The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has welcomed its new task of setting up a ‘Consumer Data Right’ for Australia, empowering consumers to access and share the data held by suppliers relating to them with potential supply competitors or other interested services.
Chair of the ACCC, Rod Sims said the Consumer Data Right would enable customers to share their transaction, usage and product data with service competitors and comparison services — if they chose to do so.
He said its introduction was a “fundamental competition and consumer reform”, and the ACCC was delighted to lead in its implementation.
“This new right will improve consumers’ ability to compare and switch between goods and services on offer,” Mr Sims said.
“We expect the scheme to encourage competition between service providers, leading not only to better prices for customers but also more innovation of products and services.”
He said the ACCC’s new role would involve developing rules and an accreditation scheme to govern the implementation of the Consumer Data Right, approving technical standards, and taking enforcement action to ensure compliance
Mr Sims said the banking sector would be the first to which the Consumer Data Right would be applied.
“The ACCC is establishing a dedicated Access to Data Unit to undertake all these functions, and also to advise the Treasurer on which sectors should be designated in the future, with energy and telecommunications currently being considered,” Mr Sims said.
He said the 2018-19 Budget allocated $20 million over the next four years to implement the Right.
Treasurer, Scott Morrison said the initiative resulted from recommendations in the final report of the independent Review into Open Banking.
“Implementation will be phased in from July 2019, paving the way for the introduction of the Consumer Data Right in the banking sector,” Mr Morrison said.
