Australia'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.

• Telstra June 2024
• TPG December 2023
• Optus September 2024
• Vodafone August 2024

Read more: 3G network to close

Australia’s peak communications consumer advocacy group, the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN), has today announced 7 projects that it will fund through the 2023 Round of its Independent Grants Program.

The ACCAN Independent Grants Program funds consumer-focused projects to undertake research, represent consumers, and create educational tools which empower consumers to make decisions in their own interests.

The operation of ACCAN’s Independent Grant Program is made possible by funding provided by the Commonwealth of Australia under section 593 of the Telecommunications Act 1997.

Read more: ACCAN awards seven new communications consumer grants

Read more: Ash Fowler

Delegate resources from Optus

ACCAN provided a submission in January 2024 in response to a request from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to comment on NBN Co’s proposed Cost Allocation Manual (CAM).

The CAM sets out NBN Co’s proposed framework for the allocation of costs between ‘core’ monopoly services and competitive non-monopoly services. The attribution and allocation of costs has a profound effect on the wholesale prices ultimately faced by residential and small business consumers of monopoly core services.

Read more: NBN Co proposed Cost Allocation Manual

University of Sydney researcher, Dr Justine Humphry, surveyed and interviewed a number of Australians experiencing homelessness as well as employees of homelessness service providers. This resulted in a comprehensive report into the internet and mobile phone usage habits and experiences of this group of Australians.

The full report, including further information, can be found on the ACCAN Grants Scheme webpage.

The Universal Service Obligation (USO) is a vital consumer protection in Australia. The USO ensures a standard telephone service (generally fixed line voice services) and pay phones are accessible to all people in Australia. It was formally introduced in 1991, but it has seen a number of changes over the years.

Read more: Rethinking the USO

Sky Muster will also be used to deliver services in partnership with educational, community and healthcare service providers.

For example, educational services will be delivered in partnership with State and Territory Departments of Education. The process for connecting will differ depending on the body delivering the service.

My child receives distance education, what service will they receive and when?

Premises with geographically isolated children who receive distance education and are in Sky Muster designated areas, may be eligible to receive a second service to their premises which offers an additional 50GB per month per student (up to 150GB for 3 students - special arrangements may be made for sites with more than 3 students).

Your RSP will be able to verify the process required to place an application. Arrangements are on a state and territory basis.

There are currently four providers offering education services over Sky Muster. You can choose between two speed tiers (12/1Mbps and 25/5Mbps) and port options (all children's education through the same port or different ports).

Activ8me

ANT Communications

Harbour ISP

Sky Mesh

Is this available for other education services, such as university?

No, educational services will only be available to distance education school children.

The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) is Australia’s peak communications consumer organisation representing individuals, small businesses and not-for-profit groups as consumers of communications products and services. ACCAN focuses on goods and services encompassed by the converged areas of telecommunications, broadcasting, the internet and online services, including both current and emerging technologies.

We aim to empower consumers to make good choices about products and services. As a peak body, ACCAN will represent the views of its broad and diverse membership base to policy makers, government and industry to get a better outcome for all communications consumers. Member groups include community legal centres, disability advocates, indigenous organisations, financial counsellors, regional organisations, farmers’ federations, parents groups, seniors organisations and other individual members.

The operation of ACCAN is made possible by funding provided by the Commonwealth of Australia under section 593 of the Telecommunications Act 1997. This funding is recovered from charges on telecommunications carriers.

ACCAN administers a Grant Program as part of its funding agreement with the Commonwealth Department of Communications. The aims of the Program are to support consumer research and representation that is aligned with ACCAN’s strategic plan.

Download: ACCAN Magazine Issue 23 Autumn 20173.76 MB(Note: reading order not accessible)

Download accessible version:ACCAN Magazine Issue 23 Autumn 2017 - accessible version38.93 KB

ACCAN has observed a lower proportion of fixed Internet service uptake in rented households, as well as reports relating to barriers about access to this type of service. These barriers are often due to the imbalance of power between renters and landlords.

This is a concern for ACCAN, who have raised questions around the proportion of rented households who have deliberately chosen mobile services for their home.

Read more: Issues faced by renters in Australia’s phone and internet market

Parts 7 and 8 of the Telecommunications Act ensure that broadband networks operate in a similar way, and to the benefit of consumers. They require network operators to offer services to any retail providers on request (offer open access on a non-discriminatory basis) and that they must be operated separate to the retail level (wholesale only). The ultimate aim is to ensure competitive networks exist that benefit consumer by increasing choice of retail providers.

Since 2012 Telstra has had an exemption from complying with these requirements in its South Brisbane Velocity network area. Other areas of Telstra’s fibre Velocity area are also exempt. These are scattered across the country, predominantly in areas of medium density population, including retirement villages, and greenfield developments (in Western Sydney, for example). These are areas populated with low income families, and older people on fixed incomes.

Read more: Telstra’s South Brisbane Velocity Network – time for change

The summary below outlines ACCAN's activities from 1 March – 31 May 2020.

