Google launched the service to take on online communications pioneer Skype.

Local users logged-on to their accounts yesterday to discover a new directory of phone contacts listed under a voice calling link, along with an offer for some free calls and prices for international calls to landlines and mobiles.

A Google Australia spokeswoman confirmed the phone lists are compiled from data extracted from users’ emails and chat sessions.

Google has not responded to repeated requests for clarification on the nature of internal account searches and the extraction methods used to populate personal web phone menus, nor has it indicated whether it sought users’ approval before taking action.

But online privacy advocates say it appears Google has not learned from outrage over the Buzz social networking tool that automatically connected users based on data mined from personal emails and chat sessions, nor from the angry reaction to Facebook changes to privacy settings that exposed previously hidden material.

“As far as I can see, Google has done this without even notice, let alone consent,” said Roger Clarke, chair of the Australian Privacy Foundation. “And they’ve learnt so little that they seem not to have offered an opt-out.”

David Vaile, executive director of the University of NSW’s Cyberspace Law and Policy Centre, said it appeared Google’s auto-exposure tools were getting a little out of control.

“This has shades of Buzz,” he said. “When will big data-mongers ever learn that opt-in is much more respectful than ‘opt-out – if you can’.”

Mr Vaile questioned whether Google had clearly and transparently disclosed their use of its tools to everyone potentially affected by their operation.

Google confirmed that local users registered under the English-US language setting can access the web phone service, that has not officially launched in Australia.

Source:   http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it/telecommunications/gmail-phone-service-raises-eyebrows/story-fn4iyzsr-1225910912539

	Our services include but are not limited to: • Voice & Data Network Wiring & Cabling. • Video Cabling / Coaxial Cable, Security Wiring,. • Cat 3, Cat 5e, Cat 6, Plenum, PVC, & Fiber Optics Installation. • Wire Management. • Patch Panel Termination. • Testing. • Certification per Industry Specifications. • Factory Backed System Warranty

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FixTel has  a wide range of Australian broadband plans to choose from which can be a little confusing so we’re here to make your broadband choice as easy as possible. There is three main types of broadband which are fixed broadband plans, mobile broadband plans and wireless broadband plans. Fixed broadband deals describe a fixed line, usually an adsl broadband line which provides your connection, adsl broadband plans are the most common type of broadband deals at the moment but that’s changing. Wireless broadband plans are essentially adsl broadband deals which have a wireless router which means once your broadband connection reaches  the router it becomes wireless so you can use it anywhere in the house on multiple computers or laptops. Wireless broadband can be sometimes wrongly confused with mobile broadband plans. Mobile broadband deals involve no fixed line whatsoever but rely on the 3g broadband coverage of the mobile networks. Mobile broadband plans are accessed via a usb stick, sometimes called a mobile internet stick which plugs into your laptop allowing you to get online instantly, so long as you are in an area of coverage. We can help you choose the right package

Wireless Broadband

Wireless broadband plans have been falling in price and it’s now possible to find cheap deals from a range of different wireless broadband providers. Prepaid wireless broadband is becoming increasingly popular and is a good option if you are on a budget and want to manage your costs closely. As with any internet provider before opting for a cheap wireless broadband plan it’s worth checking the coverage as this may vary from one provider to another meaning that the cheapest option may be a false economy.

Broadband Plans

Broadband plans are available from a wide range of Australian broadband providers and by using our comparison tables you can see how the various broadband plans compare and will be able to find the most suitable internet provider for your needs. Take into account download speed, cost and download limited. If you are a heavy internet user you may want to choose an unlimited broadband plan. If you plan to use your internet connection for online gaming then choose an option with fast upload speeds, download speeds and unlimited downloads. Alternatively if you only plan to browse the web and send emails the cheapest broadband plans should be sufficient for your needs.

Wireless broadband plans

Wireless broadband plans have a similarly large choice in Australia, there are also prepaid wireless broadband plans to consider for those who want to only pay for what they use and keep a tight control on their budgets. These options are also great if you intent on moving home and you are not locked into a lengthy contract as you are with other deals. It’s worth taking this into consideration to ensure you get the best wireless broadband plan for your money.

Mobile broadband plans

Mobile broadband plans have seen a huge surge in growth since 2008 and are now becoming more and more popular. Prepaid mobile broadband plans and contract option both allow you to use your connection anywhere you have mobile reception and on any computer or laptop. To choose the best mobile broadband plan for your needs consider the same things you would take into account for a fixed internet deal like speed, download limits, contract length, costs and the reputation of the mobile broadband provider in question.

