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From the CEO’s Desk

Well, here we are almost into the last quarter of the year. This last month has been another productive one, with the old BDX8 Extreme (aka ‘Black Diamond’) replaced in VIC-IX and the team are close to declaring the new WLG-IX across the ditch ready for service. The team have also redesigned and updated our out-of-band network and commenced the rebuild. 

Normally by now we would also have announced our AGM date, however this year we are working to manage a seamless transition to a company limited by guarantee. With lockdowns, postal delays and now even the earthquake, paperwork processing at ASIC has been delayed. Members should rest assured that we will call the AGM as soon as we hear from ASIC! Regardless of this, we will publish the annual report and annual financials ahead of the meeting as they are close to final now. 

Our policy effort is also very much head down, tail up, too. The NBN SAU and defamation reform work is progressing, and we’ve made a few submissions. The eSafety Commission has now set out with a bit more clarity how it wants the new Codes to work to ensure the industry minimises the risk the public is exposed to the most serious categories of material by July 2022. It seems they are expecting to see file scanning on internet-based storage services for known serious content. 

From the CEO’s Desk

There are clearly a lot of people stuck at home on the internet right now and this is being reflected across our traffic statistics, with us hitting all time highs. We are hitting higher rates across NSW-IX to the point we will be looking to do a nice big upgrade as soon as we can, as well as finally upgrade our core switch in Melbourne. Recent firmware upgrades in other states mean that 100Gbps ports are available everywhere and these are being consumed with gusto! It’s also interesting to see the blips due to our various leaders and their daily covid updates, with New Zealand’s Prime Minister shifting the dial more than our state Premiers or Prime Minister. It’s fair to say that the Kiwi migration of broadcast television onto their fixed broadband network probably plays a significant part, but it sure is interesting to see these social factors being played out on our networks.

I must admit that looking at our traffic graphs is far more interesting than economic models of NBN Co’s business, but this area is a key part of our advocacy right now. The ACCC is reviewing the standard access undertaking leading to a potentially all new pricing regime for the NBN. As we delve further into the detail on this, we will hopefully draw comparisons with other industries to see how regulation has affected the various wholesale markets. Again, if any IAA members have a view on this process, please let me know.

Last month also had me doing a couple of deep dive presentations – one for staff in the Department of Communications (How the Internet Works) and the other jointly with the ACS (The Internet 2021 and Beyond). I realised just how much I’ve been missing those regular industry catch ups at conferences and the like where everything internet is debated, as it seemed a lot harder this time round to pull together observations on where we’re at with internet technology and regulation. If anyone has any new networks they want to show off or neat software solutions to networking problems perhaps it is time for you to propose a topic for our next event!

Record Numbers for Both IAA and NZIX

During the month of August, both IAA and New Zealand Internet Exchange (NZIX) hit new records across their exchanges. With half of Australia in lockdown, we hit a new record of 790Gbps over the weekend ending Sunday, August 22, 2021, breaking our previous record of 750Gbps.

In comparison, as lockdown commenced across the ditch, so too did the spikes in traffic across AKL-IX and CHC-IX, with Auckland reaching an all-time high of 341Gbps with plenty of room to spare. The peaks continued across the remainder of the week finishing off with a Friday afternoon high of 335Gbps.

Primus DC – September Closure

Primus DC, located at 55 King Street, Melbourne, is closing, and we have been advised that we need to vacate the premises by 30 September 2021. Unfortunately, this means members with ports within the data centre will be affected as we will no longer be offering services from this facility after that date.

Rest assured that we are working hard to ensure service continuity despite the closure and request that members with a current service at 55 King Street migrate to any of our other sites on VIC-IX. All location options can be found on our website. Hopefully, you’ve already seen the relocation of the route server from that site, and a shorter ring transit time with our rearrangements already completed.

If you require any further information or assistance with your migration, please get in touch at peering@internet.asn.au Time is running out!

July 1996 President’s Report

01-Jul-1996
Members,

After the Inaugural General Meeting of the Western Australian Internet Association (Inc.) (WAIA) the Executive Committee moved to implement the resolutions of the organisation.

Executive Board Structure
Shortly after the IAGM, the Board formed for the Inaugural Executive Meeting with the following members selected to handle the subsequent portfolios:

Paul McCutcheon – President (as elected) and Government Liaison (Non-IAP representative);
Harry Protoolis – Vice President and Membership (Non-IAP representative);
David Kitson – Secretary (IAP representative);
Michael O’Reilly – Treasurer (IAP representative);
Kimberley Heitman – Media Liaison (Non-IAP representative);
Maryanne Bradbury – WWW (Non-IAP representative); and
Steve Hancock – Internet Liaison (IAP representative).

