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Relay services in Australia - the consumer view

Explore Australia's National Relay Service: funding, call types, usage statistics, costs, call modes, challenges, and future vision for functional equivalence.

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Relay services in Australia - the consumer view

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

  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

  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

  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

  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

  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

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

  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

  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

  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

  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

  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

  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,_older_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

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