Public payphones should be hung up for good, according to the latest advice of the Productivity Commission.
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A report regarding the Telecommunications Universal Service Obligation (TUSO) labeled the policy providing basic telephone and payphone services "anachronistic and costly", and suggested an immediate transition away from the agreement.
But, in the absence of reliable country-wide mobile coverage, some sections of the Australian population may still rely on the TUSO.
Communities in mobile black spots, such as Tanja, Candelo and Bemboka in the Bega Valley, may still require their local payphone service, especially for emergency situations.
It is estimated Australia spends at least $44 million dollars on operating payphones, which have significantly dropped in popularity as people switch to mobile phones to make calls on the go.
In fact, one third of Australians have done away with landline phones completely, relying solely on their mobile phones to make calls.
This switch has led to a decline in payphones across the country in the past decade, from over 30,000 to around 17,000 now.
The TUSO is an agreement made by the Australian Government and Telstra when the sector was being deregulated in the 1990's. It ensures all Australians have 'reasonable access' to basic telephone and payphone services.
The Productivity Commission argues the TUSO should be terminated by 2020, to coincide with the completion of the NBN rollout.
It predicts that the combination of NBN and mobile networks will meet or exceed the minimum standards set by the TUSO for 99% of premises in Australia.
However mobile coverage can be affected by severe weather, and in an emergency a payphone could be the only means of communication for a location.
Other groups who may still depend on their local payphone service are those who have not made the switch to mobile phones, those unable to finance a mobile phone plan, or those with no fixed address.
Although they are generally regarded as an emergency backup when mobile or landline phones are unavailable, only 2% of Triple Zero calls were made from public payphones in 2015-16. Comparatively, mobile phones accounted for 69% of calls to Triple Zero in the same period.
Of course, this data does not reflect non-critical emergencies, such as contacting friends or family when a mobile phone is out of battery, out of mobile range, or lost.
The Productivity Commission suggests that savings could be had for both the Government and Telstra with the abolition of the TUSO, such as lower levy liabilities and reduced regulatory costs.
This would free up Government funding to better target communities in genuine telecommunication need, and allow Telstra to repurpose its service with a more commercial focus.