Latest news with #3Gshutdown
ABC News
27-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Telcos inconsistently block phones, regulator doesn't know how many
The communications regulator has not collected basic data on how telcos have implemented a new phone-blocking rule following the 3G network shutdown, despite flagging a potential "conflict of interest" inherent to it.
ABC News
26-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Telstra and Optus are inconsistently blocking phones. The regulator doesn't know how many
The communications regulator has not collected basic data on how telcos have implemented a new phone-blocking rule following the 3G network shutdown, despite flagging a potential "conflict of interest" inherent to it. Days ahead of the shutdown late last year, the government finalised a new "direction" that required telecom companies to refuse service to phones that relied on 3G for making emergency calls. This gave telcos — which profit from selling phones — the singular authority to block phones they deemed non-compliant from their networks. In its analysis of the impacts of the new rule, the regulator ACMA noted a potential "conflict of interest" in this arrangement. "[Telcos] stand to benefit from selling replacement devices," it noted. The regulator promised to monitor the situation by requesting data from telcos around which phones were being blocked. However, when asked by the ABC — six months after the 3G network was shut off — an ACMA spokesperson said it had not yet requested this data. The regulator said it "will shortly write to relevant telcos to collect the data outlined in our impact analysis". In the meantime, customers have been dealing with seemingly arbitrary decisions around which phones continue to work — and which don't. Inconsistencies across network providers The ABC has scraped data on 221,927 types of devices from official checking tools provided by Optus and Telstra. (TPG does not offer a similar tool). The data revealed that the telcos are inconsistently blocking 16,822 registered device types — based on their TAC codes, which are eight-digit numbers that identify their make and model. While the two telcos agreed on 7,621 codes being unsafe for use, this number was dwarfed by the 15,844 blocked by Optus but not Telstra. Device variants blocked on Optus and Telstra networks The blocking status of over 200,000 device types. These inconsistencies are causing chaos for customers, with perfectly functional phones having been denied access to the network since November. IT professional James Parker — who originally noticed the discrepancies — has independently compiled a similar dataset, incorporating user reports to fill in the gaps left by TPG not having an official checking tool. He says that Telstra has a more accurate set of blocked phones than Optus, though both are "extremely flawed". His analysis has found "brand new 5G phones" that are blocked on some carriers, but not others. A Telstra spokesperson said the company ran "rigorous checks of devices' capabilities, including cross-referencing manufacturer specs, industry data and our own testing." "In some rare cases, devices behave differently depending on the mobile operator's network it's connected to," they said. "This means a device may be blocked as incompatible by one operator, but might work on another network." Optus said it "undertook a detailed assessment of device capabilities" but did not address the discrepancy between its block-list and Telstra's. According to ACCAN research, approximately 19 per cent of people reported needing to upgrade their device because of the 3G shutdown. Regulator leaving it to the telcos Former telecommunications consultant Ian Smith's phone was one of those affected. As an Uber driver in the NSW Northern Rivers, he uses a dual SIM to deal with the patchy reception across the various mobile networks. When the 3G network was shut down in November, his Telstra SIM was suddenly restricted from accessing the network, even though it supports 4G. Meanwhile, his Optus one remained unaffected. Ian Smith has been unable to get his 4G-enabled phone unblocked by Telstra. ( Supplied: Ian Smith ) To clear up the inconsistency between networks, Mr Smith visited four separate Telstra stores, which he says confirmed his smartphone was still able to make emergency calls. Despite this, Telstra would not unblock it. When he appealed to ACMA, Mr Smith was told it was "unable to compel Telstra to whitelist [his] phone". "This is a matter for the telcos to determine," an ACMA employee wrote to Mr Smith in an email. "They have the best knowledge of their own networks." With the lack of Telstra connectivity interfering with his work as an Uber driver, Mr Smith was eventually forced to buy a new device. He says that Telstra has "abused" the power granted to it under the new direction, and displayed "anti-competitive behaviour" by blocking his phone despite it being capable of making emergency calls. Potential conflict of interest The CEO of the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN), Carol Bennett, said ACMA needs to be watching the directive "closely and in real time". "There must be regulatory scrutiny about this directive," she told the ABC. "It allows telcos to identify which devices to block while standing to benefit from selling new phones — a clear conflict of interest risk." ACCAN CEO Carol Bennett has called ACMA a "toothless tiger" in the past. ( ABC News: John Gunn ) An ACMA spokesperson said "some risks could not be addressed within the terms of the direction" from the minister. "Those terms reflected the government's concerns that there was an unacceptable risk that people's lives could be put in danger if they could not access triple-0 after the shutting down of Australia's 3G networks," the spokesperson said in a statement. "The ACMA has been in constant contact with telcos to monitor compliance with these new obligations and respond to and resolve customer issues as they arise. "Together with the comprehensive data that we receive from telcos on the impact of the amendments, we will be in a position to provide advice to the Minister for Communications on our view of the effectiveness of the amendments." The government — which created the phone blocking directive — did not comment on its enforcement by the regulator, or its failure to collect the data from telcos it had outlined in its impact analysis. "The Australian government's top priority in the 3G switch off has been to protect public safety by ensuring that all mobile phones connected to mobile networks are able to call triple-0," a governmental spokesperson said. Data scraping methodology The ABC downloaded each of the data files from the Optus checking tool. The ABC downloaded each of the data files from the Optus checking tool. For each of the TAC codes in those files, we made a request to Telstra's checking tool. For each of the TAC codes in those files, we made a request to Telstra's checking tool. We then compared the blocked vs non-blocked status for each one. Credits Reporting: Julian Fell Reporting: Julian Fell Visual design: Georgina Piper The full statements from the ACMA, Telstra, Optus and the government can be accessed here.