Each Executive member set forth enthusiastically to set their portfolios up and begin to design the parameters by which they would operate. As with any organisation, the first few months met with a number of teething problems which were resolved with time.

Shortly after the Christmas break of 1995/6 we regrettably accepted the resignation of Maryanne Bradbury from the Executive and, as per the constitution, rapidly moved to find a replacement. This replacement was found in the person of Kim Davies who took over the portfolio of the third Non-IAP representative and the responsibilities of maintaining the Association’s web presence at www.waia.asn.au

In June the Executive was forced into a second alteration with our Secretary, David Kitson, no longer being able to stand as an IAP representative yet still wishing to remain on the Board. By coincidence I was now able to stand as an IAP representative so, to ensure continuity in the Board, David Kitson became a Non-IAP representative and I became an IAP representative.

These two changes were the only ones to occur on the Executive for the 1995/6 Association year which has resulted in, at the time of writing, with the following members handling the subsequent portfolios:

Paul McCutcheon – President (as elected) and Government Liaison (IAP representative);
Harry Protoolis – Vice President and Membership (Non-IAP representative);
David Kitson – Secretary (Non-IAP representative);
Michael O’Reilly – Treasurer (IAP representative);
Kimberley Heitman – Media Liaison (Non-IAP representative);
Kim Davies – WWW (Non-IAP representative); and
Steve Hancock – Internet Liaison (IAP representative).

Government and the Censorship Bill
At the time of the formation of the Executive liaison between an infant WAIA and the Western Australian State Government were already well and truly underway with regards to a proposed state censorship Bill.

From the efforts of Diego Campagna of GlobalData Pty. Ltd., one of the members of the original WAIA foundation committee, a relationship between WAIA and Gary Newcombe of the WA Censorship Department and Frank Morrisey of the WA Justice Department was established. This relationship continues today.

Due to this relationship, WAIA has worked closely with both of the aforementioned Government Officers on a mutually beneficial arrangement to ensure a, hopefully, workable Censorship Act for the state of Western Australia in the form of the Censorship Act of 1996.

Part of the Censorship Act of 1996 is the establishment and gazetting of a Code of Practice for IAP’s and, due mainly to the efforts of Kim Heitman, I am proud to say that projections are good that WAIA’s Code of Conduct will be gazetted by the Minister, Mrs Cheryl Edwardes, and will henceforth become the aforementioned Code of Practice.

This relationship is an Australian first and, quite possibly, world first. It is proof positive that such relationships are beneficial and it is hoped that other Governments and organisations learn from our example.

Promoting our Aims
As per the Aims of the Association, the Board has also been working strongly for the past year in promoting our Aims and Objects throughout the Internet community in Australia.

In May we received word that efforts by Michael Malone of Iinet Technologies Pty. Ltd. who, at the time, was in South Australia, and Brenda Ainsley of Electronic Frontiers Australia (EFA), had resulted in the establishment of an infant South Australian Internet Association (SAIA) in that State. SAIA wanted to set themselves up using our Constitution and Code of Conduct and, due to possible copyright concerns, permission was so given.

In August we also became aware of the formation of the Australian Capital Territory Internet Association (ACTIA) and, following on from our previous work with SAIA, ACTIA came on board under similar circumstances.

In November we were notified of the formation of the Tasmanian Internet Association (TIA) who will also be following the same organisational concept as WAIA (and, by default, SAIA and ACTIA) have already established.

As Michael Malone recently stated, “And now we are four”.

I have also become aware via discussions with people in Victoria that the VIA may well be the next body to form. I’m in “wait and see” mode on this but I’m confident that the people I spoke to have the drive and perseverance to see the body through to incorporation and beyond.

Our current four Associations are independent by law but act as one in a great majority of issues. As I spoke at the beginning of the year, and now that we have at least three Internet Associations, the time has come to actively consider Federating these bodies under one banner. By this, I mean that WAIA, SAIA, ACTIA and TIA, together with the hopeful creation of the News South Wales Internet Association (NSWIA), the Victorian Internet Association (VIA), the Queensland Internet Association (QIA), and the possible creation of the Northern Territory Internet Association (NTIA), will each place a minimum of one representative on a Federal body otherwise known as the Australian Internet Federation (AIF) to handle the Federal issues and yet maintain their own autonomy on their respective State issues.

