about iinet - corporate timeline
1993
iiNet commences business.
After completing their degrees, University friends, Michael Malone and Michael O'Reilly, established iiNet in the garage of Michael Malone's family home.
iiNet became the first organisation in WA to offer dialup Internet access to the public. The initial modems are a combination of 2,400 and 14,400 bps and the price is $25/month flat rate.
Email, file transfers and online chatting are text-based, making the connection speeds quite acceptable. The web is yet to come.
1994
Netscape's release sees Internet use skyrocket.
Netscape is the first Internet browser commonly available.
The number of Internet users in Australia starts to explode, as does the number of ISPs. Many of these early ISPs are no longer in business, having been acquired, merged with other companies, or closed their doors due to the fast-paced, competitive marketplace.
iiNet is one of only five or six ISPs in WA at this time, and the company launched its first "always on" product, the Network Affiliate.
1995
iiNet hires its first paid employee.
Justin Lowe is iiNet's first paid employee. His office is a bedroom at Michael Malone's house that he shares with Michael, Deanne Godfrey, a cat and a pool table. Michael O'Reilly works in a storeroom that doubles as iiNet's server room.
Mid year, Michael Malone leaves to start iiNet South Australia (SA) in Adelaide, while iiNet WA moves to premises at 105 St Georges Terrace in the Perth CBD. This move is primarily driven by a lack of phone lines in the suburbs to service the rapidly growing customer base.
iiNet introduced a $400 pa unlimited download, premium dialup account (which is now known as the Explorer account). This is the year that the "long-established," online dialup systems - Compuserve, America Online and Prodigy - begin to provide Internet access in Australia. On the local front, iiNet joins with other interested parties to form the WA Internet Association.
1996
iiNet expands
iiNet expands into regional WA, with the first regional service opened in Bunbury. iiNet's homepage is rated best in WA by The West Australian newspaper.
The company outgrew its premises and moved into QV1 at 250 St Georges Tce, Perth in December, with Charlie Stephens hired as the company's first sales person.
iiNet SA is now run in partnership with two local contacts, and flat rate accounts are launched in the SA market, which quickly prove to be popular.
Users in almost 150 countries around the world are now connected to the Internet. The number of computer hosts approaches 10 million. iiNet acquired one of its largest competitors, Online Information Systems, as well as Access Communications.
1997
iiNet grows again and introduces digital modems
Within 10 months, iiNet SA becomes the third largest dialup ISP in South Australia and the operation is sold at a profit.
By now, iiNet in WA has introduced its first digital modems. Not only are these smaller, with 60 digital modems fitting into the space occupied by 16 of the superseded analogue modems, but they are also faster; digital modems run at a rate of 56kbps as opposed to the 33.6kbps of analogue modems.
This provides a significant competitive advantage to the company, as it is one of the first in Western Australia to adopt such technology.
A sophisticated support phone call queuing system is implemented allowing the support team to keep up with the increasing number of clients.
The first Perth radio live on the Internet is broadcast by iiNet after Triple M Perth start their RealAudio service.
1998
iiNet increases its market position.
iiNet becomes the largest of the Tier 2 ISPs in Australia, second only to the Tier 1 operators, OzEmail and Telstra Big Pond. iiNet is now one of 12 ISPs with client bases between 10,000 and 20,000. An 8 mbps satellite link direct to the US is deployed, offering a massive improvement in service to many of iiNet's clients.
Customer support is extended from 6:00 am to midnight, seven days a week. A new phone system and phone number are introduced to cater for the huge demand for phone support services.
Following the success of the Online Information Systems acquisition in December 1996, iiNet acquires 14 micro ISPs in 1998. Many of these companies were "virtual ISPs", who were actually reselling iiNet's services under their own brand name.
Internet users judge a world championship ice-skating competition, marking the first time a television sport show's outcome is determined by its viewers.
1999
iiNet acquires Wantree and lists on the ASX.
iiNet Limited becomes a public company and lists on the Australian Stock Exchange. The Prospectus closes early due to huge demand for the shares. As part of the listing process, iiNet sets its sights on 50,000 customers by the middle of 2000, a seemingly impossible target with less than 20,000 in July 1999.
iiNet merges with Wantree, the second largest ISP in WA, directly following the listing and rapidly acquires Omen Internet, Networx, Nettrek and Infinite Data in Perth, as well as regional service providers MNS and Comtech.
