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The Advertiser
29-06-2025
- Business
- The Advertiser
Why consumer trust matters more than ever
In a fast-changing economy, consumer trust isn't just a virtue - it's a necessity. Whether you're buying a fridge, downloading an app, or applying for a mortgage, you're taking a leap of faith that the product will do what it claims, the terms will be fair, and someone will listen if things go wrong. Trust is the invisible infrastructure of the modern marketplace. Strip it away, and what remains is a minefield of confusion, caution and exploitation. When people stop believing the system works for them, they disengage. And when bad actors go unchallenged, good businesses suffer, too. Australia has made real strides in building trust through strong consumer protection. The Australian Consumer Law, introduced in 2011, brought together a tangle of federal, state and territory rules into a single national framework. Since then, protections have expanded - unfair contract terms are now banned, consumer guarantees are better enforced, and regulators have more tools to hold businesses to account. But markets don't stand still. And nor can our laws. MORE OPINION: Today, technology has transformed the way we live and shop. Global platforms dominate online commerce. Artificial intelligence increasingly determines what ads we see, what prices we're offered, even which products we're shown in the first place. With these advances come opportunities - but also new risks. AI, for all its potential, raises serious questions for consumer protection. What happens when a chatbot gives dangerously wrong advice? When a recommendation algorithm steers vulnerable users toward harmful content? Or when a company uses machine learning to nudge people into purchases they later regret? That's why the Australian government is working to ensure our legal frameworks keep pace with our technological ones. We're reviewing how AI-enabled products and services are regulated, with a view to ensuring transparency, accountability and fairness. We're also introducing civil penalties for breaches of consumer guarantees - because rights without consequences are just suggestions. We're improving the Unit Pricing Code, so shoppers can easily compare the real value of groceries. And we're rolling out a Scams Prevention Framework that places obligations on banks, telcos and digital platforms to detect and prevent scams, not just clean up after them. Meanwhile, our regulators are stepping up enforcement in the sectors where trust is most fragile. With targeted government funding, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is focusing on competition and fair trading issues in the supermarket and retail sectors, including misleading pricing and abuse of market power. Its compliance priorities include tackling greenwashing, protecting vulnerable NDIS users, and cracking down on manipulative digital practices. Too often, the worst harms occur when companies grow too dominant or operate in spaces where oversight is weak. Take the example of a remote Indigenous community, where an elderly woman walked into a Telstra store seeking a basic mobile phone. She walked out with multiple postpaid contracts she didn't understand, and monthly bills she couldn't afford. The Federal Court later fined Telstra $50 million for unconscionable conduct. In another case, Meta subsidiaries were fined $20 million after marketing an app that claimed to protect user data while secretly harvesting it. Apple was fined $9 million for telling customers they weren't eligible for repairs after using third-party technicians - a claim that flew in the face of Australian law. And when Hungry Jack's included a toy in a children's meal without the required button battery warning, it was penalised for breaching safety standards. These rules exist for a reason: to protect families from serious harm. These aren't fringe operators. They're household names. And their conduct was made possible by market power, information asymmetry, and the assumption that no one was watching. Consumer protection is sometimes seen as a sideline to "serious" economic reform. But in truth, it's central to how modern economies function. When markets reward deception, not value; when fine print outweighs fairness; when firms grow too dominant to care - the entire system suffers. That's why competition policy and consumer policy must work hand in hand. A competitive market isn't just about lower prices. It's about higher standards. It's about firms knowing they'll lose customers if they don't do the right thing - and that regulators will step in if they cross the line. This is particularly urgent in the digital economy. As AI systems become more powerful, the risk of opaque decisions, embedded bias and automated unfairness grows. Scams are becoming more sophisticated, with deepfakes and spoofed messages designed to exploit even the savvy. "Dark patterns" - manipulative website designs that make it hard to cancel, return or say no - are becoming increasingly common. Globalisation, too, has complicated enforcement. Many online platforms operate across jurisdictions, making redress harder and regulation slower. To meet these challenges, we need laws that are modern, regulators that are empowered, and markets that reward ethical behaviour. We also need cooperation. Consumer protection can't be achieved by government alone. It requires collaboration between regulators and researchers, businesses and advocates, technologists and policymakers. It means listening to real consumers, not just corporate lobbyists. It means designing systems that are built for trust - and proving worthy of that trust, again and again. At its best, consumer protection doesn't just stop bad behaviour. It shapes the kind of economy we want to live in - one that rewards integrity, encourages innovation, and treats fairness not as a luxury, but as a baseline. In the end, every tap of a card, every "I agree" clicked, is a small act of trust. Australians deserve to know that the system will live up to it. In a fast-changing economy, consumer trust isn't just a virtue - it's a necessity. Whether you're buying a fridge, downloading an app, or applying for a mortgage, you're taking a leap of faith that the product will do what it claims, the terms will be fair, and someone will listen if things go wrong. Trust is the invisible infrastructure of the modern marketplace. Strip it away, and what remains is a minefield of confusion, caution and exploitation. When people stop believing the system works for them, they disengage. And when bad actors go unchallenged, good businesses suffer, too. Australia has made real strides in building trust through strong consumer protection. The Australian Consumer Law, introduced in 2011, brought together a tangle of federal, state and territory rules into a single national framework. Since then, protections have expanded - unfair contract terms are now banned, consumer guarantees are better enforced, and regulators have more tools to hold businesses to account. But markets don't stand still. And nor can our laws. MORE OPINION: Today, technology has transformed the way we live and shop. Global platforms dominate online commerce. Artificial intelligence increasingly determines what ads we see, what prices we're offered, even which products we're shown in the first place. With these advances come opportunities - but also new risks. AI, for all its potential, raises serious questions for consumer protection. What happens when a chatbot gives dangerously wrong advice? When a recommendation algorithm steers vulnerable users toward harmful content? Or when a company uses machine learning to nudge people into purchases they later regret? That's why the Australian government is working to ensure our legal frameworks keep pace with our technological ones. We're reviewing how AI-enabled products and services are regulated, with a view to ensuring transparency, accountability and fairness. We're also introducing civil penalties for breaches of consumer guarantees - because rights without consequences are just suggestions. We're improving the Unit Pricing Code, so shoppers can easily compare the real value of groceries. And we're rolling out a Scams Prevention Framework that places obligations on banks, telcos and digital platforms to detect and prevent scams, not just clean up after them. Meanwhile, our regulators are stepping up enforcement in the sectors where trust is most fragile. With targeted government funding, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is focusing on competition and fair trading issues in the supermarket and retail sectors, including misleading pricing and abuse of market power. Its compliance priorities include tackling greenwashing, protecting vulnerable NDIS users, and cracking down on manipulative digital practices. Too often, the worst harms occur when companies grow too dominant or operate in spaces where oversight is weak. Take the example of a remote Indigenous community, where an elderly woman walked into a Telstra store seeking a basic mobile phone. She walked out with multiple postpaid contracts she didn't understand, and monthly bills she couldn't afford. The Federal Court later fined Telstra $50 million for unconscionable conduct. In another case, Meta subsidiaries were fined $20 million after marketing an app that claimed to protect user data while secretly harvesting it. Apple was fined $9 million for telling customers they weren't eligible for repairs after using third-party technicians - a claim that flew in the face of Australian law. And when Hungry Jack's included a toy in a children's meal without the required button battery warning, it was penalised for breaching safety standards. These rules exist for a reason: to protect families from serious harm. These aren't fringe operators. They're household names. And their conduct was made possible by market power, information asymmetry, and the assumption that no one was watching. Consumer protection is sometimes seen as a sideline to "serious" economic reform. But in truth, it's central to how modern economies function. When markets reward deception, not value; when fine print outweighs fairness; when firms grow too dominant to care - the entire system suffers. That's why competition policy and consumer policy must work hand in hand. A competitive market isn't just about lower prices. It's about higher standards. It's about firms knowing they'll lose customers if they don't do the right thing - and that regulators will step in if they cross the line. This is particularly urgent in the digital economy. As AI systems become more powerful, the risk of opaque decisions, embedded bias and automated unfairness grows. Scams are becoming more sophisticated, with deepfakes and spoofed messages designed to exploit even the savvy. "Dark patterns" - manipulative website designs that make it hard to cancel, return or say no - are becoming increasingly common. Globalisation, too, has complicated enforcement. Many online platforms operate across jurisdictions, making redress harder and regulation slower. To meet these challenges, we need laws that are modern, regulators that are empowered, and markets that reward ethical behaviour. We also need cooperation. Consumer protection can't be achieved by government alone. It requires collaboration between regulators and researchers, businesses and advocates, technologists and policymakers. It means listening to real consumers, not just corporate lobbyists. It means designing systems that are built for trust - and proving worthy of that trust, again and again. At its best, consumer protection doesn't just stop bad behaviour. It shapes the kind of economy we want to live in - one that rewards integrity, encourages innovation, and treats fairness not as a luxury, but as a baseline. In the end, every tap of a card, every "I agree" clicked, is a small act