The Australian tablet market contracted 28% in 1H14 as consumers waited longer to upgrade, Telsyte estimates, and the impending launch of the iPhone 6 could further impact demand. [ + ]

Debate over Microsoft's mixed record of successes and slow innovation during the last decade has incited conjecture as to its long-term durability. [ + ]

Nextgen Group has won a five-year deal to upgrade the Bureau of Meteorology's high-speed data network to a blazingly fast 200 Gbps. [ + ]

Australian credit-reporting company Veda has awarded IBM a five-year outsourcing contract in anticipation of the new computing power required to respond to new industry regulations. [ + ]

The NSW Government has launched the second stage of its purpose-built Silverwater data centre, and agencies from all departments have commenced migration to the new facility. [ + ]

Networking giant Cisco will cut up to 6000 jobs - 8% of its entire staff - as part of a "limited" global restructure in the 2015 financial year, the company announced last week. [ + ]

Indian e-learning provider Dexler Information Solutions has opened a new Australian headquarters in Melbourne, following its acquisition of Online Learning Australia earlier this year. [ + ]

Research conducted for the Australian Communications and Media Authority shows a huge jump in regional and rural mobile internet use since 2009. [ + ]

A new system developed by MIT researchers could reduce data-transmission delays across server farms by 99.6%. [ + ]

SAP and NICTA's Digital Careers program will invest $1.4m to expand the YICTE student competition to more states and age groups as they seek to seed the next generation of ICT talent. [ + ]

Telstra has announced the first investment from its new Global Applications and Platforms business - the $290m purchase of nearly all of streaming video and analytics company Ooyala. [ + ]

All it takes is a little bit of short-sightedness, bad luck and poor timing to cook up disaster. So how many network threats and weaknesses would you find in a security audit? [ + ]

Vocus Communications has arranged to buy ASG Group's Bentley Data Centre for $11.9m and become the IT vendor's preferred communications service provider. [ + ]

Telco industry body Communications Alliance will consult with the government on its planned data retention policy and seek to ensure any reforms protect the interests of ISPs and the public. [ + ]

A Russian gang has collected a cache of 1.2 billion unique credentials - pairs of emails and passwords - according to information security firm Hold Security. [ + ]