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Australia's First Commercial Fixed Wireless Network

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the is-this-really-the-first dept.

randomErr writes: " Australia.Internet.com reports here that 'Of the $130 million Unwired Australia raised from the likes of Credit Suisse First Boston, Bruckman Rosser Sherrill and The Invus Group, $110 million was spent on licensing space on the 3.4Ghz spectrum. Yesterday it launched its first trial of the technology at no cost to the people of Paddington, a cosmopolitan suburb in Sydney's inner east.'" Of course, wireless broadband with cast-off satellite dishes sounds more fun ...

88 comments

  1. For all the good it will do you... by dr_labrat · · Score: 0, Troll

    What with all the filtering that the Oz govt imposes, you will soon only be able to view about 20% of the net there anyway...

    --
    The secret of success is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake those, you've got it made. (Marx)
    1. Re:For all the good it will do you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Unfortunately, the slashdot trolls are not in the 80% being filtered by the australian government.

    2. Re:For all the good it will do you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How many times do you morons have to be told that there is no filtering going on? A handful of LOCAL sites have been taken down, the policy is classed a failure by everyone involved. That is completely different to filtering all traffic.

      And I bet I can go into any library here in Oz and see more that you can see in a library in the US

    3. Re:For all the good it will do you... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Amen....

      When that Alston idiot says "naou, y' caaaant'.

      We just do anyway. What's he going to do? Prevent me from using my (T) broadband? I don't think so.

  2. Re:Biiiiotch by DJ+Uptime · · Score: 0, Offtopic
    I've been reading /. with Konqueror for some time now, and never understood this particular device. Then I had the misfortune of hosing my kernel and being without my LInux box for a day. I had to use Win2k/IE for my /. fix.

    Now I see the unmistakeable beauty that is page widening.

  3. Sounds like MMDS by cyberformer · · Score: 4, Informative
    The article just goes on about Wi-Fi, with almost no description of the service itself, but it sounds like MMDS --- the same thing that Sprint and AT&T dropped in the US about six months ago, after they were told that they could switch the spectrum over to 3G mobile instead.


    Good to see a free trial, though. Sounds like the company's actually trying to get the service right before it starts charging people, unlike so many other broadband or wireless services.

  4. Re:When the web was new by ObviousGuy · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Those were the days my friend, those were the days.

    --
    I have been pwned because my /. password was too easy to guess.
  5. BigCo vs open-access by serps · · Score: 1

    It will be interesting whether community networks such as Sydney Wireless and air.net.au will prevail over this company. One oft-neglected point in favour of local networks is that all of the traffic stays in the geographic region. Most of Australia's horrific net access costs are due to the fact that most data accessed by Australians is served from the US backbone, which costs money (there are no reciprocal bandwidth agreements with the US providers). With very limited access to the greater Internet, a local wireless network will still be able to host local sites, allow P2P and allow many local game servers with no per-MB costs.

    That's a very attractive option in a country where broadband is download-capped.

    --
    "Einstein argued that [...] God is not capricious or arbitrary. No such faith comforts the software engineer." ~ Brooks
    1. Re:BigCo vs open-access by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

      It is too bad Sydney Wireless Is not a community network though. They charge just like an ISP.

    2. Re:BigCo vs open-access by Charm · · Score: 1
      It is too bad Sydney Wireless Is not a community network though. They charge just like an ISP

      Thats because there is already a free Australian wireless network. The Mesh.
      http://www.sydneywireless.com/

      --
      -- RTFM:Slackware::Beer:Saturday
    3. Re:BigCo vs open-access by Charm · · Score: 1

      I live in Toowoomba QLD and the Mesh is here. Another issue to be considered is Mirrors. The more people who set up mirrors on the mesh of important download sites, the less connection to the Internet will be required.
      I think that some people will allow trickle connections between the Mesh and the Net, If there is enough trickle connections then we won't need broadband. Then perhaps Telstra will take notice (And probably petition the gov to ban free wireless but anyway :)

      --
      -- RTFM:Slackware::Beer:Saturday
    4. Re:BigCo vs open-access by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sorry, you are wrong, sydneywireless.com is not a free mesh.