of trust. Australians deserve to know that the system will live up to it. In a fast-changing economy, consumer trust isn't just a virtue - it's a necessity. Whether you're buying a fridge, downloading an app, or applying for a mortgage, you're taking a leap of faith that the product will do what it claims, the terms will be fair, and someone will listen if things go wrong. Trust is the invisible infrastructure of the modern marketplace. Strip it away, and what remains is a minefield of confusion, caution and exploitation. When people stop believing the system works for them, they disengage. And when bad actors go unchallenged, good businesses suffer, too. Australia has made real strides in building trust through strong consumer protection. The Australian Consumer Law, introduced in 2011, brought together a tangle of federal, state and territory rules into a single national framework. Since then, protections have expanded - unfair contract terms are now banned, consumer guarantees are better enforced, and regulators have more tools to hold businesses to account. But markets don't stand still. And nor can our laws. MORE OPINION: Today, technology has transformed the way we live and shop. Global platforms dominate online commerce. Artificial intelligence increasingly determines what ads we see, what prices we're offered, even which products we're shown in the first place. With these advances come opportunities - but also new risks. AI, for all its potential, raises serious questions for consumer protection. What happens when a chatbot gives dangerously wrong advice? When a recommendation algorithm steers vulnerable users toward harmful content? Or when a company uses machine learning to nudge people into purchases they later regret? That's why the Australian government is working to ensure our legal frameworks keep pace with our technological ones. We're reviewing how AI-enabled products and services are regulated, with a view to ensuring transparency, accountability and fairness. We're also introducing civil penalties for breaches of consumer guarantees - because rights without consequences are just suggestions. We're improving the Unit Pricing Code, so shoppers can easily compare the real value of groceries. And we're rolling out a Scams Prevention Framework that places obligations on banks, telcos and digital platforms to detect and prevent scams, not just clean up after them. Meanwhile, our regulators are stepping up enforcement in the sectors where trust is most fragile. With targeted government funding, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is focusing on competition and fair trading issues in the supermarket and retail sectors, including misleading pricing and abuse of market power. Its compliance priorities include tackling greenwashing, protecting vulnerable NDIS users, and cracking down on manipulative digital practices. Too often, the worst harms occur when companies grow too dominant or operate in spaces where oversight is weak. Take the example of a remote Indigenous community, where an elderly woman walked into a Telstra store seeking a basic mobile phone. She walked out with multiple postpaid contracts she didn't understand, and monthly bills she couldn't afford. The Federal Court later fined Telstra $50 million for unconscionable conduct. In another case, Meta subsidiaries were fined $20 million after marketing an app that claimed to protect user data while secretly harvesting it. Apple was fined $9 million for telling customers they weren't eligible for repairs after using third-party technicians - a claim that flew in the face of Australian law. And when Hungry Jack's included a toy in a children's meal without the required button battery warning, it was penalised for breaching safety standards. These rules exist for a reason: to protect families from serious harm. These aren't fringe operators. They're household names. And their conduct was made possible by market power, information asymmetry, and the assumption that no one was watching. Consumer protection is sometimes seen as a sideline to "serious" economic reform. But in truth, it's central to how modern economies function. When markets reward deception, not value; when fine print outweighs fairness; when firms grow too dominant to care - the entire system suffers. That's why competition policy and consumer policy must work hand in hand. A competitive market isn't just about lower prices. It's about higher standards. It's about firms knowing they'll lose customers if they don't do the right thing - and that regulators will step in if they cross the line. This is particularly urgent in the digital economy. As AI systems become more powerful, the risk of opaque decisions, embedded bias and automated unfairness grows. Scams are becoming more sophisticated, with deepfakes and spoofed messages designed to exploit even the savvy. "Dark patterns" - manipulative website designs that make it hard to cancel, return or say no - are becoming increasingly common. Globalisation, too, has complicated enforcement. Many online platforms operate across jurisdictions, making redress harder and regulation slower. To meet these challenges, we need laws that are modern, regulators that are empowered, and markets that reward ethical behaviour. We also need cooperation. Consumer protection can't be achieved by government alone. It requires collaboration between regulators and researchers, businesses and advocates, technologists and policymakers. It means listening to real consumers, not just corporate lobbyists. It means designing systems that are built for trust - and proving worthy of that trust, again and again. At its best, consumer protection doesn't just stop bad behaviour. It shapes the kind of economy we want to live in - one that rewards integrity, encourages innovation, and treats fairness not as a luxury, but as a baseline. In the end, every tap of a card, every "I agree" clicked, is a small act of trust. Australians deserve to know