Compare broadband plans

Compare broadband plans is what we do so you’ve come to the right place. We compare broadband providers and a wide range of plans to ensure you get a great deal. We compare wireless broadband plans too. As a broadband comparison site we aim to provide all of the information in an easy to use format so you can quickly and simply find the most suitable deal for your requirements at the cheapest price.

Compare mobile broadband

We also compare mobile broadband, our mobile broadband comparison service is quick and easy to use so you can simply find the right offer for your needs. We aim to give you the information you need so that you can compare deals on a like for like basis and make an informed choice.

Best broadband deals

The best broadband deals for one person will not always be the best broadband plan for another. For example an online gamer is more likely to need a high end fast broadband service with high speeds and unlimited downloads, an occasional user would be fine with a cheap broadband option and business users or students who want to get online in different places may find mobile broadband the best option for them. Equally the best mobile broadband options will differ from one person to another so make sure you take into account who you will use your connection before committing to a contract.

Cheap broadband

Cheap broadband plans can be great for light or occasional users but make sure you are not sacrificing the features you need by opting for the cheapest broadband plan available as this can be a false economy. Make sure the internet provider you choose has good coverage in you area and has sufficient speeds and download limits for your type of internet use. It’s also worth considering customer service which varies between Australian internet providers from the good to the bad when looking for a cheap broadband plan.

Broadband speed test

Unsure of your broadband speed? Our internet speed test and run a broadband speed check to see how fast your connection is. You can visit our free broadband speed test to see how your provider stacks up against the competition.  Our broadband speed checker  measure upload and download speed for your internet connection. If you are unhappy with you current provider you can run might want to run broadband speed test and consider switching to an alternative internet provider if you are unhappy with your internet speed. You can visit our internet speed test here.

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Govt open to Telstra Bill changes

The government has indicated for the first time that it is “open to amendments” on the Telstra separation Bill due for debate this Thursday.

“The government will always have an open mind to amendments that it believes will improve the Bill,” Communications Minister Stephen Conroy’s Office wrote in a statement on Friday evening.

The Telecommunications Legislation Amendment (Competition and Consumer Safeguards) Bill 2009 has offered Telstra a choice to voluntarily opt for structural separation or face an imposed functional separation coupled with tough sanctions, including a ban on acquiring spectrum for 4G wireless services.

The government is “determined to debate and pass the Bill early this year,” Conroy’s office wrote.

The government hoped to reintroduce the Bill to the Senate this Wednesday; however, it has been pushed back to Thursday due to various health Bills, leaving little chance for it to be passed until Senate resumes on 9 March.

Independents as late as last week were yet to hear from Conroy regarding their concerns over the Bill, with Greens’ Senator Scott Ludlam questioning what exactly would be in it. Ludlam, Independent Senator Nick Xenophon and Family First Senator Steve Fielding have all indicated they want to see amendments made to the Bill.

The week’s break to 9 March could be seen as giving NBN Co and Telstra a short window to complete negotiations regarding the company’s structural separation, though the company’s CEO David Thodey said two weeks ago that decision would be “months away”. Thodey has also said that any deal with NBN Co must be approved by shareholders.

David Forman, executive director of the Competitive Carriers’ Coalition (CCC), said Thodey’s requirement to get shareholder approval will not stop the Bill proceeding.

“Public policy is not hostage to David Thodey’s opinions on what is agreeable to shareholders. That’s David Thodey’s problem,” Forman told ZDNet.com.au.

The CCC, which represents several carriers’ interests, had argued its case to crossbenchers, Forman said.

“We have had very constructive conversations with crossbench senators on all aspects of the Bill. I’m not sure whether that will translate into amendments, but I have very good reason to believe that these are taken seriously and confident that they will be discussing those changes with the government,” said Forman.

Broadly speaking, CCC has argued for an open process to determine whether Telstra’s proposed form of structural separation to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is adequate — if it proposes one prior to the government passing the Bill. It also wants to ensure that Telstra cannot use contract law to overcome pricing determinations made by the ACCC.

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There are so a lot of different models and kinds of phone systems available that making a choice is not an easy thing. Phone systems are available in market specially SUMSUNG, PANASONIC, AVAYA, , NEC, Toshiba, NORTELetc. There are generally four major types of business phone systems in the marketplace. This includes key systems, Private Branch Exchange systems, KSU-less phones and Voice-Over-Internet Protocol.

With their unique features Phone systems becomes the boon for small business and office. They reduce costs of phone systems make it easier to handle calls, and are simple to install. With falling prices, business phone systems have come within reach of most small businesses very easily.

