Progress on Roaming in Australian Parliament
To improve the bargaining positions of Australian telcos, the Australian House of Repesentatives Committee has recommended a policy of regulating the framework for the wholesale cost of roaming through bilateral and multilateral negotiations with other countries, making sure that countries with the greatest number of Australian visitors are given priority.
The Committee also believes that competition can be enhanced within Australia. To do this, the Committee wants temporary mobile number portability for roaming services to be implemented. This will allow consumers to choose the best roaming deal for their needs. The provision of information on roaming to customers can also be improved enormously.
One recommendation among many made by the committee was that the Australian Communications and Media Authority facilitate a meeting with the Communications Alliance to discuss the development of a minimum standard for consumer information and awareness on roaming and potential costs, and that the Australian government explore opportunities to collaborate with the Australian Telecommunication Users Group ‘Roam Fair’ campaign.
The high cost of roaming is a result of both the complex technical treatment required to route roaming calls and the fact that the costs of roaming are determined by agreements between two network operators – the Australian network and the host network in the other country. So there are really two causes of the high cost of roaming.
Firstly, there is the wholesale cost—that is, the amount charged by the foreign networks to the Australian providers. Secondly, there is the retail cost—the amount that Australian telco companies charge their customers. To address the first cost — the wholesale cost — the Committee recommends that the government pursue bilateral and multilateral agreements with other countries to regulate the cost of roaming. The Committee also suggests that the priority should be given to countries that large numbers of Australians visit.
Source: ATUG
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