ACCAN believes it's time to get smart about regulation in the communications sector by putting consumers first in the regulatory equation. ACCAN has published a report by the Communications Law Centre, University of Technology Sydney titled Consumers First: Smart Regulation for Digital Australia that investigates a principles-based approach to regulation. ACCAN commissioned this report to...

Do Australians have a right to access a telecommunications service? There are at least two schools of thought: the view that sees universal service as a basic right of citizens, essential for membership in the community, as against the view that sees universal service as an economic good to be delivered in the market, where...

The digital dividend is the Australian Government's opportunity to ensure that the benefits to individuals and the community outweigh the costs associated with the switchover to digital television. This submission by the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network to the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy highlights the ways in which this could be...

This report highlights flaws in obtaining consent in the Australian communications industry. The report found that inconsistent and unsatisfactory consent requirements are scattered throughout a mix of telecommunication laws and industry codes of conduct. In many key cases consent requirements are absent entirely. Regulators, complaints schemes and community organisations are receiving over 40,000 consent complaints...

Importantly, it outlines the practical individual policy steps that government can take in order to achieve the outcome of accessible broadband for all. Within a relatively short period of time, broadband services have ceased to be a luxury and are now a necessity for most Australians. However, the availability of high quality services is geographically...