Most of the small businesses in AUSTRALIA have been using a normal single line, four line, and eight line phone systems for their maximum reach. Obviously, a large market exists for state-of-art small business phone systems with five to twenty lines. These telephone systems are vital communication tools that business with suppliers, investors, customers and others to fulfill their business needs.

The key is to assessment of your phone system requirements, after doing so; you now decide what telephone is most appropriate for your business. Phone systems are installed at small- or home-based business in a matter of hours.

FOR MORE INFO ABOUT TELEPHONE SYSTEM, DATA CABLING,  ELETECTRICAL INSTALLATION, SECURITY AND CCTV INSTALLATION, IT SERVICES AND CBUS INSTALLATIONS VISIT.

WWW.FIXTEL.COM OR WWW.FIXTEL.COM.AU

Five Questions to Help You Decide Which Telephone System Is Best for Your Business

There are various options in the market nowadays when it comes to business telephone systems; therefore it can be a challenge to decide which telephone system is best for your organization.

In this article we have put together five useful questions that every businessperson should ask him/herself before adopting a new business telephone system.

1. Is it easy to install and configure?

If you are running a small to medium size business, chances are that you have an outsourced Network Manager to manage your IT needs, and every hour he/she spends at your business is a paid hour. With this in mind, make sure the business telephone system you select is easy to install and configure. If you go for a complicated proprietary phone system or software-based IP PBX running on a difficult platform such as Linux, you run the risk of needing to hire a specialized installer trained on that particular phone system. Windows-based business telephone systems, for example, are so simple to install and configure that you don’t require specialized skills to make them work.

2. Is it easy to manage?

Having a specialized telephone manager to look after the day-to-day needs of your business telephone system just because it is difficult to use can affect your business’ bottom line. There are IP PBX’s out there that use a web-based interface and that can be managed very easily by your Network Manager – even remotely!

3. Is it scalable?

You certainly want your telephone system to grow with your business, and most proprietary systems are very easy to outgrow, needing hefty investments in hardware to add phone lines and extensions. A business telephone system that is software-based can easily handle a large number of extensions and phone lines. This is something which is definitely worth taking into consideration when looking into your present and future telephony needs.

4. Does it have all the features I need?

Most proprietary systems come with a fixed set of features and expanding on them can be very expensive. If your business requires a rich feature set such as auto attendant, voice mail, call queuing, and unified messaging, then you might want to look into a VoIP telephone system. Since VoIP business telephone systems are software-based, their features are easy to program and add-on to the software.

5. Does it make me save money?

At the end of the day, you want to enhance your business’ profit margins by saving costs. A software-based business telephone system allows you to save costs by getting rid of costly phone wiring, leveraging the internet for telephone calls and using SIP standard equipment that is much cheaper than proprietary phones. A VoIP telephone system also allows your staff to work remotely, to hot-desk and get rid of phone-tag, hence increasing their productivity and mobility. If you adopt a telephone system that gives you these advantages, then your business is most likely to see immediate profit-boosting benefits.

FOR MORE INQUIRY CONTACT :

INFO@FIXTEL.COM OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE WWW.FIXTEL.COM

These days, demand requires a higher standard of phone system. The problem is that a wired phone system can get to be way too complicated. Have you ever tried to identify which phone is running from which line or where the signal is coming from in the first place? That takes a lot of work, and no doubt the technicians of old remember crawling through ducts trying figure out where a line was broken.

Voice over IP is a great new way of communicating, and as such many businesses and individuals have taken to using it. The biggest difference is that VoIP works through an internet connection or even a cable connection. Essentially it rids you of the need to pay for both a phone line and your phone package.

FIXTEL offers one of the widest ranges of IP based phones for businesses, and they have packages for everyone. From the small business to the worldwide enterprise, there is a package and a plan that will fit your needs. No matter which package you need though, there are a number of features that you will be able to get.

For instance, you will always have the ability to hold a business meeting whether you are on or off the premises. Mobility is in high demand, and as such it is the number one service that most suppliers, including Nortel are going to provide.

FIXTEL even offers video conferencing, which is something that was not quite as efficient when using POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service). Luckily when you are using VoIP, there are more possibilities than ever before. One of the best parts is the ability to reach your people whenever you need to.

The ability to route your office phone to your mobile phone will ensure that you are never out of touch with the home office. Once again, it\’s all about mobility. You can plainly see that there are many new possibilities with phones these days. At one time they were only used for calls in and out of the office, but these days they are relied on far more. They have become complex, and quite indispensable. The only thing that can stop you is the price.

The expense is probably worth it to most businesses, even if it could be in the fifty thousand pound range. You will find that nearly any investment you make for this system will be almost entirely returned before you know it. FIXTEL website will have more information regarding their various packages, so make sure you check it out today. Get rid of that old telephone system you\’ve been relying on and enjoy a greater level of communication.