ABC News
19-05-2025
- Business
- ABC News
Ombudsman warns telcos to help in poor services areas after 3G shutdown
Australia's Telecommunications Ombudsman says the shutdown of Australia's 3G network has resulted in "life-threatening situations". Cynthia Gebert released her department's first quarter report, which showed that while complaints to the ombudsman about the 3G network had fallen, the issues that remained were complex. "Particularly in rural and regional settings, where farm operations are impacted, people who need it to operate a small business [and] we have heard circumstances of unreliable service creating life-threatening situations," she said. Ms Gebert said people had become reliant on phones and connectivity, not just to communicate over the phone. "Things like medical alert devices, farming equipment, all those sorts of things; they are so important now and people have built lives, communities and businesses around it," she said. "It's creating all sorts of challenges when they can't be reliant on that." The data showed complaints to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman about service providers were up 6.9 per cent in the first three months of 2025, with 25.3 per cent about poor mobile phone coverage, while reports of financial hardship increased by 72 per cent. The hardship reports included telcos refusing payment plans and disconnecting or suspending phone and internet services. "Telcos still have work to do in terms of providing tailored support and repayment options for people that reflect their individual circumstances," Ms Gebert said. The town of Bingara in the north-west of New South Wales has a population of 1,300. Local accountant Sam Groth said congestion issues resulted in little or no service, even in the centre of town. "I can be having a coffee with someone in the main street and when we go to open up an email and click on an online link, you just get the wheel of death," he said. "I get complaints daily from clients who can't even scan a document and email it back." Mr Groth said EFTPOS services had been intermittent, and text messages and phone calls often did not come through or dropped out, which had a detrimental effect on the town. "You've got travellers coming through and if they can't connect, that affects your reputation as a tourism provider," he said. He believed money needed to be spent on increasing the capacity of the tower, but suspected Telstra did not want to spend it on the small town. "There's not enough subscribers to invest in the infrastructure," he said. Mr Groth said he had clients running large agricultural businesses who were having significant problems, but complaints to Telstra were getting nowhere. "Their response has been, 'There are no outages, there is no problem recorded at the tower,'" he said. In a statement, Telstra regional general manager Chris Taylor said there were plans to upgrade the Bingara site later this year to increase capacity, as well as deliver 5G to the town for the first time."The site can currently get busy during peak periods like the school holidays and this upgrade should help deliver a much better experience all year round," a Telstra spokesperson said. Farmer Bruce Kreutzberger lives on a property 20 kilometres from Walla Walla in the Riverina region of NSW. When the 3G network was switched off, he lost phone service at his home and took to driving up a nearby hill to get line-of-sight access to a signal from the nearest Telstra tower. Mr Kreutzberger later bought a new "blue tick" mobile phone — certified to give superior coverage in rural and regional areas — which he said improved things. "My new phone shows no bars of signal, but I can actually make a call at the house," he said. But Mr Kreutzberger said he had experienced congestion issues in his area as well. He said he had given up complaining about the issue. Mr Taylor said individual reception could be affected by the handset customers were using and the topography of the region. "Our 4G coverage is available in and around Walla Walla but the surrounding terrain and vegetation in the area can affect it in some parts," he said. Mr Taylor said Telstra was also working on plans to upgrade both sites to provide additional capacity and to deliver 5G. Telstra, Optus and Vodaphone shut down their 3G networks in 2024 to use that spectrum to improve 4G and 5G services, but the ombudsman said she had not seen any signs of improvement yet. "It's something we're keeping an eye on because … if it doesn't fulfil those expectations, that leads to a lot of frustration," she said.