    5. Re:BigCo vs open-access by lazybeam · · Score: 1
      You live in Toowoomba? :)

      Toowoomba Wireless. But then you already knew that.

      --
      --
      no sig for you. come back one year.
  6. Good start but... by Mattygfunk · · Score: 2
    All this is promising but they still have a hurdle to overcome before they gain the 95%coverage they are after. As their service gains in popularity people will start to notice the access points and object to them for similiar reasons as mobile phone towers, looks and perceived health effects. Soon enough the complaints will roll in making getting the coverage an issue.

    I will start celebrating if (not necessarily when) the service provides better value than the current Australian standard of 3 gig per month caps for $75.

  7. Unwired's website seems to have been un-wired :) by dmiller · · Score: 2

    www.unwired.com.au is unreachable - connections just time out

  8. If this post gets modded up by Alec_Baldwin · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    I'm leaving the country.

  9. Movin' High-Tech to India! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    .

    "Despite decades of social change, the general perception remains that technical workers, scientists, and engineers are unusually intelligent white men who are socially inept, absent-minded nerds."

  10. Re:When the web was new by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    NYC does have wireless lans. I know it doesn't belong here but i felt the need to bitch about it anyways. In CCP just whip out your lap or PDA with a wireless card and your on the citys' wireless lan. Rather locked down but still free and well free.

  11. cosmopolitan? by blisspix · · Score: 1

    you're talking serious dollars to live in paddington. typical to only go after the rich. surely they could have offered the trial to those who live in areas not reached by cable or ADSL technology, to show them what opportunities lie ahead?

    those living in Penrith or on the central coast, perhaps?? what's to bet people living in those areas won't get much attention at all.

    1. Re:cosmopolitan? by Lips · · Score: 1

      From the article:

      The incremental nature of the deployment means that Unwired can handpick the geographical areas which exhibit most demand, saving the precious cash it has left.

      AND

      At present that strategy consists of identifying customers that are beyond reach of both Telstra's ADSL network and the cable backbones of the incumbent and Optus.

      To me these 2 statements seem contradictory. The places that are out of reach are rural and outer suburbs where they won't get the demand required for a rollout profitable.

    2. Re:cosmopolitan? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      those living in Penrith or on the central coast, perhaps?? what's to bet people living in those areas won't get much attention at all.

      That's because people out west and have no money. And very probably no computers. And even if they did have these things, they probably wouldn't spend their dole cheque on a broadband connection.

      And the barely alive residents in the living cemetary that is the Central Coast would probably have little interest in bleeding edge technology, and they have better things to spend their pension cheques on, like adult nappies and other incontience devices.

      And anyways, there's lots of people on quite modest incomes who live in Paddo, it's not all $2m terraces.

  12. Seems bizarre by jukal · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Why would someone transfer data at 3.4 Ghz - and pay this company renting the bit-pipe, as there is the free 2.4 Ghz alternative and both use similar technology and products can easily support both bands?

    Regulating WLAN spectrum might be good for everyone - but this is not really what I was thinking about - to me it seems that this company is pissing in the wind. I would quess that what people will do, is to set their machines use 2.4 when it provides reliable enough bandwidth at good enough speed, and only use 3.4 during extreme peek hours. If this is how it goes, getting the $130 million investment on spectrum license (and millions put in other purposes) back might take so long, that we have already warped into next generation of spectrums.

    1. Re:Seems bizarre by Wohali · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Easy. 2.4GHz is getting VERY VERY busy. Plus, at least in the US, you're limited on the amount of power you can pump out. Perhaps on the higher band in Australia, you don't have that restriction, meaning you can push the bits farther in space...

