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ACCAN has recently submitted to the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s call for comments on their draft caption target reduction orders.

ACCAN has recommended that the ACMA do not grant the exemptions for the two channels arguing that they undermine the obligation for subscription broadcasters to provide year-on-year increased quotas for captions.

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ACCAN supported the ACMA proposal to remake the Radio Communication Labelling Determination (2013) in a recent submission. The labelling of high-power radiocommunications transmitters operating under transmitter licenses at communal sites enables  both industry and the ACMA with the necessary information to ensure that these transmitters continue to operate as intended. 

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ACCAN recently submitted our comments on the Variation to the NBN Co Special Access Undertaking (SAU) Draft Decision consultation.

The SAU sets out the regulatory framework for determining NBN Co’s service offerings, revenue, expenditures and service standards. The variation sets out a framework for extensive engagement with Consumer Advocacy Groups, such as ACCAN to inform the prioritisation of expenditure to align with consumer expectations. While the proposed variation to the SAU represents a material step forward, there is no provision to resource the extensive engagement NBN Co is proposing to undertake, accordingly we consider further refinements are needed.

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Period: 1 December 2022 – 28 February 2023

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ACCAN recently submitted to the Mobile Network Hardening Program Round 2 – Draft Grant Opportunity Guidelines. In our submission we recommended that the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts should:

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ACCAN recently submitted on the ACMA’s 2023-2028 draft five-year spectrum outlook (the FYSO). The ACMA consults annually on spectrum management priorities for the coming year.

ACCAN’s submission expressed our support for the FYSO’s goals including to:

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ACCAN recently submitted to Communications Alliance’s consultation on C570:2009 Mobile Number Portability.

ACCAN supports measures to make it easier for consumers to switch between service providers while keeping their phone number. ACCAN considers the current code to be meeting its intended objectives: providing guidance for industry and providing consumer protection. Given the success of the code to date, we suggest a review of the performance levels outlined in the Code in the future as technology allows.

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ACCAN recently submitted to Communications Alliance’s consultation on C657:2015 Inbound Number Portability.

ACCAN considers the current code to be meeting its intended objectives: providing guidance for industry and providing consumer protection.

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ACCAN welcomes the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s (ACMA) report Financial hardship in the telco sector released today. The ACMA's findings align with ACCAN research conducted earlier this year which shows that cost of living pressures are having a significant impact, with some consumers continuing to struggle to pay their telco bills.

“Cost of living issues aren’t going away for the foreseeable future, so it’s particularly concerning that over 40% of the Australian adult population are unaware that they can contact their telco provider for help managing their bills.  This research shows that it is imperative that financial hardship policies are promoted by telcos and made easily accessible on their websites,” said ACCAN CEO, Andrew Williams.

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Person looking through billsAs the end of the financial year approaches, we can expect that prices for many goods and services will rise.  Telecommunications services will not be immune from this and we’re already seeing new pricing structures start to enter the market.

Every provider will most likely have a different process, making it hard to compare like for like.  For example, some are promising an increased data limit by way of compensation for the increased monthly charge, but this may not always provide any benefit.  

For many consumers, the promise of extra data is of little importance, as most Australians only use 11.8 GB of data each month. (ACCC December 2021).  Therefore, rather than simply accept the price rise, this is a perfect time to review your telecommunications needs and look for a plan that best suits.

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Mobile phone screen showing appsAustralia's telecommunications landscape is undergoing a significant change with the impending switch-off of 3G (or third generation) mobile technology services. In 2019, the country's major telecommunications companies, Telstra, Optus, and Vodafone, announced their plans to retire their 3G networks to make way for the faster and more efficient 4G and 5G services.

The switch-off, set to take place later this year and in the second half of 2024, will affect many Australian consumers and businesses. As can be seen below, the big networks are all planning different switch off dates.

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ACCAN recently made a submission to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2026 Census topic consultation. The submission received endorsement from the QUT Digital Media Research Centre (DRMC), the Australian Digital Inclusion Alliance (ADIA), the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision Making and Society (ADM+S), and the Centre for Inclusive Design (CfID). ACCAN’s submission recommended:

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