REASONABLE ASSISTANCE PROVISIONS UNDER NBN SERVICE CONTINUITY STANDARD AND NBN SERVICE MIGRATION DETERMINATION

The new ACMA NBN Service Continuity Standard and NBN Service Migration Determination place obligations on Carriers and Carriage Service Providers (C/CSPs) who are providing NBN services to consumers. Some of the new obligations also extend to wholesale providers.

Roughly speaking, Part 5 of the NBN Service Continuity Standard (Part 7 of the NBN Service Migration Determination) requires C/CSPs and wholesale providers bound by the Standard to provide reasonable assistance to each other where providers require such assistance to fulfil the obligations contained in the instruments, e.g. to provide a legacy or interim service to consumers or to conduct the required testing of a service. As part of the requirements, providers bound by the Standard/Determination are to nominate a contact person for the reasonable assistance provisions and to notify all relevant C/CSPs of that person’s email address or other method whereby that person can be contacted. The Standard/Determination expressly allows for an industry body to establish and maintain a register of contacts and, when this is the case, it requires providers to notify that industry body of their contact details and any changes to those details. The requirement to provide contact details commences on 23 July 2018. The remainder of the Standard/Determination commences on 21 September 2018.

Communications Alliance has established (and will maintain) a register of contacts for that purpose in order to minimise the administrative burden for providers. Consequently, all C/CSPs and wholesale providers bound by the Standard/Determination are required to submit their details to the Communications Alliance register. We note that membership with our organisation is NOT a prerequisite for this requirement. This requirement arises from the ACMA regulation and is similar to the requirements for providers to register their details with Communications Alliance under the Telecommunications Consumer Protections (TCP) Code or other Codes.

To comply with your obligations to notify Communications Alliance of your relevant contact details, please complete the registration form and email it to info@commsalliance.com.au. We will confirm receipt of your completed form and place your details on the register. Please note that you are also required to inform us of any changes to your contact details within 2 working days of the change occurring.

The NBN Service Migration Determination mirrors the Reasonable Assistance provisions of the NBN Service Continuity Standard. Providers that have complied with the obligations to register their details under the NBN Service Continuity Standard will be deemed to have complied with the mirror obligations of the NBN Service Migration Determination..

Details listed on the register will be visible to all registered organisations but not be made publicly available. The register will be hosted in the login-protected members-only section of our website. Non-members can obtain the list by contacting us. (Communications Alliance will use reasonable endeavours to check the credentials of the requesting person.) The information may be shared with regulatory/Government agencies upon request and subject to approval by the Communications Alliance Board.

NBN CONSUMER INFORMATION STANDARD

The ACMA also made the new Consumer Information Standard which requires Carriers and Carriage Service Providers selling NBN services to consumers to

• provide consumers with a Key Fact Sheet prior to sale;
• adhere to certain practices when advertising their NBN services;
• advise consumers on the continued use of their existing phone number and on remedies if the consumer’s connection is not capable of delivering the promised speed tier; and
• provide advice in relation to medical and security alarm services.

The Consumer Information Standard will commence on 21 September 2018.