The company starts 24/7 customer support, as well as opening new services in Gingin, Margaret River and Toodyay. It also introduces two convenient invoice payment methods: BPay, and "Pay it at Post" where bills can be paid at any Post Office.
iiNet launched its first motion picture advertisement across Perth, the now infamous "boy scout and granny" ad, which later wins an Art Design award for Best Cinematography. Worldwide, the technologies of the year are: E-Trade, Online Banking and mp3.
2000
iiNet introduces Broadband
iiNet launched various broadband services: Cable Internet Access, Cityspan Wireless Internet Access and ADSL Internet Access. The company announced its first-half profit for 1999-2000 at $0.91million and decided to pay the GST for all its current dialup, ISDN and cable Internet products, without on-charging it to users.
The Australian Consumers Association again ranks iiNet number one in the country for customer service. This year the size of the WWW is estimated by NEC-RI and Inktomi to surpass 1 billion indexable pages.
2001
Chime and Jiva launched
iiNet Limited launched its wholly-owned telecommunications carrier, Chime Communications, and wholly-owned application hosting business, Jiva Online. Chime's focus is to provide wholesale telephony and data services to corporate clients and ISPs, while Jiva provides web designers and ISPs with solutions that enable the automated deployment of applications for their clients.
iiNet applied for its first patent for the caching of peer-to-peer transfers, in order to reduce the cost of delivering shared files (particularly audio files) between users.
The Company consolidates its four premises around the Perth metro area into a single location at the Durack Centre, 263 Adelaide Terrace, Perth.
Telstra Interconnect Settlement
Telstra and Chime Communications announced they have settled their long running dispute over PSTN Terminating Access for data calls.
2002
bliink broadband
iiNet offered flat rate Broadband Internet Access with the new bliink product range, throughout WA, and released it soon after in NSW and Victoria.
iiNet offers its range of Broadband Internet services to W.A. country customers at the same rates charged in the metropolitan area.
ISO 9001
iiNet achieves ISO9001 and becomes a fully accredited, quality endorsed company. iiNet is committed to providing excellent Internet products and access and customer service in Australia.
2003
Acquisition machine
iiNet expanded by over 200,000 subscribers by acquiring the following ISPs: Country Netlink, Origin Internet, RuralNet, TasAccess, WebOne, Octa4 and ihug.
With the new ihug merger, iiNet added 130,000 customers throughout Eastern Australia and New Zealand. iiNet retained ihug offices in Sydney and Auckland.
iiNet Share Prices Boom
iiNet share prices reach an all-time high of $3.40 in November.
The Network Operations Centre is created to monitor the state of the network 24/7.
The NOC allows focused attention on the health of the network, which means the company can provide early information to customers about network faults.
2004
One Step Ahead
In line with aggressive pricing of entry-level products in the marketplace iiNet launched the $24.95 entry-level broadband account wiink, when bundled with iiPhone service.
The award-winning dialup Explorer account is slashed to $19.95 with iiPhone bundle.
The iiNet Group Continues to Grow
iiNet adds 35,000 customers with the February acquisition of Sydney-based FlowADSL and Froggy dialup. iiNet also acquired Wave in New Zealand. In October, iiNet acquired the Internet Services component of Virtual Communities, headquartered in Melbourne, pushing the total customer number to over 400,000.
New Initiatives
iiNet rolls out a National Dialup Number for all customers, regardless of location in Australia. In NZ ihug launched its first wireless broadband service, called Connect, and the bliink broadband product which both garnered significant media interest.
Infrastructure Rollout Begins
iiNet begins deployment out its own infrastructure called DSLAMs. By 2005 iiNet expects over half of its customers will be connected to its own network.
Brand New Day
iiNet rebrands. "ii" is launched to keep pace with an increasingly competitive marketplace, and to allow for a broader product direction.
2005
Next Generation Broadband
iibroadband2, the next generation of broadband, is launched on February 1. iibroadband2 starts where other providers' plans finish - at 1500 kbps. Additionally, customers on iiNet's DSLAM infrastructure can receive super fast speeds of up to 8000 kbps. iiNet is the first ISP in Australia to offer up to 8000 kbps to customers.
Full Phone Service
iiNet unveils iiphone, its new full home phone service on February 1, enabling customers to bundle their Internet and phone services for very competitive prices and all on one invoice. iiphone includes line rental, local calls, calls to mobiles, national and international calls. By offering a full phone service with leading Internet products, iiNet is a serious competitor to the nation's largest telecommunications companies.
