Hot Issues
Welcome to the latest current affairs that impact communications consumers.
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ACCAN’s submission to the Independent Review into the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) highlighted the important role of the TIO, but also identified a number of areas for improvement.
The final report agreed with ACCAN’s recommendations that there is a need for:
Read more: Positive outcomes from TIO review
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With many people travelling or taking time off over the holidays, we thought we’d share some tips to help you keep track of your data usage, use your phone overseas and get issues resolved.
Mobile
If you are travelling locally you may be more reliant on your smartphone and you might find your data allowance getting used up more quickly. Check out our tip sheet on how to use less data on your smartphone and our blog on how much excess data will cost you.
Read more: Phone and internet tips for the holidays
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RRR Communications Coalition celebrates one year
By Teresa Corbin & Fiona Simson*
Anyone who lives in a rural or regional area knows the pain of poor telecommunications services. We often hear stories of people pulling their hair out trying to run businesses, apply new technologies and educate their kids on small data allowances and unreliable connections.
Read more: All we want in 2018 is #BetterBushComms
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nbn announced today that it will 'pause' the rollout of NBN HFC connections. This is because nbn has identified issues in the HFC rollout that need remediation, and will be taking a more careful approach that should result in improved customer experience. ACCAN welcomes this approach.
Consumers in HFC areas may be wondering how this announcement will affect them. We have identified five different situations that consumers may find themselves in. See below for information on how consumers in HFC areas may be affected.
Read more: nbn ‘pauses’ new HFC connections
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In November, the ACCC announced that Telstra will offer remedies to around 42,000 customers. Announcements that Optus would compensate more than 8,700 of its customers and that TPG would compensate nearly 8,000 of its customers for the same issue were made in December.
Both announcements received wide coverage in the media. There is some confusion around the issue and who is entitled to a remedy. This blog attempts to clear up this confusion.
What is the issue?
While there are a number of issues that consumers are reporting with services over the NBN, this compensation relates to a very specific problem where the maximum download speed consumers paid for was never possible at their premises.
Read more: Getting a refund for unattainable NBN speeds
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Many Australian not-for-profit organisations and businesses currently have domain names for their internet presences under the second level domains. For example: *.com.au and *.org.au. Domain names are used to find resources and services on the internet such as web pages (eg www.accan.org.au) and email addresses (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
Recently, auDA, the body responsible for Australia’s domain name system agreed to introduce ‘direct registrations’. This is where your chosen internet domain name does not use the familiar “.com.au”, “.net.au”, “.org.au”, and new names will be simply “orgname.au”.
Read more: Australia’s Domain Name System is changing
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In the flurry of media this week about the TIO Annual Report and 41 per cent increase in telecommunication complaints received, Communication Alliance and nbn both made reassuring comments about the state of the problem.
But how reassured should we be?
Communications Alliance is “pleased” that in the last three months the rate of complaints slightly decreased (from 9 per 10,000 services in operation between Apr-Jun 2017 to 8.3 per 10,000 Jul- Sept 2017).
Read more: Fact Check: Communication Alliance and nbn media releases
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Consumers are increasingly buying Internet-connected appliances for their homes. Often referred to as the Internet of Things (IoT), the range of internet-connected products already available includes not only the obvious things like Smart TVs, gaming consoles, security and safety cameras, but smart light bulbs, sewing machines and even dishwashers.
Telstra says the average home already has 11 or 12 connected devices and predicts that by 2020 a typical home will have about 30.
As well as being useful by enabling us to remotely manage our home environments, many of these devices also collect a lot of data. Conceivably, this data collection can pose huge risks to consumers’ privacy and security.
Read more: How safe are IoT devices?
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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.
We are told that we can expect many things in our homes will be connected, our cars will be connected and we will see even more connected ‘wearable’ devices in the future. These new devices and services raise many questions and concerns for consumers.
Read more: Your place in the connected world
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The 2017 Australian Digital Inclusion Index showed that overall digital inclusion is growing in Australia.
Since 2014, when data was first collected for the Index, Australia’s overall digital inclusion score has improved by 3.8 points, from 52.7 to 56.5.
The Index also found that gaps between digitally included and excluded Australians are “substantial and widening.”
Read more: Helping people Leep into the digital world
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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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