Consumer Data Right: Publication of Telecommunications sectoral assessment final report and draft designation instrument

Senator the Hon Jane Hume

Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and Digital Economy

Minister for Women's Economic Security 

23rd November 2021

The Morrison Government is furthering its commitment to the economy‑wide rollout of the Consumer Data Right (CDR) by today releasing the final report of the sectoral assessment for telecommunications.

This report is a key step towards rolling out the CDR to telecommunications and was developed through stakeholder consultation. It recommends that the sector become part of the CDR.

The Government has also released a draft designation instrument which sets out the data holders and datasets proposed for designation and is now seeking public input on the instrument. As required under the law, designation of the sector cannot occur within 60 days of publishing the final sectoral assessment.

Senator the Hon Jane Hume, Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and the Digital Economy, Minister for Women’s Economic Security, said the CDR empowers consumers to leverage their data to save time and money through better‑informed decisions about products and services.

“This report identifies that designating the telecommunications sector would expand the CDR framework to a key sector of the Australian economy, allowing consumers to make better choices and facilitating opportunities for cross‑sectoral innovation.”

“The CDR is a major initiative in the Government’s $1.2 billion Digital Economy Strategy. It gives consumers the right to transfer their data to third parties of their choice so that they can gain more value from their data,” Senator Hume said.

The CDR also encourages businesses to compete and innovate and makes it easier for consumers and businesses to make good product choices.

Telecommunications is the third sector to be considered for designation after banking and energy, which were designated in 2019 and 2020 respectively.

The draft designation instrument can be found on the Treasury website. Treasury will run a roundtable to discuss the draft designation instrument, and welcomes written submissions by 13 December 2021.