business customers. 

In this jumbo edition of CommsDay Live, Grahame Lynch talks with Corning's local head Bill Wallace about how fibre is being deployed in AI infrastructure. Then at 15:30, Grahame talks with Senator Sarah Henderson about the Opposition view of what's happening in comms policy, And from 27.00, Senderz.ai founder Dan Rosen talks about coming verification requirements for SMS broadcasts, not just here in Australia but across the world

Ahead of the CommsDay Summit's Restoring Telecom Reputation session held with the Australian Telecommunications Alliance, we talk with its CEO, Luke Coleman, about how telco can repair its lustre.

In this podcast, Grahame Lynch talks with BAI Communications' Stephen Farrugia about its proposal for reforms in the 600MHz band that could sure up public safety connectivity, as well as the firm's recent acquisition of Titan ICT and its success overseas.

In this episode, we interview visiting Kearney chairman emeritus Alex Liu and managing partner, ANZ Sarovar Agarwal talking AI in the telco, takeouts in MWC and a 10 mile-high look at where the global telecom industry sits right now. It's a fantastic trip through current thinking in the global telecom C-suite    

Grahame Lynch interviews Dr Bruce Tonkin, CEO of AUDA, about the 40-year history and evolution of the .au domain. They discuss AUDA's unique multi-stakeholder rules, the role of ICANN, the DNS infrastructure, critical infrastructure protections, and how domain names will shape digital identity and AI-driven services in the future.

Brian Rhoney, Director of Data Center Market Development at Corning Optical, explains how optical fibre and new interconnects are critical to scaling AI clusters, shifting data center traffic, and solving the memory and bandwidth challenges posed by modern GPUs. The episode also covers supply and infrastructure constraints, power and water considerations, Australia’s competitive position and sovereign AI concerns, and emerging trends like lensed connectivity and replacing copper links with optical solutions. Interviewer: Grahame Lynch

Australia's data centre industry finally has a peak body to represent its interests to governments and the community. We speak with Belinda Dennett, the head of Data Centres Australia, about the new group's plans and why Australia has an opportunity to become a significant player in the AI infrastructure space.

In this special podcast, NBN Co execs Bec Heap and Brendan Donohoe take CommsDay's Grahame Lynch through the new Accelerate Great initiative, which sees speeds increase on existing plans, new plans and a push to improve the in-home experience. This is the most extensive interview yet on NBN's plans.

From CommsDay Summit 18 June. Chaired by Steve Cannane and featuring Brookfield global data centres CEO Udhay Mathialagan | FibreconX CEO Mark Rafferty | Equinix Australia MD Guy Danskine | NextDC chief operating officer Simon Cooper.  

Hear the full panel discussion from this week's CommsDay Summit, moderated by Steve Cannane, featuring:  Comms Alliance CEO Luke Coleman | Telsoc president Michelle Lim | Telecommunications Carriers Forum NZ CEO Paul Brislen | regulatory expert Andrew Sheridan | NSW Dep’t of Primary Industries & Reg Development’s Peter Adams | New Street Research analyst Ian Martin.

In this episode we look at Telstra's new Connected Future 30 program and how it is attempting to even change the lexicon around how the telco describes itself and we do a deep dive into the world of fibre connectivity and data centres with Corning's Kevin Hussey

In this new sponsored podcast, Pankaj Malhotra, Head of Enterprise Networking and Security, Enterprise Wireless Solutions, Ericsson and John Boladian, Vice President Partner Sales Asia Pacific, Enterprise Wireless Solutions at Ericsson to talk about Ericsson's new FWA solution and its benefits for carriers.

In this special episode of Comms Day Live, host Grahame Lynch delves into the remarkable history of Nokia Bell Labs, an organisation at the forefront of technological innovation for over a century. Join us for an exclusive interview with Bell Labs' co-presidents, Peter Vetter and Thierry Klein, as they discuss the lab's pivotal inventions like the transistor, solar cell, laser, and the protocols for Wi-Fi and modern cellular networks. This episode examines the origins and evolution of Bell Labs, its groundbreaking contributions to telecommunications, and its ongoing impact on the industry. This episode also sheds light on current and future projects, including advancements in AI, quantum computing, and even the first cellular network on the moon. With a continuous commitment to solving real-world problems, Bell Labs remains a beacon of innovation and exploration.

In this episode of CommsDay Live, host Grahame Lynch kicks off the year by diving into a critical topic within the telecom industry—its structural transformation. Joined by Zorawar Singh from Kearney, they explore delayering - concept that challenges traditional vertically integrated telecom models. The discussion revolves around the potential benefits of delayering via the separation of telecom into three distinct entities: infrastructure, network equipment, and service provision. Singh presents the core thesis of a recent paper, explaining how operating as independent entities can lead to greater enterprise value, operational efficiencies, and financial transparency. The discussion also touches on the implications of this model for investors, regulatory bodies, and consumers, highlighting the opportunities and challenges that come with such transformational changes. Real-world examples from Australia and other parts of the world illustrate the potential for success and the lessons learned in implementing delayering.