      --
      "But always she's the spectre of uncertainty I first endured, then faded, then embraced..."
    2. Re:Seems bizarre by thogard · · Score: 1

      Australia has about the same problems as the US. Syndney and Melbourne are large cities in both population and size. Melbourne covers an area about the size of LA but has more people than Chicago. Sydney isn't as spread out but there are more people. This results in needing to cover huge areas and some are very high density while others are quite low. Once you get out of the major cities, the population density goes way down. The power requirements for 2.4 are about the same as in the US (but different just to make life fun for importers) but you end up with more people attempting to run long runs since telecom expenses are way out of hand.

    3. Re:Seems bizarre by Graymalkin · · Score: 3, Informative

      ISM bands have very very very limited power output. When you actually pay money to license a raio band you can have a much much higher output transmitter. Higher output means a better signal at longer range. Not everything is fucking free and ISM bands aren't an answer to the communication quandaries of the known fucking world.

      --
      I'm a loner Dottie, a Rebel.
    4. Re:Seems bizarre by jukal · · Score: 1

      > Not everything is fucking free and ISM bands aren't an answer to the communication quandaries of the known fucking world.

      Eh, has your day gone to bad direction or what? I was not saying that everything should be free. 3.4 Ghz is just too close to 2.4 Ghz. Benefits are too little. Higher frequencies might make sense. Also, GPRS and UMTS make sense as long-range solutions. 2.4 Ghz makes sense as short-range solution. Value of $130 million value for 3.4 Ghz in australia is hard to see. Australia has population of 19.7 million. If you got every 200th australian use your licensed bandwidth, you would have to squeeze $1319 out from each just to cover your licensing fees. Am I making any more sense now?

    5. Re:Seems bizarre by tconnors · · Score: 1

      ....as there is the free 2.4 Ghz alternative and both use similar technology and products can easily support both bands?

      Oh crap? I didn't realise it was 2.4 GHz. Can someone with knowledge tell me the exact frequency?

      I just remember observing at the Australia Telescope last summer at 2496 MHz.

      Just another hurdle to overcome, I guess..... :(

    6. Re:Seems bizarre by jukal · · Score: 3, Informative

      802.11b (Wi-Fi) 2.4 Ghz ISM band.
      ISM (47 CFR 15.247): 2.400-2.4835GHz up to 1000mW

    7. Re:Seems bizarre by Graymalkin · · Score: 2

      Buying a license guarantees you get that bandwidth for several years and lets you sublease that bandwidth to others. There's a huge difference between only being able to output a couple of watts in an ISM band and being able to output a ton of watts in a licensed band. Say what they want to do is set up an LMDS network using their licensed band. They can have a fewer number of transceivers and have a longer range on those transceivers than they could with 2.4GHz ISM because they can broadcast with much more power. The individual receivers are also not going to be getting interference from anything else on the 2.4GHz ISM band either which is going to make a much clearer network.

      Now they may have paid way too much for their band license, time will tell. Then again the subleasing of the band might end up making them some beacoup bucks, while every 200th Australian might buy a connection from them, if another 200th bought a connection from a company subleasing bandwidth from them that is twice the customers with the same investment. Owning a band can be profitable because anyone who wants to use that band has to go through you. Am I making more sense now?

      --
      I'm a loner Dottie, a Rebel.
    8. Re:Seems bizarre by funky+womble · · Score: 1

      There's some nice things you can do with non-line-of-sight around 3.5GHz if you can get the power output high enough (often not possible on the lower power class-licensed systems available for use in the 2.4GHz band). And having exclusive access to a band gives a lot of freedom from interference that you just have to accept in 2.4GHz.

  13. Don't click here! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
    I SAID DON'T CLICK HERE!

    If you do


    , your insane!
  14. I've talked with these people by thogard · · Score: 3, Interesting

    They intend to offer voice and data in mostly the same areas that you can get adsl and optus (cable tv, cable phone, cable internet). They will be going after the holes left by the other players and the newer urban areas.

