From CommsDay of 8 October 2026
Our Story of the Week is an article in yesterday’s CommsDay on ACMA’s report on consumer complaint trends and the levels of escalation to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman of complaints not resolved between service providers and complainants. Readers who might wish to delve deeper into the figures (and the complaint levels reported by individual service providers) could go to the ACMA’s report and realted information on the ACMA website: https://www.acma.gov.au/publications/2022-10/report/telco-complaints-handling-performance#key-industry-wide-observations-from-april-2026-to-june-2026
ACMA: Telco complaints drop 10% but concern over increased TIO escalation
The Australian Communications and Media Authority has reported that consumer complaints to telcos declined 10.8% to just under 749,000 in the 2025-26 financial year. Across mobile, internet and landline services the average number of complaints per 10,000 SIOs dropped 8.9%, from 45 to 41, ACMA said.
However despite the drop the regulator expressed concern about the increased proportion of complaints referred to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, which rose from 6.6% to 6.9%, although the total number of TIO-referred complaints
declined 7.1% to just over 51,000.
The weighted average days to resolve a complaint was 5.4 compared to last year’s result of 5.9. The ACMA report draws on data submitted by telcos with 30,000 or more services under a complaints recordkeeping rule that to an extent relies on the judgment of providers when it comes to classifying contact from a consumer as a complaint.
Along with the distinct category of network outage complaints it is defined as an “expression of dissatisfaction” in relation to a telco’s products or how it handles complaints “where a response or resolution is explicitly or implicitly expected by the consumer”.
During the June quarter Starlink was the least complained about telco, according to ACMA’s leaderboard, reporting to the regulator that it had received just two complaints per 10,000 SIOs, down from eight during the same period last year.
That compares to Aussie Broadband (11 per 10,000 SIOs), Telstra (25), Superloop (47), Optus (66) and TPG Telecom (also 66). TPG Internet was at the bottom of ACMA’s ranking, with 76 complaints per 10,000 SIOs, down from 79 in the preceding quarter and from 99 in the same period last year.
The data breaks out some sub-brands separately, with the Optus-owned Amaysim reporting 16 complaints per 10,000 SIOs, for example.
“With the release of the draft Telecommunications (Consumer Protection) Industry Standard for consultation last week, the ACMA is working towards having improved consumer protections in place at the earliest opportunity,” ACMA said. “Monitoring complaint trends assists in assessing the impact of new regulatory obligations, and will be of particular use when the new Standard is made and comes into effect.”
Although the record-keeping rule relies on a telco classifying a consumer complaint, ACMA’s data was released on the same day that the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman released its own annual report covering the same period. That report revealed that complaints to the TIO were down 6.5% on the previous year to just under 54,000.
As CommsDay reported yesterday, the Australian Telecommunications Alliance hailed that result, and likewise it welcomed the ACMA data. CEO Luke Coleman said yesterday “the latest ACMA complaints handling performance data showed that not only have overall complaints dropped, but also that average complaints per 10,000 services dropped from 40 to 39 and the weighted average days to resolve
complaints dropped.”
However in its response to the TIO data, the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network suggested that the results could be attributed to complaint fatigue among consumers.
“Fewer complaints should not be mistaken for better service. When consumers have no confidence in their telco and little hope of a fair outcome, many simply stop complaining,” ACCAN CEO Carol Bennett said yesterday. “After years of being let down, the average telco consumer hasn’t stopped having problems. They’ve given up expecting anyone to fix them.”
Bennett said the telco industry is facing a “crisis of confidence,” with enforceable reliability standards necessary to help rebuild trust.
OMBUDSMAN SEES EVOLUTION: In her annual message included in the report, Ombudsman Cynthia Gebert there was a need for the TIO to evolve to continue meeting the needs of consumers.
“One of the most important shifts in the modern ombudsman’s role is moving beyond resolving individual complaints to addressing the systemic issues that cause them,” she wrote.
“This is not a departure from our foundation, but a strengthening of it,” with complaints “a window into a consumer experience.” The TIO’s value “lies not only in resolving disputes, but in helping shape a system that works better for all Australians.”
Gebert said that the TIO has made a decision to extend its existing strategy for a further year to give it time to complete reforms it has underway. Its internal areas of focus for the coming year include improving timeliness and fairness, strengthening consistency, building capability across its workforce and investing in systems that support better outcomes, the Ombudsman wrote.
Rohan Pearce
IN TODAY’S COMMSDAY (Friday 9 October 2026)
Telstra has elevated artificial intelligence to a board level risk as it expands the technology across its operations, with every group executive involved in identifying opportunities for AI adoption and the company establishing common technical systems to manage its deployment.
The federal government has acknowledged it cannot yet quantify the economic benefits or costs of closing the digital divide for First Nations Australians, despite new research highlighting substantial disparities in internet access, particularly in remote communities.
Vocus executive John Ieraci has agreed to restrictions on his involvement in managed services and security product development until 1 January 2027, under an undertaking provided to the Federal Court following legal action launched by his former employer Telstra last week.
Former Australian Signals Directorate deputy Michael Shoebridge has warned that the agency’s $9.9bn REDSPICE expansion looks “dated and partial” as AI accelerates cyber attacks, arguing that private infrastructure operators will increasingly need to mount their own AI-enabled defences.
Elon Musk’s decisions about Starlink access during the Ukraine war show that private communications executives now wield powers intelligence agencies need to scrutinise, former Australian Signals Directorate deputy Michael Shoebridge says.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is assessing the impact on competition of a proposed new company incorporating the space businesses of listed European companies Airbus, Thales S.A. and Leonardo S.p.A.
Environmental monitoring technology company SiteHive says its systems are being used both to manage environmental impacts around large data centre campuses and to protect nearby critical telecommunications infrastructure during major construction works.
European satellite connectivity provider Open Cosmos said that 192 satellites will form the core connectivity backbone of its ConnectedCosmos low Earth orbit constellation.
US Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr has said that the regulator will vote later this month on refreshed direct-to-device rules that would make an additional 482MHz of spectrum available for services. In his announcement, Carr said the FCC would also consider other regulatory changes “to promote more flexible terrestrial, satellite, and hybrid business arrangements and incentivise high-quality D2D services for the benefit of consumers.”
Huawei rotating chairman Xu Zhijun has warned that shortages of optical modules and memory driven by surging AI infrastructure demand could persist until 2029, with China’s supply constraints potentially lasting longer.
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