2008 CTN Awards: Celebrating Consumer Advocacy in Telecommunications

 Each year at our annual conference CTN gives awards in recognition of those in and around the industry who work (and have worked) towards achieving better accessibility, affordability and quality of telecommunications services for Australian consumers.

Special Award in Recognition of Outstanding Service

Maureen Le Blanc

Maureen has been involved in CTN since our early days and as a member since 1991. She has made an outstanding contribution to raising issues for low-income consumers and also to support the need for consumer directed research. Maureen was also secretariat of the Telstra Consumer Consultative Council for a number of years.

Recognition of Outstanding Contribution to Consumer Advocacy

Nigel Waters

Nigel has worked tirelessly to ensure that privacy issues are not overlooked in telecommunications. In particular, Nigel's work last year on the Australian Law Reform Commission's review of privacy law required enormous resources and expertise.

Recognition of Outstanding Contribution to Consumer Advocacy

Andrew Wiltshire

Andrew has ensured that the telecommunications needs of Deaf consumers are not forgotten. Andrew sits on countless committees and travels around Australia consulting with the Deaf community, an incredible workload considering his role is only part time.

Recognition of Outstanding Service to Consumers

Siobhan McDonnell

Siobhan has recently left the Central Land Council, but was for a number of years the only representative advocating for the needs of indigenous consumers. She made significant inroads on payphone and Universal Service Obligation issues.

Recognition for Best Consumer Education Initiatives

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), for publications in community languages

This award recognises the ACCC for the range of publications they provide in community languages, including Amharic (Ethiopian), Arabic, Greek, Somali, Traditional Chinese and Vietnamese. The ACCC is one of the few government agencies that publish consumer information in languages other than English, and we congratulate them for their pro-active work in reaching vulnerable consumers.

Recognition for Best Consumer Education Initiatives

The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO)- "Sort it"

"Sort it" is a special joint bulletin from the TIO and the Banking and Financial Services Ombudsman showing the sorts of problems that can occur for young people with mobile phone and credit card contracts and debts. It's a great resource aimed at a vulnerable consumer group, and also excellent to see regulatory agencies working together to create good resources for consumers.

Recognition for Improving Accessibility

Nokia, for their Accessibility Booklet publication

Nokia have been the first equipment provider to demonstrate its commitment to accessibility through its publication of the Accessibility booklet. The booklet is an extremely valuable tool for all users, and we hope other manufacturers will meet the high standards set by Nokia.

Life Saver Awards

TIO

This award recognises the TIO for their much appreciated sponsorship of the CTN Conference this year. As a community organisation with budget limitations, it makes a huge difference to receive sponsorship for our events. So once again, a big thank you to the TIO.