    3.5Ghz sucks when you get too many people in a an area. Most places max out with about 6000 real broadband users. Some places went upto 18,000. Now figure spending 100 million for 18,000 in two major markets and three minor markets, whats the payoff on this. They also will be offering service that is slower than current adsl.

    The good thing is it will keep Telstra from increasing rates until they buy these guys out. Telstra just happens to be doing something with Unwired Australia but I'm not sure what. That assumes that Telstra won't plop down a few dslams to take these people out of the picture. I figure Telstra can drop 1.5/256/1G ADLS service down to about AU$15/mo and still cover their technology and upstream costs.

    1. Re:I've talked with these people by dmiller · · Score: 2

      3.5Ghz sucks when you get too many people in a an area

      Surely this could be mitigated with directional antennae?

    2. Re:I've talked with these people by thogard · · Score: 1

      with point to multi-point? To get good reception through the trees, you have to enough power that the stray signal will go at least 5km if not 25km. Since they are transmitting many bits per frequency cycle, they can't deal with too much noise. This is what killed the large rollouts in the US. 3.5 is line of sight to have it work but its interfeerance is near line of sight. One reason that the 3.5 band is mostly empty is the strange characteristics of the frequency.

  15. Financing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's very interesting that the same investment banks that have been burned so badly by the Global Crossings, the Covads, the Rythms are throwing their money at cutting (bleeding?) edge wireless infrastructure in a nation of a few million people. Haven't they learned anything? However, history has shown that Good Opportunities Always Take Some Extraordinarily . Costly Xpenditures, and, perhaps, this investment expendature will pay off.

  16. FUCKERS! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Due to excessive bad posting from this IP or Subnet, comment posting has temporarily been disabled. If it's you, consider this a chance to sit in the timeout corner. If it's someone else, this is a chance to hunt them down. If you think this is unfair, please email jamie@mccarthy.vg with your MD5'd IPID and SubnetID, which are "cum434183hguzz35894ling3082979ped2723der4287asts6 38" and "bun318875378cha3083fu271532ckin399ho399382mos" and (optionally, but preferably) your IP number "209.242.124.241/goat" and your username "[censorware victim]".

  17. How long? by sheepab · · Score: 1

    I guess the Aussies didnt read the slashdot article that was posted TWICE I might add about the new energy saving lightbulbs causing interference with wireless networks? How long before their 110 Million dollar network stops working?

    --


    In college, really poor, need a flatscreen.
    1. Re:How long? by DHR · · Score: 2, Insightful

      too bad the lights are /2.4ghz/, and the story is about using 3.4ghz

  18. Re:Unwired's website seems to have been un-wired : by sheepab · · Score: 1

    Must be those new lightbulbs that cause interference with WiFi :)

    --


    In college, really poor, need a flatscreen.
  19. not only rural areas are out of reach... by netsrek · · Score: 3, Insightful

    You do realise that there are lots of areas in sydney where you can't get either ADSL or Optus cable? And some places where you can't get any broadband connections?

    Telstra cable is admittedly more attractive since Optus brought in their own cap, but I wouldn't be surprised if large areas of Paddington aren't serviced.

    oh yeah, and I currently work in Paddington, and used to live there. It's not all rich yuppies, just big slabs of it... you can still find pockets of student shared terraces around the place...

    --

    i don't read slashdot anymore.
    1. Re:not only rural areas are out of reach... by MrNovember · · Score: 1

      If we just gander all the Paddies, I'm sure we'll really tinder the broadband to the righty mates. Of course wireless broadband really goods the wicker doesn't it?

    2. Re:not only rural areas are out of reach... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yehawwww!

  20. Cen$0r$h*p by SquireCD · · Score: 0

    Ya know... Those Aussie's are all for monitoring and censorship and wireless is probably the most insecure of all data trasmission...

    I wonder..

  21. Pringles? by beckett · · Score: 2

    first they outlawed handguns, i guess the next thing that's going out the door is Pringles. Get them before they make you register them, Aussies!

