News Corp-backed One Big Switch fined by ACCC for misleading campaign
News Corp-backed One Big Switch has been fined $25,200 by the ACCC for alleged false and misleading energy price representations in its ‘Big Switch Up’ offer with energy provide Click Energy.
The ACCC issued infringement notices over the campaign which claimed customers would save up to $372 per year if they moved their accounts.
The consumer watchdog alleged the savings promises were false or misleading as they were based on a comparison between Click Energy’s discounted market offer and competitors’ undiscounted ‘standing’ offers.
ACCC chair Rod Sims said: “The ACCC alleged that this representation was false or misleading because calculation of the 27% discount was based on rates under the Big Switch Up offer which were higher than Click Energy’s ‘standing’ offer rates.
“The actual savings for some consumers were much less than the amount advertised by One Big Switch.”
The Big Switch Up campaign in south-east Queensland was run at the same time as the Big Energy Switch campaign launched with Seven to entice 40,000 Australians to join the company’s campaign to lower electricity prices.
One Big Switch was founded in 2011 and defines itself as “a consumer network” that bundles consumers together to help them achieve collective discounts on their household bills. It receives commissions from utility companies in return for bringing large groups of consumers across to their businesses.
In 2015, News Corp took an undisclosed stake in the business. Mumbrella understands One Big Switch currently has no arrangement with Seven West, however, One Big Switch’s parent company, Revtech Media, operates the 9Saver platform for Nine Entertainment.
The relationships between News, Nine and One Big Switch have been the subject of some media criticism with Media Watch examining their relationships in 2012.
Revtech Media confirmed to Mumbrella that News Corp remains a shareholder and campaign partner of One Big Switch and added Macquarie Radio and Fairfax Radio are partners in a platform called The FiftyUp Club.
A spokesperson for Revtech Media said in a statement: “RevTech Media has agreed to pay two infringement notices from the ACCC in relation to an offer sourced in 2017 from Click Energy for SE QLD.
The ACCC says the offer should not have applied a discount to market offer rates that were higher than Click Energy’s standing offer rates, and that RevTech Media should not have compared the cost of the offer to the average standing offer of the 3 biggest energy retailers.
“RevTech Media accepts the umpire’s decision and has, since November 2017, required all Energy offers sourced for members to be expressed as a headline discount off the retailer’s standing offer rates.
“Revtech Media looks forward to regulators and governments developing a simple, common price benchmarking system that will allow consumers to easily compare the price of energy offers – which they cannot currently do.
“At RevTech Media, before we promote any offer to members, we undertake a detailed analysis of the combined effect of the discounts and the underlying rates to ensure the offers are highly competitive for on-time payers.
“We’ve undertaken this expert analysis for all offers we have presented to members – including any Click Energy offers – and we stand by their price competitiveness in the market at the time.”
News have been contacted while Nine and Seven had no comment on their relationship with One Big Switch and Revtech.
