Have your say: https://consultation.accc.gov.au/communications-1/consultation-on-broadband-speed-claims/consultation
ACCC Consultation on Broadband Speed Claims Overview The ACCC wants to see consumers provided with better information about broadband speeds, to improve competition and consumer outcomes in the retail broadband market. We have observed that broadband retail service providers (RSPs) have generally been slow to provide consumers with information that readily identifies the performance and speed characteristics of fixed broadband services and plans. We are concerned that a lack of accurate information increases the likelihood that consumers will misunderstand or be misled about the quality and capabilities of the broadband options available. It also limits a consumer’s ability to select the most appropriate service for their needs and reduces the incentives for RSPs to compete on performance. Why We Are Consulting We are seeking views about the factors that may prevent accurate broadband speeds information from being provided to consumers and how these factors may be overcome. We would like to hear from individual consumers and industry and interested stakeholders about their views on broadband speed and performance information. We are also interested in views on whether similar issues are arising in the marketing of mobile broadband services. How to make a submission Interested parties can upload a submission or complete the online consumer questions in response to the issues raised in the discussion paper or consumer information paper. Further information on how to make a submission is available in the discussion paper. When uploading a submission, please provide either a PDF or Microsoft Word document allowing for the submission text to be searched. Contact details for offline submissions are provided in the discussion paper. Submission are due by 5.00pm, Thursday 25 August 2016. If you have a complaint or enquiry about a problem with a specific broadband service or broadband speed representation, please contact the ACCC Infocentre. Share your views Online submission and consumer questions https://consultation.accc.gov.au/communications-1/consultation-on-broadband-speed-claims/consultation Ref: https://consultation.accc.gov.au/communications-1/consultation-on-broadband-speed-claims Contact: [email protected] Key Dates: Runs from 26 Jul 2016 to 25 Aug 2016 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Consumer watchdog launches inquiry into broadband speed claims By Lucy Battersby July 26 2016 - 12:36PM http://www.smh.com.au/business/media-and-marketing/consumer-watchdog-launches-inquiry-into-broadband-speed-claims-20160726-gqdt1y.html The consumer watchdog has launched a public inquiry into why internet companies cannot deliver advertised broadband speeds. It is now asking the public what information would be most useful when choosing a new internet plan for fixed and mobile services, with slow data speeds the highest growing area of consumer complaints. It also wants the industry to explain why it cannot always deliver promised speeds, whether industry prepared for the popularity of subscription video streaming, and what performance promises they could make about mobile broadband speeds. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is concerned that advertising just the potential maximum speed, such as 'up to 100 megabits per second [Mbps]', might mislead or "misrepresent the speeds that the retail broadband service can consistently achieve, especially during peak periods when most consumers will want to use the service". Or that consumers paying for premium speed packegs may not receive the more expensive speeds all times of day because of network congestion and high video volumes. "Consumers are entitled to expect clear and accurate information about the performance characteristics of a service they have purchased or are considering switching to," the ACCC's consultation on broadband speeds discussion paper notes. "We are interested to hear about consumers' experiences and their views on how information about broadband performance and speed can be improved". The ACCC wants to find out why internet providers were unable to tell consumers exactly what speeds they would get on a fixed internet connection. It's preliminary view is that speed promises should only relate to the performance of the connection from the consumer's house to the internet company's network. This excludes the performance of international cables and network backbones, which are beyond the control of retail service providers. It notes many companies re-selling NBN services rely on NBN Co's wholesale speed descriptions, and were not "translating the wholesale speed tier information" in a way that accurately describes what speeds consumers will experience in their own home. As more people stream video In 2011 the ACCC successfully prosecuted Optus for advertising "supersonic" speed packages that throttled speeds to below 1 Mbps once consumers exceeded a data allowance. Optus was fined $5.2 million, but had this reduced to $3.6 million on appeal. That year it released an information paper warning telcos about advertising big speed and data claims that were undone by fine print conditions. Global transparency In the UK consumers were able to terminate contracts without penalty if their speeds were less than the minimum promised by a retail provider. The UK regulator was also considering automatic compensation for consumers when speeds fall below expectations, the ACCC noted. In the US internet providers tell consumers what kind of download speed, upload speed, latency and packet loss (quality) they should expect. And EU regulators insist internet contracts include "a clear and comprehensible explanation of the minimum, normally available, maximum and advertised download and upload speed". In Australia the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman [TIO] saw a 56.8 per cent increase in complaints about slow data speeds in the last quarter of 2015. Many were long-term customers who experienced a recent decline in speeds, particularly during peak hours. The ACCC notes slow speeds at peak periods could be due to unexpected system problems or the providers' failure to properly invest and maintain in network infrastructure. Whatever the reason, many retail service providers were not telling consumers that speeds may slow down during peak periods, leading to complaints. The ACCC will accept submissions from industry and consumers until August 25. -- Cheers, Stephen Sent from Mail for Windows 10 _______________________________________________ Link mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.anu.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/link
