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Structural changes to the communications market were one of a package of reforms in the 1993 Hilmer Review, which substantially improved competition in the Australian market. This led to a proliferation of consumer choice from the government owned monopoly, Telecom, to the diverse array of competitors Australian consumers have access to today.
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ACCAN has responded to the ACMA's consultation on proposals for deregulatory reform in telecommunications reporting requirements.
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Download: 
Battle of the Bytes5.93 MB
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Battle of the Bytes49.74 KB
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Privacy in Australia is back on the agenda again with the Australian Law Reform Commission's (ALRC) recent inquiry into Serious Invasions of Privacy in the Digital Era. ACCAN's submission to the inquiry focuses on when consumers have a 'reasonable expectation of privacy'. We support the proposed introduction of a new Australian Privacy Principle (APP) which would give consumers the ability to request the destruction or de-identification of their personal information.
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ACCAN, Australia's peak body for communications consumers, says the government's deregulation proposals which could affect the amount of time consumers have to wait to get a landline phone connected or fixed must be more comprehensively reviewed. ACCAN has also flagged concerns around proposed changes to privacy rules for the telco industry.
Read more: ACCAN urges caution on changes to consumer protection for telco services
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ACCAN has responded to the Government's consultation on proposals for longer term deregulatory reform in telecommunications. Our submission flagged that the important areas of privacy and the customer service guarantee (which puts timeframes around new connections and fault repairs) need more in depth consideration and consultation, while supporting reforms for arrangements around pre-selection, Part 9A of the Telecommunications (Consumer Protection and Service Standards) Act, retail price controls and the local presence plan. We are also generally supportive of changes to Telstra's priority assistance arrangements, although with some qualification.
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Have you ever found yourself unable to sign-up for an online service, unable to order tickets online or contact an organisation because they have an inaccessible CAPTCHA on their website? CAPTCHA tests are boxes containing squiggly letters and numbers which you must decipher in order to continue on a website.
Read more: CAPTCHA – what you can do
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In December 2013, ACCAN made a submission to the federal government regarding the Minister for Communication's call for possible telco regulatory reform. ACCAN has made an additional submission regarding consumer information requirements in the telco sector.
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Summary: If you haven't already heard, a potentially catastrophic internet security flaw has been discovered this week and there are some serious ramifications for consumers.
Read more: Internet security flaw leaves almost every internet user at risk
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The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network and the Australian Human Rights Commission have today launched the inaugural Apps For All Challenge 2014, a competition to find Australia's most accessible apps.
Read more: App challenge launches to raise accessibility awareness
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The Australian Communications Consumer Action network (ACCAN) is pleased to announce the 2015 Apps For All Challenge, sponsored by Telstra.
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Every minute 47,000 apps are downloaded worldwide, but millions of Australians may be missing out on the digital revolution if apps are not accessible.
The Apps For All Challenge is back in 2015 to award the outstanding apps which are accessible to all Australians.
An accessible app is designed with the largest number of people in mind – including people with disability and older Australians. Accessibility is not only crucial for the almost 1 in 5 Australians living with some form of disability, but it also means developers can target millions more customers who were previously locked out of the app market.
In honouring Australia's most accessible apps, the Apps For All Challenge will raise awareness and encourage Australian developers to be world leaders in accessible mobile technology. The winning apps will be announced at the ACCAN National Conference in September 2015.
Winners in each category will receive a cash prize from Telstra and promotion through Telstra social media.
The categories
Nominations will be accepted in the following categories:
- Most accessible mainstream app
- Most innovative app designed for people with disability or older Australians
- Most accessible children's app
- Most accessible game app
What exactly makes an app accessible?
Accessibility means that an app can be used by the most people possible without the need for modification. Many people have, or develop with age, impairments related to vision, hearing, cognition or mobility. Apps which address these needs in their design and operation are more accessible than apps which do not have any consideration for users' differing abilities.
For example, if an app uses video, the video should have captions for people who are Deaf or hearing impaired. For users who are blind or vision impaired, control buttons should include an "alt tag" to alert users of the button's purpose.
Apps incorporating the following features will be reviewed more favourably:
- Ease of use – including ease of download and installation
- Market gap – apps which fill a market gap for one or more user groups
- Value for money – apps which provide good value for money and do not require people with disability to pay more for the same functionality
- Universal design – the app is accessible across all user groups
- Availability – available across multiple operating systems
Accessibility guidelines for developers
- World Wide Web Consortium's mobile accessibility guidelines: http://www.w3.org/WAI/mobile/
- Apple accessibility guidelines: https://developer.apple.com/accessibility/
- Android accessibility guidelines: http://developer.android.com/guide/topics/ui/accessibility/index.html
Things to remember
- Only Australian developed apps are eligible
- An app can only be nominated for one category
- Nominated apps must be designed for one or more of the following mobile operating systems; iOS, Android, Windows
- Existing apps can be nominated
- The nominated apps will be evaluated by an independent panel of Australian accessibility experts. The panel will shortlist the best three apps in each category, with the winning apps announced at the ACCAN National Conference in September 2015
- Nominated apps should conform to ACCAN's values and vision
How to nominate an App
Anyone can nominate an app. Nominations can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call ACCAN on 02 9288 4000 / TTY 02 9281 5322.
Nominations close on 15 June 2015. If you have any questions please email us on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