Read more: Quarter 4, FY19-20

University of Technology Sydney

The project will map out policy options for developing a complaint-handling framework for digital platforms, addressing a critical need for the satisfactory resolution of complaints from consumers. The features of effective and accountable internal dispute resolution schemes and the options for an external complaint-handling scheme will be assessed.

Read more: Digital platform complaint handling: Options for an external dispute resolution scheme

Dear ACCAN Members, 

 We would like to advise everyone that due to the unfortunate passing of Her Majesty the Queen and the National Day of Mourning on September 22nd, ACCAN’s Annual General meeting, scheduled for that day, will need to be re-scheduled.

 In anticipation of a quorum of members not being present at the scheduled meeting, under Section 15.3.2 of ACCAN’s Constitution, we propose we adjourn the meeting to the same time for the following week; 4.00pm Thursday 29th September 2022.   The rescheduled meeting will also be conducted online using the same Zoom link if you have registered already. 

Notice is hereby given that the Annual General Meeting of the ACCAN will be held via virtual meeting, on Thursday 29th September 2022 from 4.00pm.

Read more: Notice of postponement - ACCAN Annual General Meeting

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.

Read more: Telco consumers want more from their providers

Read more: Cynthia Gebert

ACCAN recently submitted to the Australian Communications and Media Authority consultation on draft captioning quality guidelines. 

ACCAN welcomed the development of captioning quality guidelines which clarify the ACMA’s interpretation of quality requirements in the Broadcasting Services (Television Captioning) Standard. The guidelines addressed some of the concerns raised with ACCAN by consumers including latency, timing, readability, and the essential nature of captions that are meaningful.

Read more: ACCAN Submission to the Australian Communications and Media Authority consultation on draft...

Consumers, government, regulators and industry are all stakeholders in a radically shifting communications environment. Together we are responsible for shaping a competitive, efficient and fair communications market that deliver all the potential benefits of affordable, available and accessible communications services to end users.

The 2010 ACCAN National Conference and Consumer Summit asks participants to think about the opportunities and challenges that we face in the provision of essential communications services in a digital age. We’ll explore opportunities to make the market work better for consumers, with a strong emphasis on actively ensuring no-one is left behind.

Read more: ACCAN National Conference and Consumer Summit 2010

Financial Counselling Australia (FCA) compiled a report outlining how the telecommunications industry's financial hardship policies and practices compare with those of the banking, energy and water industries. Through FCA's first-hand experiences of working with clients experiencing, or at risk of, financial hardship, as well as through discussions with consumer advocates, staff from industry hardship teams, government representatives and staff from external dispute resolution (EDR) schemes, a set of best practice recommendations was compiled.

The final report, with the recommendations, can be found on the ACCAN Grants Scheme webpage.

You should report all problems to your retail service provider in the first instance.

What if the service stops working?

You should report any service problems to your retail service provider, who will investigate the cause of the problem. Retail service providers should endeavour to repair all faults in a reasonable timeframe.

Who is responsible for services; nbn or the service provider?

The retail service provider is responsible for the service that they deliver to you under the contract that you agreed to.

What if I don’t get the speeds and performance that I was expecting?

There are a number of factors that may affect your service.

If you exceeded your data allowance then your retail service provider may slow your service, usually to 128kbps.

You should contact your retail service provider if the performance is below expectation. Outline the service issues that you are having and how it is not meeting your expectations. If they are unable to improve your service you can take your complaint to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (1800 062 058).

Is there equipment that I can purchase that will improve my experience of the service?

There are a number of products, such as specialised satellite boosters to routers, which claim to improve the performance of the service and reduce data consumption for satellite connections.

These can be very costly and may offer little to no improvement. You should check your performance with your retail service provider before making expensive purchases. There may be other solutions to improve performance issues you are experiencing.

What if the dish or wiring gets damaged?

The satellite dish and related equipment up to and including the modem remains the property of nbn. If damage occurs immediately contact your retail service provider. An nbn technician may visit your premises if any damages occur. If the damage was caused by you then you may have to pay for the repair. If damage is caused by weather events, then you might be able to recover the costs from your home and contents insurance. It is recommedned that the nbn equipment is listed on your insurance policy.

What are my consumer rights?

As a consumer you have a number of rights under the Australian Consumer Law. In particular your retail service provider must:

• provide clear and accurate information in advertising, contracts and bills
  
  
• give you help if you’re having problems paying bills and take steps before disconnecting your service
  
  
• provide good service and deal quickly with complaints
  
  
• provide a repair, replacement, refund, compensation or cancellation, depending on the circumstances.
  
  

If your retail service provider is unable to fix performance issues you can raise your complaint with the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman.

CHECK!

There may be costs associated with repairing damaged equipment. Ask your retail service provider what costs might apply.

 

Download: ACCAN Magazine Issue 22 Summer 20173.93 MB (Note: reading order not accessible)

Download accessible version: ACCAN Summer 2017 Magazine - Accessible Version39.29 KB

For consumers, migrating their services to the National Broadband Network (NBN) can be complicated and any loss of services or functionality can cause significant risk to life and result in extra costs and inconvenience for consumers. This statement sets out key areas that ACCAN believes should be improved for a successful consumer experience.

Read more: Migration Statement