MyRepublic, an NBN provider, has paid $25,200 in penalties after being issued two infringement notices by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC).
The infringement notices relate to alleged false or misleading representations about MyRepublic’s NBN service performance.
Between December 2017 and April 2018, MyRepublic marketed its NBN services using statements such as “up to nbnTM100 Speed Tier” and “nbn™50 Speed Tier” on its website.
The MyRepublic website contained fine print disclaimers that the ACCC considered were ineffective as they were not prominent and did not provide clear information.
“We were concerned that MyRepublic’s use of the NBN speed tiers misled consumers to believe they would get broadband speeds of, or close to, 100Mbps and 50Mbps during all or almost all of the time, when that wasn’t the case,” ACCC Commissioner, Sarah Court, said.
“NBN speed tiers indicate the maximum performance of a broadband service but a number of factors, including congestion during busy periods, affects the actual speeds consumers will experience.
“When choosing between broadband services, consumers need accurate information about the performance they should expect, particularly during busy periods. We’ve been very clear with broadband providers about this and reference to the NBN speed tiers alone is not sufficient.”
The ACCC can issue an infringement notice where it has reasonable grounds to believe a person has contravened certain consumer protection laws.
