28 November 2006

The net neutrality debate has begun in Australia, with BigPond
hinting that it will start prioritising internet traffic according
to the type and source of the data.

But Internode CEO Simon Hackett has blasted BigPond, saying it
has "lost the plot" - misunderstood the Australian market or
miscalculated its business model.

Telstra BigPond group managing director Justin Milne last week
forecast a change in the structure of the internet in a speech to
the Media and Broadcasting Congress in Sydney - in future, telcos
would prioritise network traffic to guarantee service standards,
which could leave internet-based telcos such as Skype "without a
business model".