2015|16ANNUALREPORTS

Australian Communications and Media Authority

Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner

Contents

Introduction 1

Part 1Australian Communications and Media Authority annual report 2015–16 7

Part 2Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner annual report 2015–16 105

Part 3Management and accountability 143

Part 4Appendixes 155

Glossary 270

Index 275

Introduction

About this report 3

Performance framework 4

This report includes the 2015–16 annual reports for the Australian Communications and Media Authority and the Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (the ACMA) is committed to making media and communications work for all Australians. We do this by fostering an innovative communications and media environment that balances the needs of both industry and the Australian community through regulation, education and advice.

We work closely with stakeholders within the legislative regulatory framework to safeguard the public interest, address the broad concerns of the community, and provide access to public resources like spectrum and telephone numbers.

In undertaking our role, we aim to deliver public interest outcomes with the minimum regulatory burden necessary, while managing risks and protecting the interests of the community.

The Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner

The Office of the Children’s eSafety Commissioner (the Office) is the national lead on issues of online safety and is responsible for the promotion and support of measures to improve online safety for children. The Office works with industry, government and not-for-profit cybersafety organisations to provide innovative, scalable and sustainable online safety resources for children, parents, teachers and the wider community.

The Children’s eSafety Commissioner is an independent statutory office-holder, established under the Enhancing Online Safety for Children Act 2015. The Office commenced operation on 1 July 2015.

The Office operates as functionally separate from the ACMA. However, the ACMA provides staff and resources to the Office to assist in the fulfilment of the functions of the Commissioner under section 67 of the Enhancing Online Safety for Children Act. The ACMA also provides corporate support services to the Office, purchased under an agreed cost structure.

2 ACMA and the Office annual reports 2015–16

About this report

This annual report contains details of the ACMA’s and the Office’s performance for 2015–16, in addition to providing key corporate information and mandatory reporting requirements.

As a primary mechanism of accountability to the Parliament of Australia, this report has been prepared in line with the requirements for annual reports for agencies under the Public Governance Performance and Accountability Act 2013 (PGPA Act). It uses the same program structure as outlined in the ACMA’s 2015–16 Portfolio Budget Statements (PBS).

Guide to the report

Introduction outlines the joint nature of this report and where the ACMA and the Office share resources or corporate support. It includes the overarching performance framework and alignment of reporting requirements. Table 1 shows PBS KPIs for both the ACMA and the Office.

Part 1 contains reporting information for the ACMA, including the Annual Performance Statement (APS) in Chapter 2. APS results are detailed in Chapter 3.

Part 2 contains reporting information for the Office.

Part 3 reports on joint management and accountability information for both the ACMA and the Office.

Part 4 contains the appendixes, which include both the ACMA’s and the Office’s information.

Navigation aids include:

> tables of contents (overarching and at the beginning of each part)

> icons indicating alignment to KPIs are throughout and relate to Table 1 (p. 5) and Table 1.2 (p. 27)

> index

> glossary

> list of requirements (Appendix 14).

3Introduction

Performance framework

The ACMA and the Office provide a range of reporting information across each financial year to demonstrate a clear outline of purpose, programs and outcomes. The requirements for the ACMA and the Office are slightly different, as shown in Figure 1.

The ACMA’s PBS sets out the strategic outcomes and performance indicators for both the ACMA and the Office. The ACMA’s corporate plan is aligned to the PBS and details performance information on contributions specifically attributable to the ACMA. Performance results for the ACMA are reported in the annual report and more specifically in the APS.

Performance results for the Office are reported throughout the year online and in the annual report. The Office is not a Commonwealth entity under the PGPA Act and is not required to produce a corporate plan.

Both the ACMA and the Office publish a regulator performance self-assessment at the end of the calendar year, measuring the efficiency and effectiveness with which they undertake their roles, and their impact on regulated entities.

Table 1 shows performance measures for the ACMA and the Office grouped by the PBS programs.

Figure 1: Alignment of reporting requirements

Financial year 1 Financial year 2

PortfolioBudgetStatements

AustralianCommunicationsand MediaAuthority

Office of theChildren’s eSafetyCommissioner

Corporateplan

AnnualPerformanceStatement

Annual report

RegulatorPerformanceFramework/report

RegulatorPerformanceFramework/report

4 ACMA and the Office annual reports 2015–16

Table 1: PBS key performance indicators (KPIs) for the ACMA and the Office

ACMA’s programs and performance criteria

Shared programs and performance criteria

Performance criteria only relating to the Office

PBS PBS performance criteria (KPIs)

Purpose To ensure communications and media works in Australia’s public interest.

Outcome Outcome 1: A communications and media environment that balances the needs of the industry and the Australian community through regulation, education and advice.

Program 1.1: That the allocation and use of public resources maximises their value to the Australian community; and that national safety and security interests are appropriately supported in the planning and delivery of communication infrastructure and services.

Spectrum users can access spectrum on terms and conditions appropriate to meet their needs, subject to other users and government policy objectives.

PBSKPI1

That interference complaints are resolved within published timeframes and in a cost effective manner.

PBSKPI2

That licences are allocated within statutory timeframes; and the outsourcing of the numbering function realises a reduction in administrative costs.

PBSKPI3

That law enforcement, emergency services and national security providers are appropriately and reasonably supported by the ACMA and telecommunications industry.

That ACMA determinations contribute to maintaining effective emergency call service access during the transition to an increasingly broadband-enabled environment.

PBSKPI4

Program 1.2: Consumer, citizen and audience safeguards are effective, designed to keep pace with evolving market developments, reflect community standards and deliver on consumer and community experience; and that consumers, citizens and industry benefit from engagement in the developing information economy and the evolving networked society.

That telecommunications safeguards, including those associated with Australia’s new broadband network, protect the interests of citizens and small businesses who purchase or use telecommunications services.

PBSKPI5

Effective operation of the Do Not Call Register for citizens and businesses.

PBSKPI6

That citizens and businesses have effective and accessible avenues of complaint and advice regarding unsolicited communications.

PBSKPI7

That broadcasting safeguards reflect community standards. That citizens have effective and accessible avenues of complaint for broadcast content that breaches community standards.

PBSKPI8

Internet providers, critical infrastructure providers and other organisations have access to information that enables them to assist citizens and small businesses to interact securely and safely with the digital networked economy.

PBSKPI9

That citizens have effective and accessible avenues of complaint for online content that breaches community standards.

PBSKPI10

That families and schools have access to resources that enable them to manage cyberbullying and other online safety issues for children and young people.

PBSKPI11

5Introduction