Telecommunications Relay Service: Stakeholder Review: Call for Submissions
[ Last Updated 24 February 2006 ]
February 2006
Also available as: Telecommunications Relay Service Stakeholder Review: Call for Submissions [44 kB PDF]
Disclaimer: The Ministry accepts no responsibility for an acts or omissions done or omitted in reliance, in whole or in part on this document or the review of the Telecommunications Relay Service. The Ministry disclaims all responsibility or liability to any person, whether in contract, equity or tort or on any other basis, for any direct or indirect losses or damage of any kind arising from use of this document.
The Ministry of Economic Development is now seeking comment from interested people on how well the Relay Service is meeting the needs of people who use it.
In particular, the Ministry would like to receive comment on:
- How much has the Relay Service helped Deaf, hearing-impaired and speech-impaired people to access standard telephone services?
- Should there be any changes to the Relay Service to make it better for the people who use it?
- Which service features of the Relay Service do you like the most?
- Which service features of the Relay Service do you like the least?
- Do you see a need for textphone access to the relay system from public places, given that Internet access is now available?
- Do you see a need for text or voice access to the relay system in languages other than English?
The Ministry is happy to receive any other comments you wish to provide on the Relay Service.
The full scope of the review is outlined in the Terms of Reference.
Background
A Telecommunications Relay Service for meeting the telephone communication needs of Deaf, hearing-impaired and speech-impaired people was established in November 2004 under the Telecommunications Service Obligations (TSO) framework.
The Relay Service is available on a nationwide basis and is marketed under the name New Zealand Relay [link to NZ Relay website]. Sprint New Zealand is the Relay Service provider.
The objectives of the Relay Service are to:
- Provide the means whereby Deaf, hearing-impaired and speech-impaired people would be able to engage in instant response communications with any other telephone service user in the world.
- To supply certain telecommunications services to Deaf, hearing-impaired and speech-impaired people within New Zealand to whom these telecommunications services may not otherwise be supplied on a commercial basis or at an affordable price.
- Overcome the barriers that Deaf, hearing-impaired and speech-impaired people face in accessing standard telephone services.
- Support the human rights of the Deaf, hearing-impaired and speech-impaired in New Zealand.
Cabinet agreed that Relay Service would be reviewed one year after its implementation to ensure that the service is working satisfactorily (the Telecommunications Relay Service Stakeholder Review), and would report on the outcomes of this review to the Minister of Communications and the Minister for Disability Issues.
Address for Submissions
Submissions should be sent to:
The Manager
Information Technology and Telecommunications Policy
Ministry of Economic Development
PO Box 1473
Wellington
Email address: relayservice@med.govt.nz
The closing date for submissions is 14 March 2006
The Ministry may post all or parts of any written submission on this website. The Ministry will consider you to have consented to posting by making a submission, unless you clearly specify otherwise in your submission. In any case, content of submissions provided to the Ministry are likely to be subject to public release under the Official Information Act 1982 following requests to the Ministry (including via email). Please advise if you have any objection to the release of any information contained in a submission, and in particular, which part(s) you consider should be withheld, together with the reason(s) for withholding the information. The Ministry will take into account all such objections when responding to requests for copies and information on submissions to this document under the Official Information Act 1982.
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