It is my fervent hope that AIF, once established, will then be seen by the Federal Government as the true body representing the Internet community within Australia and not that “other” organisation who believe they represent the interests of the Internet community when all they represent is their own self-interests.

At present, it appears that each of our respective Associations receive only slightly better than lip service on a Federal level and it is hoped that a national body will rectify this situation.

Problems
For this inaugural year, WAIA has done well to meet both its Aims and Objectives but we are plagued with a major problem. We suffer from an overabundance of apathy from within the Western Australian Internet community that is holding us back from growth that WAIA should have little problem in experiencing. Apathy is our enemy and all members should be vigilant of this slow form of corporate death.

With the Censorship Act of 1996 coming into force on 1st November, and with the eventual gazetting of the Code of Conduct/Practice, WAIA should be looking towards expanding its growth and assisting the WA Internet community in understanding what is required of them under this Act.

WAIA is now in a position of great responsibility and we must continue to show the Minister that we are capable of handling this responsibility. If we fail in this task we fail for the whole industry in Western Australia.

Conclusion
Being elected to the position of Inaugural President of WAIA by you, the members has been one of great challenge for me. I chaired a dream and helped make it a reality. At this time and if it is the wish of the membership I’ll be able to hand over the reins to my successor knowing that I have accomplished both my goals and the wishes of the combined membership. For the 1996/7 year I hope to dedicate my time to the creation of the AIF and its establishment as the premier representative body of the Internet community in Australia. Hence my stepping down from the honour of being your President this year.

For the 1995/6 year, I thank you. I had a blast.

To the Executive, thanks guys, you made my job fun and a hell of a lot easier.

Paul McCutcheon
President
Western Australian Internet Association (Inc.)
Entered by: Paul McCutcheon

Measuring Broadband Australia Program

Earlier this year, our Internet Service Provider (ISP) members were granted eligibility to join the ACCC’s broadband monitoring program. Prior to this, only larger ISPs could participate, providing them with a competitive, marketable advantage.

Following our successful appeal to the ACCC, several members have become eligible to join the program, and we encourage our members to do so. This program provides the opportunity for greater internet performance transparency, allowing smaller ISPs to participate actively and be included in the MBA reports. It further enables members to include speed and technical quality in marketing collateral alongside the bigger players.

For a detailed explanation of this program, check out our 2020 event Life Under Lockdown: how good is our internet.

If you would like to join the program, please contact the ACCC directly at BroadbandPerformance@accc.gov.au

Scams Awareness Week

This year’s Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) and Scams Awareness Network’s (SAN) Scams Awareness Week will be held the week of 8 – 12 November 2021.

The theme for this year is let’s talk scams, to encourage all Australians to talk about scams with family, friends, and colleagues to raise awareness, educate, and empower consumers to protect themselves.

ACCC’s Scamwatch reported that Australians lost $176.1 million to scams last year, up by 23.1 per cent from 2019. Statistics like these provide a good reminder that scams are ongoing, very active, and are becoming more sophisticated.

Our association is continuing to be a campaign partner of Scams Awareness Week and will provide several resources from the ACCC over the coming months. These resources provide information that you can use to protect yourself and others from falling victim to scams. We encourage all our ISP members to check the content and share it with your customers.

If you would like any further information about current scams or would like to see scam statistics within Australia, please refer to the ACCC website.

Farewell Primus DC

IAA has been notified of the upcoming closure of Primus DC, located at 55 King Street, Melbourne.

Vocus has advised us that we need to vacate the premises by 30 September 2021. Unfortunately, this means members with ports within the data centre will be affected as IAA will no longer be able to offer services from this facility after that date.

Rest assured that we are working hard to ensure service continuity despite the closure and request that members with a current service at 55 King Street migrate to any of our other sites on VIC-IX. All location options can be found on our website.

If you require any further information or assistance with your migration, please get in touch at peering@internet.asn.au

Global Switch Sydney Shared Space Consolidation – 6-month notice

If you have a service in our shared space in Global Switch Sydney, it’s time to be on the move! Notices have been issued to all members who are affected and have been advised that the date for shutdown is Thursday, January 27 2022. If you need to relocate your services, please choose one of our established permanent racks or another alternative location.

Unfortunately, these racks are no longer feasible for us to operate as they are not backed by a contract, are physically shared, and are poorly documented. They are not capable of providing the level of service members expect from us as they are restricted by the multi-tenanted nature of Global Switch, which has caused issues with the design and resilience. Additionally, the switching hardware has also reached the end of life and will not be utilised in future on the IX.

If you have any questions or require any assistance, please get in touch with our tech team at peering@internet.asn.au

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