Three great interviewees this week First, we hear from Kim Hartwell, Chief Commercial Officer at Corning Optical, about a groundbreaking partnership with Australia's FibreSense.  Next, we catch up with James Linton, the new owner of Yomojo, about his plans to expand its service offering. Finally, Stephen Rue, the new CEO of Optus, shares his vision for revitalising the company by embracing the challenger ethos that once defined it.

In this episode of CommsDay Live, host Grahame Lynch welcomes a special guest, Pekka Lundmark, the global CEO of Nokia. Joining us from his first visit to Australia as CEO, Lundmark shares his journey with Nokia, starting in the 1990s and returning as CEO four years ago.  Lundmark delves into Nokia's involvement in the data centre market and their plans to offer solutions that meet the increasing demands for security and reliability.  The conversation also explores the challenges and opportunities presented by the evolving telecom landscape, including the importance of 5G standalone networks and the future of 6G. Lundmark concludes by discussing the potential for growth in Australia and Nokia's role in supporting these developments.  

Welcome back to CommsDay Live! In this episode, host Tim Marshall, former Comms Day editor, sits down with Anna Perrin, Chief Customer Officer at NBN Co. Anna shares her journey in the telecommunications sector, reflecting on the industry's transformation over the past three decades. They discuss the shift from engineering-led development to a customer-focused approach, the importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. It's a great conversation that concludes our special series based around 30 years of CommsDay.

Welcome to CommsDay Live! In this special episode, Tim Marshall, former CommsDay editor, sits down with Rosemary Sinclair, Chief Executive of the Australian Internet Domain Administration (auDA). As part of a series celebrating the first 30 years of Communications Day, they discuss the evolution of the public internet in Australia and Sinclair's unique experiences in the telecommunications sector. From her early encounters with the internet to her role in shaping consumer advocacy, Sinclair shares insights into the dramatic changes the industry has undergone. They also delve into the critical importance of connectivity during events like COVID-19 and natural disasters.

Welcome back to CommDay Live, hosted by Tim Marshall, former CommsDay editor and head of TM Advisory. In this episode of a series celebrating the first 30 years of Communications Day, Tim speaks with John Stanton, the outgoing CEO of Comms Alliance. This fantastic interview elicits John's thoughts on the trajectory of competition in telecommunications over 30 years, the highlights of his 15 years at Comms Alliance, who he enjoyed working with and what he sees as future challenges for the sector.

Welcome back to CommDay Live, hosted by Tim Marshall, former CommsDay editor and head of TM Advisory. In this episode of a series celebrating the first 30 years of Communications Day, Tim speaks with David Kennedy, Managing Director at Venture Insights. David shares his unique perspective on the evolution of the Australian telecommunications sector over the past three decades. Join us as David reflects on his early career in policy and his experiences with the internet in its nascent stages. He discusses the transformative impact of technology on the industry, the role of government in telecommunications, and the critical issues facing the sector today, such as cyber security and sustainable investment.  

Welcome to a special episode of CommsDay Live, celebrating three decades of the Communications Day newsletter. Hosted by former editor Tim Marshall, this episode brings together a unique panel of past editors who have significantly contributed to CommsDay. Join us for an engaging discussion, featuring Petroc Wilton, Geoff Long, Luke Coleman, David Binning and Grahame Lynch. The panel reminisces about the industry's evolution, from the rise and fall of dot-coms to the transformative impact of the NBN. Hear personal anecdotes, industry insights, and reflections on the technological advancements that have shaped the sector over the years.  

Welcome to the second episode of our special series celebrating the 30th anniversary of Communications Day. Hosted by former Comms Day editor Tim Marshall and featuring Grahame Lynch, the founder and publisher of Comms Day, this episode dives deep into the major themes and events that have shaped the telecommunications sector over the past three decades. We explore the evolution of Telstra, the development of universal high-speed broadband, and the ongoing saga of the NBN. Grahame shares his personal insights on the twists and turns that have defined the industry, reflecting on technological shifts, policy responses, and the heated battles that have taken place. The episode also touches on the global impact of mobile technology, the rise of OTT players, and the increasing importance of network resilience. As we look ahead, we discuss the challenges and opportunities that lie in the future of telecommunications. Join us for an engaging and informative discussion that not only celebrates the past 30 years but also contemplates the future of telecommunications.

