ACIF STANDARDISES EMERGENCY DIALLING ON MOBILE PHONES

The Australian Communications Industry Forum (ACIF) has revised mobile phone standards to assist users dialling the emergency operator.
The revised standard requires that all mobile phones sold in Australia must be capable of dialling emergency services even if the handset is locked.
The standard assists in situations where the person dialling is not familiar with the phone, for example, where a mobile phone user is involved in an accident and a passer-by picks up the locked handset to call for help or where a child at home uses the mobile phone of an incapacitated parent to call emergency services.
The standard, which provides the general requirements for mobile telephony in Australia, was updated by ACIF to address the need to keep up with developments in handset technology.
As well as the revisions relating to emergency calls, the standard has also been updated to include handsets such as screen-based devices like Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) that have touch screen keypads.
Another section of the revised standard introduces new requirements to limit maximum sound levels of conversations on mobile phones. The new requirements are designed to reduce the risk of users damaging their hearing because of excessive sound levels and is based on the standard for fixed line phones.
This Standard is being forwarded to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) for registration.
About ACIF
ACIF is a member-funded organisation established in 1997 to lead industry involvement in defining the communications environment.
ACIF provides a neutral forum in which all participants and end-users in the Australian communications industry can work together to foster an efficient, competitive environment.