    1. Re:Pringles? by FrostedWheat · · Score: 4, Insightful

      first they outlawed handguns

      And this is bad how?

    2. Re:Pringles? by Hunter1776 · · Score: 1

      Who outlawed handguns? You can still buy non automatic weapons here...

    3. Re:Pringles? by signingis · · Score: 1

      Why bother getting into the gun debate on slashdot? It just makes all sides look like a pack of wild assholes.

      --

      I prefer a void in conversation to a vacuous one.
    4. Re:Pringles? by FrostedWheat · · Score: 1

      Agreed!

    5. Re:Pringles? by jred · · Score: 2

      Are you calling me an asshole?!?!?! I'll shoot (my mouth off) for that!

      --

      jred
      I'm not a mechanic but I play one in my garage...
  22. Nice Troll by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Oops! Should've let the moderators bite first. What I meant to say is (Score:5, Insightful)

  23. Melbourne equivilant by arbat2 · · Score: 1

    For those in Melbourne, there is Alphalink, and the wireless network it is rolling out.

    http://www.alphalink.com.au/amain235.php

  24. Sydney blackout by MoreDruid · · Score: 1

    anyone remembers this article? I wonder how the pple there will react. OTOH, the matrix crew might be delighted to have wireless internet :P

    --
    The best weapon of a dictatorship is secrecy, but the best weapon of a democracy should be the weapon of openness.
  25. the govt should like this... by spike666 · · Score: 2

    cuz it will make it easier for them to spy on the net traffic...

  26. Bring it to Balmain by doog · · Score: 1


    so I can get rid of this shitty ass Telstra ADSL account that goes down every day, is restricted to 300 MB (whats the fuking point) or now 1 GB for $$ more... and requires a gay ass buggy as shit windows driver to "connect". What bullshit is this? what happened to the static IP I had in San Francisco? Australia sucks ass for broadband and its pissing me ofFF !@#@

    1. Re:Bring it to Balmain by Mandelbrute · · Score: 2
      so I can get rid of this shitty ass Telstra ADSL account
      Very true - the funny thing is that in this country the papers are full of stuff about how there are not many people getting broadband connections. The reality is that the services are very poor and very expensive - so dial up is still the best way to go for most. Telstra invented ISDN, so they want everyone to use that (at premium rates) instead of a very unstable ADSL network (at premium rates and very localised areas). All of the people I know with ADSL have had problems - not a single happy customer; various stuff ups like Telstra deleting all their ADSL customers websites over Easter (and having no backups) annoyed a lot of people. All tremble before the power of the monopoly. Other companies are reselling Telstra ADSL, but when something fails you still have to deal with Telstra.

      One problem with the wireless nets in Australia is that they have to connect to Telstra somewhere. Connecting at multiple points for redundancy is not a solution, since the ADSL service often goes down en-masse. The cable services are very localised, and have not expanded in five years.

    2. Re:Bring it to Balmain by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Although I'm no fan of the massive charges telstra are laying on people, their ADSL offerings have improved somehwat from the initial release. They now have an service agreement to provide 99% uptime, and users getting discounts if uptime is less. Also, RP-PPPOE works fine under linux to connect to telstra ADSL. (Had it running for over a year now).

  27. fixed point in combination with hotspots by gambitdis · · Score: 1

    What we have been spending some time on is using fixed point to setup hotspots in an effort to reduce the line of sight problem. Doing smaller hotspots or micro pops, can get the coverage you need, especially when mixing 900Mhz with 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz.

    derek

    gambitwireless.com

  28. First? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I am aware of www.eftel.com.au offering wireless Internet access across the Perth (West Australia) metro area for at least the last year or two.

    Am I missing something, or does their network not count?

  29. web site by 1DeepThought · · Score: 1

    For those that couldn't find it Unwired Australia is at http://www.unwiredaustralia.com.au

    --

    "Patience is a virtue, afforded those with nothing better to do." - I don't remember

  30. Re:Biiiiotch by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I hate you.