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES OFFERED:

• PHONE SYSTEM
• VOICE & DATA CABLING
• ELECTRICAL CABLING
• SECURITY SYSTEM INSTALLATIONS
• SATELLITE INSTALLATIONS AND CONSULTANCY
• IT SERVICES
• FIBRE OPTICS INSTALLATIONS

Website: www.fixtel.com or call us 1300-85-95-20 email info@fixtel.com

Fiber optics communication systems have certainly developed the telecommunications industry and because of its advantages over electrical transmission, copper wire communications in core networks have been replaced by optical fibers. How it works is fiber optics are long, thin strands of pure thin glass that are arranged in bundles referred to as optical cables that are used to transmit light signals over long distances. Consisting of three layers, the inner core will carry the light from the sender to the receiver, while the next level of layer reflects the light back on to the core to make sure none is lost and finally an outer layer will protect the light signal from environment.

In general fiber optics is recommended for systems that require higher bandwidth across longer distances because it accommodates smoother than electrical cabling. With minimum number of amplifiers these fiber optics calbles can carry the amount of data carried in many electrical wires. When fiber cables run alongside each other for long distances, they don’t experience crosstalk unlike some types of electrical transmission lines. Several miles of optical cable could be cheaper than copper wire saving your provider and you money. Fiber optics is thinner which is why unlike electrical signals in copper wires; light signals from one fiber do not interfere with those of other fibers in the same cable which results in clearer reception. The loss of signal is also less in fiber optics than in electrical copper wires which is why lower-power transmitters can be used instead of the high-voltage electrical transmitters.

Since its suitability to be used in digital signals, optic fiber are mostly used in the telecommunication aspects. Due to the flexibility of fiber optics usages today it is often seen in almost any industry.

FOR FIBRE OPTIC AND UNDERGROUND CABLING INSTALLATION:

COTACT OUR EXPERT! : FIXTEL

website: www.fixtel.com.au

email: info@fixtel.com.au

FIXTEL

Our areas of expertise include:

• Multi-location VOIP networking, IP telephony, and IP home works
• Converged voice and data solutions
• Call centers / CRM
• Wireless solutions
• Unified Communication and Unified Message
• MPLS, T3, T1, etc carrier services through multiple partners of FIXTEL
• Nationwide installation and support services
• Complete “in-house” direct FIXTEL support and maintenance options

FIXTEL PTY. LTD. has over 35 years experience with installations and maintenance of a wide range of Telephone Systems and Data products.AVAYA, Siemens, Commanders, NEC, Panasonic, Samsung and Alcatel Telephone Systems to name a few..  Our goal to implement new solutions with minimal downtime and disruption to our customer’s businesses becomes a reality by our pre-implementation processes, attention to detail, and exceptional first day of business training and support.  Our high customer retention and progressive growth are results of our continued commitment to providing and implementing cutting edge solutions and by directly supporting customers for the long term.

We sell,

We can supply a wide range of services and products, including Headsets, Video Conferencing, Polycom Sound Stations, PA Systems, Long Range Cordless Phones, New and Used Phone handsets.

Our vast range of services include Voice, Data, Electrical and Security Installations designed to save you time and money whether you are moving office, expanding or starting a complete new business.

We install and terminate all types of Fibre Optics including, Fault finding, Network Audits and Fusion Splicing

Avaya Communications & FixTel

Focusing on industry leading Avaya Communication solutions, FIXTEL, provides complete telecommunication solutions to meet up to your simple or complex business needs. We specialize in a full range of solutions including traditional, IP, and hybrid telephone systems as well as SIP solutions, unified messaging and fax solutions. In addition, our expertise allows multi-location and remote/home workers to operate more efficiently via VoIP/SIP.  Our goals are to provide the best in service and support as well as to anticipate the needs and challenges of our customers, which allows our solutions to result in the highest positive impact to your business.  Our team of professionals will help design, implement, and maintain the solution of choice that best meets your business needs. We offer a nationwide   in-house maintenance and support plans and fully managed support solutions.  We have achieved a 99% customer retention rate by providing expert support at quick response times that your business can depend on.  Avaya Communication has a presence in over 90% of FORTUNE 500® companies and continues to be the market leader in innovates voice and converged technologies.  FIXTEL  is in the top 2% of Avaya Partners in Australia and has certified professionals on staff with the highest level of Avaya technical certification available. 

Contact sales@fixtel.com.au to review your current infrastructure.

To Find Local Sales Office in your Area:

Call Us : 1300 85 95 20

WEBSITE : www.fixtel.com.au