ACMA takes GoTalk to court over alleged breaches

ACMA v GoTalk

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has filed a Federal Court action against telco GoTalk for alleged breaches of the Do Not Call Register Act.

It is the first time the communications watchdog has taken a company to the Federal Court of Australia for breaching the Act.

GoTalk allegedly called more than 40,000 telephone numbers on the register from offshore call centres.

The Act was set-up in 2006 by the then communications minister Helen Coonan, which banned telemarketers from calling numbers listed on the register.

While the ACMA would not discuss the allegations or what penalties are being sought, breaches have historically proven costly.

Discount telco Dodo Australia was slapped with a $147,400 fine – the largest in the history of the Act - in 2008 after its offshore call centres rang 67 de-listed Australian phone numbers.

The telco opted to pay the fine, issued by ACMA, rather than pursue the matter in court and face incurring a higher bill.

Last year GoTalk accepted an undertaking by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for allegations that its offshore call centres had misrepresented information consumers, including pricing and terms and conditions.

The telco agreed to record telemarketing calls and to monitor conversations at random to ensure compliance with the Trade Practices Act.

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