ACCC Backs New Rules for Mobile Coverage Claims

Current System Lacking Transparency

The current system lets carriers show service coverage and quality on maps that might not reasonably match what users actually receive. Meanwhile, the ACCC says that mobile service coverage performance plays an important role in the way consumers choose providers and how much they’re prepared to pay for it.

However, there is currently a lack of transparency over how the mobile network operators produce their coverage maps and the extent to which the coverage maps represent on the ground experience is unclear. Additionally, the lack of transparency and comparability leads to the risk of consumers making purchasing decisions based on unreliable information and purchasing services that are unsuitable for their needs.

Proposed New Standard

The proposed new standard stops telcos from claiming to provide useable service in areas where their mobile signal strengths fall below a -115dBm threshold. Furthermore, the ACMA’s proposed standard includes four labels: good coverage, moderate, useable, and no coverage.

For example, areas where signal strengths exceed -95dBm would be considered to have good coverage, moderate coverage from -105dBm down to -115dBm, with a no coverage label to be applied to areas where intensity is lower. Therefore, the ACCC recommended varying the coverage labels slightly, using the term ‘variable’ instead of ‘useable’, arguing it more closely matches the label’s description of the experience consumers could experience under the proposed standard.

In conclusion, the ACCC’s backing of the proposed new rules is a significant step towards increasing transparency and comparability in the mobile coverage market. Finally, consumers can expect to have a clearer understanding of the mobile coverage they can expect from their telco provider.