Industry talking - In search of harmony

The ARCIA event in Perth on 10 April saw around 80 people gather for an afternoon of discussion and an evening of presentations and a formal dinner. I always enjoy talking with people about our industry, so I was fortunate to be able to travel to Perth and help support the event. Our thanks go to Rob Howes for organising it and making sure that everyone was given a great welcome, and to Tait Communications for supporting the event and providing guest speakers on the future of networks and change management.

Next on the calendar is the ARCIA Sydney dinner on 18 June and, of course, Comms Connect Sydney. This is really shaping up to be a great event; bookings are now open so don’t miss out.

ARCIA was recently invited by ACMA to present at its 2014 spectrum tune-ups in Sydney and Perth, which were aimed at milestones 2 and 3 of the 400 MHz bandplan changes. ACMA had asked ARCIA for comments on a range of issues and I would like to thank the many people I rang and emailed to gather information for our presentation. I would also like to thank WA member Albert Hazelbrook for presenting in Perth.

A wide range of issues was discussed and, of course, we all know there are problems with making such wholesale changes to this critical spectrum. However, it is only by having good general engagement with the regulator that we can find common ground and try to get resolutions on many of the problems that are occurring. It was pleasing to see genuine commitment from the ACMA staff, and many of the items we raised, such as a more modern renewal system, are being worked on. We intend to have follow-up meetings on many of these issues, as I believe our members have a huge amount of experience that will benefit both ACMA and the industry.

One of the most interesting things to come out of the meetings is that many state governments are treating Tier II and III government users differently in terms of the obligation to move to harmonised government spectrum (HGS). This is causing confusion in the marketplace and really needs direction. I was also surprised to hear from many government sectors that funding is not available to change systems to be compliant with the HGS. It would appear that the states have not fully realised the implications of signing up for the 400 MHz changes. I would suggest that all members review the ACMA 400 MHz website, especially the e-newsletter on the site.

The ARCIA committee has signed off on the comprehensive economic study on the value of our industry to Australia - now the hard work begins. I’m delighted that we have the support of many people for this very important project. The committee is acutely aware that it has a responsibility to spend members’ money wisely, but we have to fight for good policy outcomes and we see this as a very important tool for the future of our industry.

Hamish Duff, President
Australian Radio Communications Industry Association