1. Geneva, 25 November 2011 Relay services in Australia - the consumer view Danielle Fried Disability Policy Adviser Australian Communications Consumer Action Network ITU-T Workshop on “Telecommunications relay services for persons with disabilities ” (Geneva, 25 November 2011)

2. Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) National member group representing telecommunications consumers 175 members One third organisational members represent people with disability Also: community legal centres, farmers’ federations, financial counsellors, regional groups, seniors’ organisations, research bodies etc Geneva, 25 November 2011 2

3. Australia’s National Relay Service (NRS) Funded by levy on telcos Government manages contracts with two private providers (Relay & Outreach) Customer Consultative Committee Different call types for: Deaf Hearing-impaired Speech-impaired/ complex communication needs Wider community to call Deaf/HI/SI Geneva, 25 November 2011 3

4. Statistics 9000 Australians use NRS per month 3 160 003 call minutes in 2009-10 Half of all calls now via internet 15% of calls are ‘voice’ calls Geneva, 25 November 2011 4

5. Costs to consumers Relay service itself: Free for all users (Deaf, hearing- impaired, speech-impaired, wider community) Call costs: TTY, speech-to-speech, voice: 30-50c Internet relay: internet connection/data Equipment: TTY – rent for same cost as other phone Other – varies Geneva, 25 November 2011 5

6. Call modes TTY IP relay (“internet relay” - unidirectional) Speech to speech (“Speak and Listen”) Voice (to TTY or Speak and Listen) Emergency 106 – TTY 000 – internet relay, Speak and Listen, TTY Geneva, 25 November 2011 6

7. NOT included in NRS (yet!) Voice to internet relay Video relay Captioned telephony Services for other PWD (eg cognitive) Disability equipment program Geneva, 25 November 2011 7

8. An essential service Real-time communication Unlike email, SMS (text), fax Independence Employability Convenience Access to government, business, NGOs Not possible via SMS (text), online chat Emergency calls Geneva, 25 November 2011 8

9. Issues for consumers Time taken for calls Consistency (esp. speech to speech) Difficult or not possible to receive calls (depending on equipment) Literacy issues Outreach service unable to meet all needs (eg training in ‘phone norms’, Braille) Lack of SMS (text) access Geneva, 25 November 2011 9

10. Issues for consumers (continued) Refusal of businesses/family/friends to receive or handle relay calls Relay officer response times Cost (equipment, internet connection/data) Some emergency calls: Not prioritised Response times/reliability guarantees Geneva, 25 November 2011 10

11. Does Australia’s relay service provide functional equivalence? Speed? Privacy? Inbound and outbound calls? Natural conversation? First or preferred language? Access to a range of equipment? Reliability (esp. of emergency calls)? NOT YET Geneva, 25 November 2011 11

12. ACCAN’s vision – a Disability Telecommunications Service Expanded relay services Video relay (Auslan and speechreaders) Captioned telephony Next-generation text relay Services for consumers with cognitive and other disabilities Disability equipment program TTYs, computers, mobile/cell phones Specialised equipment to use these Geneva, 25 November 2011 12

13. More information? dani.fried@accan.org.au Twitter: @ACCAN_AU Australian Government’s review of relay service etc: http://www.dbcde.gov.au/consultation_and_submissions/review_ of_access_to_telecommunications_by_people_with_disability,_old er_australians_and_people_experiencing_illness http://www.dbcde.gov.au/consultation_and_submissions/review_ of_access_to_telecommunications_by_people_with_disability,_old er_australians_and_people_experiencing_illness ACCAN’s submission: http://bit.ly/ACCANNRS National Relay Service: www.relayservice.com.au Trial services of video relay and captioned telephony: http://www.aceinfo.net.au/index.php?option=com_content&view= article&id=1&Itemid=8 Geneva, 25 November 2011 13