Simon Walter Hackett is an Australian technology entrepreneur. He is the co-founder (with Robyn Taylor) of Internode Pty Ltd, an Australian national broadband services company. He is a 1986 graduate of the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

, holding a bachelor's degree in Applied Mathematics and Computer Science. Together with John Romkey, Hackett became the first to connect a commercial domestic appliance (a Sunbeam Deluxe Automatic Radiant Control Toaster) to the internet in 1990. Internode Pty Ltd was founded in May 1991. In 1997 Hackett founded a subsidiary calle
Agile Communications
that was a licensed national telecommunications carrier and was the first South Australian based company to gain this license. The Internode company group was sold to iiNet Limited (ASX:IIN) in a AUS$105m transaction announced in December 2011 and completed on 31 January 2012. Hackett departed the executive team at Internode to join the board of iiNet in August 2012. On 12 November 2013 it was announced that he had been appointed to the board of the

National Broadband Network The National Broadband Network (NBN) is an Australian national wholesale open-access data network. It includes wired and radio communication components rolled out and operated by NBN Co, a Government-owned corporation. Internet service provide ...

, and that he had resigned his position with iiNet. He departed the board of the

in April 2016 and was replaced by Michael Malone. Other boards Hackett has served upon are:

Adelaide Fringe Festival The Adelaide Fringe, formerly Adelaide Fringe Festival, is the world's second-largest annual arts festival (after the Edinburgh Festival Fringe), held in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Between mid-February and mid-March each year, i ...

, m.Net Corporation., and the

Australian Network for Art and Technology The Australian Network for Art and Technology (ANAT), was founded by the Australian Experimental Art Foundation (then the Experimental Art Foundation) in 1988. ANAT is a nonprofit organization that provides tools to assist Australian artists, part ...

. Hackett co-founded and is a former director of The Internet Society of Australia, and was the founding president of the South Australian Internet Association (which has since been disbanded). He is a fellow of the

Australian Computer Society The Australian Computer Society (ACS) is an association for information and communications technology professionals with over 48,000 members Australia-wide. According to its Constitution, its objectives are "to advance professional excellence ...

. While he was Managing Director of Internode, he was frequently active in the Internode forum on

Whirlpool A whirlpool is a body of rotating water produced by opposing currents or a current running into an obstacle. Small whirlpools form when a bath or a sink is draining. More powerful ones formed in seas or oceans may be called maelstroms ( ). ''Vo ...

, and is a vocal commentator on Australian telecommunications competition issues and Government policies. Hackett is the largest investor in ASX-listed compan
Redflow Limited
has served on its board (including as Chairman) and also spent a period as the company CEO before hiring others into both of those roles. Hackett stepped down from the Redflow board effective at the 2018 AGM, while remaining involved in a technical role as Systems Integration Architect. Hackett is an advocate for electric vehicles. He imported the first Tesla Roadster into Australia and documented the process of driving it 501 km on a single charge during the Global Green Challenge in Australia in 2009. This was reported to be a new world range record for a production electric car at the time. He subsequently appeared in testimonial for Tesla.

References

External links

Hackett's website

Hackett profile at Internode
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hackett, Simon Australian company founders Businesspeople in computing Living people Businesspeople from Adelaide Technology company founders NBN Co people Year of birth missing (living people)