The ACMA welcomes today’s announcement by the Minister for Communications, the Hon Michelle Rowland MP, that the Australian Government will introduce a Carriage Service Provider (CSP) Registration scheme.
ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said that the regulator had been advocating for a CSP register to significantly enhance current regulatory arrangements.
“This will be a real game-changer in industry regulation. We will be able to get shonky operators out of the telco market and better protect consumers from their unacceptable behaviour,” said ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin.
“It will also give regulators and the Australian public a clearer view of all telcos operating in the market, which is currently just not possible.”
The ACMA also supports the provision of new powers to enable the regulator to directly enforce industry codes with increased maximum penalties for industry code and standard breaches up to $10 million.
“This will remove current constraints that get in the way of the ACMA addressing telco non-compliance quickly.
“Increased penalties will also bolster the ACMA’s tool kit for dealing with serious non-compliance and provide strong incentives for the industry to abide by the rules," said Ms O’Loughlin.