that the system will live up to it. In a fast-changing economy, consumer trust isn't just a virtue - it's a necessity. Whether you're buying a fridge, downloading an app, or applying for a mortgage, you're taking a leap of faith that the product will do what it claims, the terms will be fair, and someone will listen if things go wrong. Trust is the invisible infrastructure of the modern marketplace. Strip it away, and what remains is a minefield of confusion, caution and exploitation. When people stop believing the system works for them, they disengage. And when bad actors go unchallenged, good businesses suffer, too. Australia has made real strides in building trust through strong consumer protection. The Australian Consumer Law, introduced in 2011, brought together a tangle of federal, state and territory rules into a single national framework. Since then, protections have expanded - unfair contract terms are now banned, consumer guarantees are better enforced, and regulators have more tools to hold businesses to account. But markets don't stand still. And nor can our laws. MORE OPINION: Today, technology has transformed the way we live and shop. Global platforms dominate online commerce. Artificial intelligence increasingly determines what ads we see, what prices we're offered, even which products we're shown in the first place. With these advances come opportunities - but also new risks. AI, for all its potential, raises serious questions for consumer protection. What happens when a chatbot gives dangerously wrong advice? When a recommendation algorithm steers vulnerable users toward harmful content? Or when a company uses machine learning to nudge people into purchases they later regret? That's why the Australian government is working to ensure our legal frameworks keep pace with our technological ones. We're reviewing how AI-enabled products and services are regulated, with a view to ensuring transparency, accountability and fairness. We're also introducing civil penalties for breaches of consumer guarantees - because rights without consequences are just suggestions. We're improving the Unit Pricing Code, so shoppers can easily compare the real value of groceries. And we're rolling out a Scams Prevention Framework that places obligations on banks, telcos and digital platforms to detect and prevent scams, not just clean up after them. Meanwhile, our regulators are stepping up enforcement in the sectors where trust is most fragile. With targeted government funding, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is focusing on competition and fair trading issues in the supermarket and retail sectors, including misleading pricing and abuse of market power. Its compliance priorities include tackling greenwashing, protecting vulnerable NDIS users, and cracking down on manipulative digital practices. Too often, the worst harms occur when companies grow too dominant or operate in spaces where oversight is weak. Take the example of a remote Indigenous community, where an elderly woman walked into a Telstra store seeking a basic mobile phone. She walked out with multiple postpaid contracts she didn't understand, and monthly bills she couldn't afford. The Federal Court later fined Telstra $50 million for unconscionable conduct. In another case, Meta subsidiaries were fined $20 million after marketing an app that claimed to protect user data while secretly harvesting it. Apple was fined $9 million for telling customers they weren't eligible for repairs after using third-party technicians - a claim that flew in the face of Australian law. And when Hungry Jack's included a toy in a children's meal without the required button battery warning, it was penalised for breaching safety standards. These rules exist for a reason: to protect families from serious harm. These aren't fringe operators. They're household names. And their conduct was made possible by market power, information asymmetry, and the assumption that no one was watching. Consumer protection is sometimes seen as a sideline to "serious" economic reform. But in truth, it's central to how modern economies function. When markets reward deception, not value; when fine print outweighs fairness; when firms grow too dominant to care - the entire system suffers. That's why competition policy and consumer policy must work hand in hand. A competitive market isn't just about lower prices. It's about higher standards. It's about firms knowing they'll lose customers if they don't do the right thing - and that regulators will step in if they cross the line. This is particularly urgent in the digital economy. As AI systems become more powerful, the risk of opaque decisions, embedded bias and automated unfairness grows. Scams are becoming more sophisticated, with deepfakes and spoofed messages designed to exploit even the savvy. "Dark patterns" - manipulative website designs that make it hard to cancel, return or say no - are becoming increasingly common. Globalisation, too, has complicated enforcement. Many online platforms operate across jurisdictions, making redress harder and regulation slower. To meet these challenges, we need laws that are modern, regulators that are empowered, and markets that reward ethical behaviour. We also need cooperation. Consumer protection can't be achieved by government alone. It requires collaboration between regulators and researchers, businesses and advocates, technologists and policymakers. It means listening to real consumers, not just corporate lobbyists. It means designing systems that are built for trust - and proving worthy of that trust, again and again. At its best, consumer protection doesn't just stop bad behaviour. It shapes the kind of economy we want to live in - one that rewards integrity, encourages innovation, and treats fairness not as a luxury, but as a baseline. In the end, every tap of a card, every "I agree" clicked, is a small act of trust. Australians deserve to know that the system will live up to it.