Welcome to CommsDayLive with Tim Marshall, former editor of CommsDay and now a communications and corporate affairs consultant. This is the first episode in a special series celebrating the 30-year journey of Communications Day, the publication often referred to as the Bible of Australian telecommunications. In this episode, Tim sits down with the man behind it all, Grahame Lynch, the founder, publisher, editor, commentator, event producer, podcast host, and more. Grahame shares the story of CommsDay's inception, its early days, and its incredible journey of charting the perpetual evolution of the telecommunications industry. Discover the challenges, the pivotal moments, and the technological advancements that have shaped the industry. From the early days of faxing newsletters to embracing the digital era, Grahame provides an insider's perspective on what it takes to build a lasting and influential publication in a constantly changing sector. Join us as we explore the past 30 years of telecommunications through the lens of CommsDay, and learn what lessons from the past can guide us into the future.

In this episode, we feature two feature interviews: 00.00 BAI Communications' CEO Peter Lambourne talks about the fascinating evolution of a company that began as a Australian government transmission operation and now provides digital infrastructure services in places such as New York City. 21.00 Allot's VP APAC sales Weiming Li talks about his firm's network native security proposition and its partnerships with some of the world's leading telco groups such as Vodafone, Telefonica and Verizon.

Telstra executive, technology development and innovation Channa Seneviratne talks about the impending 3G shutdown and the specific issue of those with older 4G handsets which may default to 3G for emergency calls. he also talks about the efforts being made by Telstra and other telcos to educate affected users.

In this special edition we have an extended discussion with two Australian-based sectoral experts who travelled to MWC in Barcelona. First up, Long Street Advisors' CEO Mohammad Chowdhury, a former PWC partner, Vodafone and IBM exec and World Bank economist, who filed a daily column for CommsDay from MWC and joins us on the podcast to look back at the event. And secondly, from around the 18.00 mark, we speak with Re Group (M & C Saatchi) CEO Patrick Guerrera who has worked on the Optus brand over the past decade and shares his unique perspectives on what he saw at MWC. Across the two interviews we cover a gamut of topics ranging from AI to quantum to the digital divide and the great 5G ROI drought!

In this week's edition, we hear what Vicki Brady, Telstra CEO, had to say at Mobile World Congress, we catch up with the new CEO of iSeek, Scott Hicks, who talks about their service USP and we catch up with CommsDay editor Rohan Pearce to discuss the TPG results

Mobile World Congress returns to Barcelona from this weekend and to preview some of the major themes of the event we spoke with Paolo Sidoti, ANZ Communications, Media, Technology (CMT) client group lead of Accenture. We cover a gamut of topics including AI and network transformation. Also we speak with Rohan Pearce about the latest telecom developments at the Quad.

In this episode: * we speak with NBN CO CEO Stephen Rue following 1H results, focusing on the increasing uptake of Fibre Connect and the implementation of the new Special Access Undertaking * we also find out about Zella DC, the Perth based micro DC company, which is kicking goals in the US, with CEO Angie Keeler, and, we speak with CommsDay's Rohan Pearce about Telstra's AI announcements this week

This week Grahame Lynch chats with AWS chief technologist, telco Ishwar Parulkar from California on his predictions for 2024 including increased use of AI by telcos, more comfort with SaaS and APIs, and a renewed move to cloud RANs. Grahame also chats with CommsDay managing editor Rohan Pearce about the news of the week

In the first episode of CommsDay Live for 2024: We have an extended chat with Kearney partners Shivani Parekh from Chicago and Sarovar Agarwal from Melbourne from that consulting firm's telecom, media and technology practice on why network resilience is rising rapidly up the list of priorities for telco executives. And a hint: getting it right is as much about culture as technology. CommsDay chief editor Rohan Pearce joins us to look at the new Samsung AI-enabled handsets released this week which are making quite an impression. And finally, we are joined by London-based CEO of the Mobile Ecosystem Forum, Dario Betti, who shares with us his top global regulatory predictions for 2024 including what is happening with privacy and identity.

In the last episode of CommsDay Live for 2023, Grahame Lynch speaks with: * Capti CEO Todd Maunder about what he finds compelling about the Vision Network product set which he resells * Sat.One's Daniel Fairbairn on his company's first OneWeb enterprise signing * Shadow communications minister David Coleman on the issues that dominated 2023 and how they will play out in 2024

In this sponsored podcast, Grahame Lynch talks with Amplitel CEO Jon Lipton. Amplitel is one of the new breed of tower companies that have emerged in recent years, but we discuss how it is more than a real estate play, but a company going up the value stack in terms of what it offers to customers and developing innovative solutions in areas such as the use of digital twin technology.

