TUANZ Media Release : NZ Tech Users Association welcomes renewed focus on improving outcomes for Kiwi broadband consumers
TUANZ MEDIA RELEASE
Thursday 24th February 2022
TUANZ is welcoming the announcement yesterday from the Commerce Commission that they are continuing their focus on how broadband services are marketed in NZ through the release of their consultation paper on the Measuring Broadband NZ (MBNZ) programme. This follows on from the instruction issued to the industry in November last year to develop a marketing code that ensures consumers receive all the information they need from telco providers to make informed choices about the technology options and plans that best suit their needs.
The Telecommunications Forum is currently developing these marketing codes and we are encouraged by the positive approach they are taking to meet these requirements and how they are looking to utilise information from the MBNZ programme in the implementation of their codes. An independent service such as the MBNZ programme is key to being able to compare services – which is why the consultation that the Commission is undertaking is welcomed.
Craig Young, CEO of TUANZ said “It’s well known that communication providers have long used confusion as a tactic within their marketing of broadband services to Kiwi consumers, and we are genuinely pleased to see these moves by the industry which we believe will lead to fairer and more responsible behaviour on the part of providers.”
Young says “these are all very good first steps in the journey to improving clarity, transparency and comparability of services which will make a significant difference if implemented and policed fully.”
However, the members of TUANZ believe that more can be done as technology changes and enables smarter options for ensuring transparent competition. That’s why TUANZ in 2021 commissioned The Behavioural Insights Team (BIT) to undertake a review of inertia and complexity in the NZ market. We also asked the BIT team to look globally at what possible solutions might be on the horizon. Some of the solutions in the report are able to be implemented now, while a number are more future-focused but contribute to the ongoing conversation about improving outcomes for consumers.
“Parts of this report have been made available through the Commerce Commission submissions processes, but we now believe that it is time to make the full report publicly available for discussion,” says Young. “In particular, ideas such as simple guidelines on how to present information, updating the current product disclosure regime and holding providers accountable for the output of their choices are all ideas that should feed into the current work.”
The BIT report was completed in July 2021 and (is attached to this release) can be found here.