Canberra Times
29-06-2025
- Business
- Canberra Times
Why consumer trust matters more than ever
We're also introducing civil penalties for breaches of consumer guarantees - because rights without consequences are just suggestions. We're improving the Unit Pricing Code, so shoppers can easily compare the real value of groceries. And we're rolling out a Scams Prevention Framework that places obligations on banks, telcos and digital platforms to detect and prevent scams, not just clean up after them.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
ACCC proposes reforms to boost supermarket competition and fairness
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has concluded its investigation into the supermarket industry, issuing 20 recommendations to enhance market competition. The inquiry revealed that ALDI, Coles and Woolworths rank high in profitability compared to international counterparts, with a noted rise in average product margins over the five fiscal years up to 2025. The ACCC estimates that Woolworths holds 38% of the national supermarket grocery market, Coles has 29%, ALDI accounts for 9% and Metcash, representing the independent supermarkets it supplies, has 7%. The proposed measures encompass initiatives such as implementing more transparent pricing strategies, increasing supplier transparency and modifying existing planning and zoning regulations. These steps are intended to foster a more competitive landscape within the supermarket sector, benefit consumers and provide suppliers with more equitable negotiation terms. ACCC deputy chair Mick Keogh stated: 'In the past 12 months, the ACCC has heard from more than 20,000 consumers who responded to our consumer survey, received more than 100 public submissions, held eight supplier roundtables, reviewed tens of thousands of internal documents, conducted private hearings and ten days of public hearings, and analysed billions of points of supermarket data.' The 20 recommendations made in the final report for the ACCC's supermarkets inquiry are: It's essential for governments to explore backing for locally-owned shops in areas with limited options, especially those that are remote, while ensuring proper oversight. It should be mandatory for supermarkets to disclose their pricing data. Legislative action is needed to tackle issues related to urban planning and land use regulation. Supermarkets ought to meet baseline requirements for sharing information about promotional discounts, along with maintaining records. ACCC supports the consultation initiative by the Australian government regarding amendments to the Unit Pricing Code. There should be an obligation for supermarkets to alert consumers when there is a reduction in product size that negatively impacts them. Coles and Woolworths need to periodically provide their loyalty programme members with summaries of their data practices. Loyalty schemes should undergo an evaluation after three years. ACCC advocates for improved processes for handling consumer complaints in isolated areas. Supermarkets must adhere to fundamental safeguards outlined in the Food and Grocery Code without exception. There is a need for uniformity in standards for accreditation and auditing. ALDI, Coles and Woolworths must supply their fresh produce vendors with comprehensive projections of their supply needs. These supermarkets also need to offer more clarity on their weekly bidding procedures that determine price and quantity agreements with suppliers. There should be more openness concerning the wholesale prices of fresh produce at supermarkets. ALDI, Coles and Woolworths must not have the authority to single-handedly cut agreed-upon prices or quantities of wholesale fresh produce. Transparency is crucial for farmers who sell their produce via middlemen. Producers supplying supermarket-branded fresh goods should receive prompt confirmation of orders from retailers. Producers must have the option to label their own fresh goods. The disclosure regarding rebates paid by suppliers to supermarkets needs to be clearer. Finally, Coles and Woolworths should elucidate how they use contributions from suppliers towards their proprietary retail media services. In February 2025, ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb outlined the agency's commitment to make retail pricing, merger reforms and competition challenges its priorities for the fiscal year 2025/26. "ACCC proposes reforms to boost supermarket competition and fairness" was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
