UOMO bill headed to the Senate
Key points
- The universal mobile service obligation bill, requiring Telstra, Optus and TPG Telecom to provide voice and text coverage across up to 5 million square kilometres, has passed the House of Representatives.
- Carriers argue satellite-to-mobile technologies and compatible handsets won’t be commercially viable in time for the bill’s December 2027 commencement, with TPG Telecom pushing for 2030.
- The bill may face further resistance in the senate, where Sarah Hanson-Young and Sarah Henderson are expected to seek additional amendments over domestic roaming in regional areas.
A bill requiring mobile carriers to provide access to mobile voice and SMS almost everywhere in Australia has passed the lower house.
The universal mobile service obligation (UOMO) bill, which requires Telstra, Optus and TPG Telecom to provide competitive voice and text services covering up to 5 million square kilometres of Australia, passed the House of Representatives.
The government agreed to an amendment pushed by Victorian crossbencher Helen Haines, requiring the publication of reasons for use of discretionary powers under the legislation that allow the communications minister to exempt telcos from complying with the obligation in certain areas.
But a further set of amendments proposed by Haines aimed at addressing access to mobile services for low-income consumers, fault rectification and provisions guaranteeing temporary disaster roaming in catastrophes was rejected.
Communications minister Anika Wells told parliament that the amendments were unnecessary, arguing that the bill either already addressed the issues or that they were dealt with under existing laws.
She also said telcos were already on track to make temporary disaster roaming available this October ahead of the natural disaster season as a joint industry-led initiative.
The UOMO bill, which is scheduled to commence from December 2027, has encountered strong resistance from carriers.
They argue that satellite-to-mobile (STM) technologies needed to meet the obligation are too immature and won’t be available as commercially competitive services in time for bill’s commencement.
STM technologies are needed in areas where mobile services presently do not reach or where coverage is poor.
Telstra said that the bill should not commence until both the low earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations and handsets needed to run satellite-to-mobile services are available and on commercially viable terms.
Similarly, TPG Telecom’s chief technology officer Giovanni Chiarelli said that the UOMO bill would not work until a critical mass of compatible handsets were available in the market.
Optus’ chief technology officer Sri Amirthalingam told a senate committee earlier this year that the technical, commercial and regulatory requirements needed to meet the UOMO obligations “safely and in a sustainable fashion” would not be in place by the commencement date.
TPG Telecom has argued that the bill should not commence before 2030 and Telstra has recommended that the default date be replaced by a ministerial direction made “based on the availability of required technology and compatible devices for voice and messaging, something that will only be will only be known closer to the time.”
The Department of Communications has previously told iTnews that the bill already contained provisions to deal with the industry’s concerns.
While it passed the lower house, the bill may encounter resistance in the senate, with at least two members expected to seek additional amendments to the legislation.
Greens communications spokesperson Sarah Hanson-Young and coalition senator Sarah Henderson have both been vocal critics of the bill, particularly around the topic of domestic roaming in regional areas.
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