The introduction of the Consumer Data Right (CDR) regime under the Competition and Consumer (Consumer Data Right) Rules 2020 (Cth) (CDR Rules) changed the data regulation landscape in Australia.
The Australian Government will spend AU$111.3 million of the Digital Economy Budget 2021-2022 on the CDR over the next 2 years. The budget will be used to continue the implementation of the CDR in the banking sector and to accelerate the rollout of the CDR to other parts of the economy including the energy sector and the telecommunications sector, which have been named as the next priority CDR sectors. Entities in the energy and the telecommunications sectors should now be planning for the implementation of the CDR in their sector in the relatively near term, as part of their technology and compliance planning.
For the banking sector, the CDR has been operational since July 2020. For all major Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions (ADIs), the roll out of the CDR is in its final phase, Phase 3, meaning that the CDR is available to customers of major ADIs. The CDR will continue to be rolled out for all non-major ADIs throughout 2021.
In the energy sector, the budget will be used to develop the designation instrument and relevant standards for the CDR regime, with the aim to have the CDR regime operational in 2022. For the telecommunications sector, the budget will allow the government to undertake a strategic assessment of the sector to deliver a roadmap for the roll out of the CDR.
Ultimately, the Australian federal government intends that the CDR regime will be available economy wide.
Read more about the CDR here.
If you have any questions regarding the CDR, please contact Hamish Fraser (Partner, Technology and Communications) at Hamish.Fraser@twobirds.com, Sophie Dawson (Partner, Media, Privacy and Data) at Sophie.Dawson@twobirds.com, Thomas Jones (Partner, Competition and Regulatory) at Thomas.Jones@twobirds.com. and Natalie Yeung at Natalie.Yeung@twobirds.com (Associate, Technology and Communications).
