Joint Release with Malcolm Turnbull: Communications sector benefits from further reform

The Communications portfolio achieved significant deregulatory reform in 2014. Actions taken in this portfolio in 2014 will generate cumulative annual savings of over $94 million and remove over 3,400 pages of unnecessary regulation.

The Communications portfolio Annual Deregulation Report 2014, released today, provides a summary of progress to date.

These reforms have allowed the Government to work towards ensuring Australia has a strong, vibrant and sustainable communications sector.

Reform did not stop in 2014. In the first quarter of this year the Government has already announced reforms with significant deregulatory savings worth over $200 million per annum in the communications sector.

The key reform of Australia Post’s regulatory requirements to enable a two-speed letters service is considerable, given the significant decline in letters as people increasingly choose to communicate online. This will ensure a sustainable mail service continues to be available for all Australians.

The Government has also decided to repeal the legacy retail price controls which currently applies to the retail prices Telstra charges, following independent analysis from the Centre for Independent Economics (CIE) last year which concluded that these controls no longer have any impact on the prices Telstra actually charges. Thanks to competition, Telstra prices for fixed line telephone services have been well below the retail price control levels for many years and competitive pressure has prevented regionally differentiated pricing.

Important consumer safeguards remain in place and the Australia Competition and Consumer Commission will continue to monitor price movements as a safety net.

These deregulatory initiatives are complemented by longer term reform that is in progress, such as the review of Australia’s spectrum management framework to reflect changes in technology and the increasingly important role of spectrum in our networked digital economy and society.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority also has an ambitious agenda for 2015, including working with industry bodies to reform industry codes and to streamline revenue assurance processes across the levies and fees it collects.

The Communications portfolio Deregulation Report 2014 is available at: www.communications.gov.au/deregulation