Sale of satellite business
iiNet sells its satellite business -- which it operated under the ihug name -- to Bordernet, an Australian-based satellite specialist. iiNet and ihug want to focus on their core competencies of delivering innovative dialup, broadband and phone service, while customers are in expert hands with Bordernet.
iiNet acquires OzEmail
iiNet completed the acquisition of the Internet service business of OzEmail on February 28, making iiNet the third largest ISP in Australia and reclaiming its position as second largest provider of broadband services. iiNet now has a more than 620,000 customers nationwide, and an increased customer base in the Eastern states of Australia allows iiNet to accelerate its DSLAM deployment in those regions.
12000kbps speeds arrive
On June 10, iiNet launched ADSL2 with speeds of up to 12000kbps, allowing for effective transmission of voice, video and data over the Internet, commonly known as Triple Play. Customers on an iiNet DSLAM receive the super fast speed at no extra cost, however the actual maximum speed obtained depends on factors such as distance from the exchange, and line and hardware quality.
New business plans unveiled
Also on June 10, iiNet unveiled its new business plans, modelled on the popular iibroadband2 range, and incorporating customer feedback. The key addition is the iibusiness pack, which can be added to a business plan to provide all the necessary features a growing business needs, including priority support.
VoIP is launched
iiNet is the first Australian company to provide a large-scale, premium-grade Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service on August 29. The VoIP offering enables customers to save money by making and receiving calls via the Internet instead of over the traditional copper telephone network. Bundled with iibroadband2 and iiphone, the new VoIP service -- called iinetphone -- provides customers with an additional phone number for premium-grade Internet-based calls at substantially lower rates and with no monthly rental fee.
ADSL2+ speeds
On December 15, iiNet flipped the switch to provide ADSL2+ speeds of up to 24000 kbps. iiNet is the first ISP to offer the super fast broadband speeds on a national scale in Australia. iiNet and OzEmail bundled customers who are connected to an exchange that has an iiNet DSLAM installed can upgrade to the ADSL2+ speed free of charge by using the speed optimizer found in their account management system, Toolbox. The actual speed a customer receives depends on their distance from the exchange, quality of their line and type of hardware being used.
2006
iiNet stumbles after major price changes by Telstra
A difficult start for the company in 2006. From January 1st, new pricing is implemented for certain wholesale products by Telstra. This is coupled with a heavy call load following the integration of OzEmail in November, affecting call centre queue times. The iiNet share price falls significantly over a few short months. After years of rapid growth by acquisition, iiNet takes a time out to focus exclusively on improving service levels and product profitability.
Virtual Contact Centre (VCC) in place
iiNet faces its critics and finishes the implementation of world-class contact centre technology, establishing a single virtual contact centre (VCC) spread across three centres in Perth, Sydney and Auckland. The VCC system allows more sophisticated reporting techniques and control over the entire customer service experience. By April, the investment has produced major improvements. In July, iiNet wins the ATA Call Centre of the Year, evidence of the rapid turn around.
ADSL2+ breaks the 100k limit
In June iiNet surpasses milestone of 100,000 customers on its ADSL2+ network, by far the largest ADSL2+ in Australia. The expansion of the broadband network is matched by rapid growth in VOIP subscribers. By March more than 30,000 customers are connected to the iiNet VOIP network - making iiNet the fastest growing VOIP provider in Australia.
PowerTel alliance struck
iiNet forms a strategic alliance with Telecommunications Carrier PowerTel to offer wholesale ADSL2+ to other ISPs. The alliance further strengthens iiNet's position in the market and aids in the company's continuing network expansion.
WA Contact Centre of the Year
In July iiNet wins the award for Contact Centre of the Year for its Virtual Contact Centre. The ATA Awards are recognised within the contact centre industry as being the pre-eminent awards, recognising achievement and excellence of the highest level. The company also wins Telecommunications Project of the Year for its VoIP product, and the Service Providers Association (SPAN) award for Excellence in Competition and
Growth for its ADSL2 product range.
Updated broadband plans launched
August sees iiNet launch a wide ranging update to its residential and business broadband plans, improving features particularly for those on the iiNet ADSL2+ network including an increased entry level speed of 3000kbps, twice that offered by the industry incumbent.
NZ business ihug sold
iiNet sells off New Zealand arm ihug to Vodafone in late 2006 at an attractive price to enable it to focus on Australian operations. Part of the proceeds from the $36 million sale goes towards further expansion of iiNet's ADSL2+ network.
ADSL2+ network continues to grow
Nearly 268 exchanges are supplying ADSL2+ broadband by the year's end, servicing over 124,000 "on-net" customers. Additional infrastructure upgrades, including dark fibre, are brought online to further decrease broadband costs for iiNet members.