In this episode we hear from: * Rapid7 global chief security officer Jaya Balloo talking about the cyber threats of AI and quantum, * Netskope SVP, borderless WAN Parag Thakore, and * Absolute Software CTO Nicko van Someren on the hype around AI in cybersecurity

In this episode we talk with two visiting executives from the US - Amdocs group president of technology and head of strategy Anthony Goonetilleke and Juniper Networks' Senior Director of Product Marketing for AI-Driven Enterprise Christian Gilby - about artificial intelligence, the impact it is having in the market and how it can benefit telcos

In this episode, Grahame Lynch chats with CommsDay's Rohan Pearce about the future of co-regulation as the minister moves to impose a standard over financial hardship cases and ACMA sets ultimatums over industry code revision. And we hear from Telstra network executives Nikos Katinakis and Channa Seneviratne who spoke at a major briefing on what is happening with 5G and satellite at the telco: in their own words, given some of the selective and inaccurate reporting about what was discussed.

In this episode, we hear from * PM Anthony Albanese and cybersecurity minister Clare O'Neil about their new national cybersecurity co-ordinator appointment * Optus CEO Kelly Bayer Rosmarin and MD marketing and revenue Matt Williams about the reaction to an appeal court's rejection of the Telstra-TPG regional sharing deal * Optus's MD enterprise Gladys Berejiklian on the company's approach to partnerships, and * a chat with Mathworks' Ruth-Anne Marchant about what 6G might look like

In this episode: * we hear from the founder of Freelancer.com Matt Barrie and his thoughts on AI * Rosemary Sinclair from auDA talks about the trust premium of the .au domain, and * Visiting Cradlepoint executives Lindsay Notwell and Lisa Guess talk about the rise of 5G slicing and where Australia is at in wireless enterprise use cases

Vocus is the diamond sponsor of this year's CommsDay Summit and we took the opportunity to speak with its head of enterprise and government Andrew Wildblood about this year's talking points and developments at the company

Grahame Lynch chats with Adam Beck, the head of digital urbanism at ENE.HUB, about the company's vision for frictionless 5G and how its smart pole functionality is building bridges with local communities and government.

In this episode we catch up with former M2 and Vocus boss Geoff Horth to find out about his new converged service provider SUPA and the new shadow communications minister comes to the studio.

TPG Telecom returned a good set of numbers this week in an indication that it has turned the corner and now has positive momentum in the years ahead. Grahame Lynch spoke with Inaki Berroeta.

  In this special sponsored edition of CommsDay Live, Grahame Lynch talks with Mansour Karam, the co-founder of Apstra, now a unit of Juniper Networks. In this podcast, they discuss the origin story of Apstra, how Karam saw a shared vision between Apstra and Juniper, what was the original problem that Apstra sought to solve, the idea behind intent-based networking and how Apstra performs in blind end-user studies. They conclude by discussing what lies in the future for Apstra.

This week we take a look at a new academic paper which finds fault with national broadband measurement programs and suggests alternative ways to get more meaningful data on broadband experiences with co-author Dr Vijay Sivaraman. We also hear from the new CEO of Vocus, Ellie Sweeney, who replaces the retiring Kevin Russell in a few weeks.

CommsDay Live, the podcast, is back for 2023. In this episode, host Grahame Lynch catches up with Simon Dux and Rohan Pearce to discuss all the top news that happened over the January holidays.

In our last episode for calendar year 2022, we chat with: 0.00 Vocus chief executive, enterprise and government Andrew Wildblood about what his company in doing in leosats, private LTE and fibre deployments in the north of Australia 11.45 Amdocs VP, Customer Business Executive for the ANZ region Zoltan Losteiner and hear what he has to say about trends in enterprise communications and network automation, and 24.15 Telco Together founder Renee Bowker on their tenth anniversary, highlights and plans from here on. It's a big final episode for the year!

In this episode we hear from Indara's Jason Horley and Matt Healy on their plan for a regional mobile network in uneconomic markets that could support the needs of all three cellcos and more, as per the NZ RCG model. Our editors Rohan Pearce and Simon Dux look at a series of related announcements and views from Amplitel, the NT government and NSW Gig State.

In this episode we hear from Amplitel CEO Jon Lipton and chat with CommsDay editors Simon Dux and Rohan Pearce about the week that was

CommsDay held its Wholesale Forum this week in Sydney: Directions for Australian telecom wholesale with panellists Zia Bhadiar partner, Oliver Wyman, Venture Insights MD David Kennedy, Vocus GM - Wholesale national sales Tristan Clash, Symbio GM Products Dylan Brown, Superloop chief commercial officer Nick Pachos and Swoop CTO Tom Berryman. This panel looks at the big trends in Australian wholesale markets: NBN resale, dark fibre and private access networks, 5G, leosat and more The moderator is James Linton, formerly of Exetel