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The ACCAN Annual General Meeting was held in Sydney on Thursday, 21 September, 2017. At the meeting the following three candidates were elected to the Board:
- Deirdre O’Donnell
- Victoria Rubensohn
- Holly Raiche
Congratulations to returning director, Victoria, and a warm welcome back to Holly who re-joins the ACCAN Board after a short break. We also extend a warm welcome to Deidre who joins the ACCAN Board for the first time.
These three new Board members join the six continuing Directors below whose terms conclude at the 2018 and 2019 ACCAN AGM:
Read more: Results of ACCAN Board Election
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We’re pleased to announce the successful Grants for 2017-18. This year the projects look at a range of communications consumer issues including the growing spyware marketplace, how consumers can access their online data, the needs of those living in rural, regional and remote communities, and ways telecommunications providers can better engage with people with disability.
The ACCAN Grants Program funds projects which undertake research on telecommunications issues, represent consumers or create educational tools which empower consumers to derive the greatest benefit from telecommunications products and services.
Read more: Introducing the 2017-18 ACCAN Grants projects
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The Australian Communications Consumer Action network (ACCAN) has a strong membership base of disability organisations and individuals with disability. The most consistent feedback we get from these members relates to the lack of available information about telecommunications equipment and services for people with disability. The difficulty of accessing telecommunications for people with disability in Australia has long been recognised as a fundamental contributor to the disability digital divide.
While there is a growing number of new and emerging telecommunication products which can improve access and participation for people with disability, without information about these products and how to access them, people with disability will continue to be left out of our increasingly connected digital society.
Read more: ACCAN’S Disability Mystery Shopping report 2017
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Every quarter the ACCC releases a report on the services operating over the NBN wholesale network. The report provides some interesting insights into the NBN, here are some that we find useful.
Number of services
The report shows that over 2.5 million premises are connected to the NBN as at June 2017.
Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) is the primary technology used. The number of services over both Fibre to the Node (FTTN) and Hybrid Fibre-Coaxial (HFC) technologies are increasing at a fast rate. The graph below charts the number of services for each quarter by access technology.
Figure 1: Number of services by access technology1
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Getting remote communities connected can be difficult due to the tyranny of distance. Recently we’ve heard some great stories about retail service providers, infrastructure providers and other organisations that are helping to connect Indigenous consumers in some of the most remote parts of Australia. In this article we’ll look at some of the ways this is being achieved.
Satellite broadband provider, Activ8me, is working with the Australian Government to improve access to telecommunications services in remote Indigenous communities.
Read more: Connecting remote Indigenous communities
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Have you registered for the ACCANect Conference yet? There’s only two weeks left to get your ticket.
It’s being held at the Aerial UTS Function Centre in Sydney on Wednesday 20 September – Thursday 21 September, 2017.
Read more: The ACCANect Conference is fast approaching
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In June we were very excited to sign a new funding contract with the Department of Communications and the Arts. The new contract ensures that ACCAN will continue to represent consumers in the telecommunications industry for the next five years.
When the contract was signed, ACCAN CEO, Teresa Corbin said: “The recent ACCAN review highlighted the strong support for the work ACCAN does and many stakeholders reinforced the need for a united consumer voice in the telecommunications industry.
“A big thank you must go to ACCAN’s supporters including members, volunteers and industry representatives for their ongoing commitment to ensuring we remain a relevant and effective organisation.”
Read more: Five years of ACCAN consumer wins
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In the past five years, a total of $1,256,055.86 has been awarded to universities, research organisations, community groups and not for profit organisations to help consumers navigate the telecommunications and technology landscape.
The ACCAN Grants Scheme has funded 31 different projects since 2012, examining emerging technologies like 3D printing, through to more serious consumer issues, such as technology facilitated stalking and abuse.
Read more: In the field – ACCAN Grants Scheme 2012-17
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Have you noticed how more and more everyday items are now connected to the internet?
While we used to have ordinary watches that told us the time and the date, we now have smartwatches that track our fitness, alert us about emails and more.
Read more: Explore the connected world at ACCANect 2017
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With the Federal Election campaign now over, ACCAN congratulates Senator the Hon Mitch Fifield and Senator the Hon Fiona Nash who continue in their roles as Minister for Communications and Minister for Regional Communications respectively for the Turnbull Government. The Federal Member for Greenway, the Hon Michelle Rowland MP and the Federal Member for Throsby – Stephen Jones take up the roles of Shadow Minister for Communications and Shadow Minister for Regional Communications respectively.
We are pleased that during their campaigns both the Coalition and Labor made announcements of an additional $60 million in funding for a third round of the Mobile Black Spots Programme. This is vital as mobile coverage and competition in rural areas continues to be is a key issue for many consumers.
In the lead up to the election, ACCAN called for the parties to focus on five communications consumer priorities and we asked them a series of questions based on these priorities. We covered announcements from the Coalition, Labor and the Australian Greens on NBN policy, digital literacy and accessibility. While we didn’t receive specific answers to our questions, some of these were answered by the announcements from the parties during the campaign.
Read more: ACCAN Federal Election wrap up
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In the lead up to the 2016 Federal Election, the Coalition, Labor Party and Australian Greens have made announcements regarding various communications policies. We’ve summarised these below, for your information.
As we previously reported, both Labor and the Coalition have committed $60 million funding for another round of the Mobile Black Spot Programme.
Read more: Update on Election policies
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Your place in the connected world
ACCANect 2017
20-21 September, Sydney
Digital technology has transformed consumer experiences around the world. Everything will be connected: devices, houses, transport, food production, health and government services. The “always connected” world raises big questions.
Join us at ACCANect 2017 and help shape the future for connected consumers.
Read more: ACCAN conference announcement
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