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neutrality and research costing  \nIssues for Australian universities  \nTania Bezzobs University of Melbourne  \nIncreasingly universities are becoming commercial enterprises and their core activities of teaching and research subject to business imperatives. This paper reviews the research costing methodologies of 17 Australian universities. Tension between Competition Law and Competitive Neutrality exists which could be resolved through improved costing and pricing transparency for research.  \n1. Introduction  \nThe traditional perception of universities in Australia was that they were halls of learning, scholarship and research supported primarily by government, operating not in a market-oriented environment, but rather for the public good (Fels 1998). Yet, subsequent waves of government-initiated change have resulted in:  \n• The steady decline in the proportion of conventional government funding universities receive (Productivity Commission 2002) .  \n• The introduction of Higher Education Contribution Scheme payments for undergraduate courses and full-fee payments for many courses.  \n• The removal of compulsory student unionism.  \n• Increased numbers of international students coming into Australia and the expansion of Australian universities into offshore markets.  \n• Recent deregulation in the cap on full-fee paying places.  \n• Government funding tied to governance reform. University activities are now increasingly seen as com  \nmercial operations, in their core functions (education  \nand research) and ancillary services (such as bookshops, food services, child care services, etc.) . Universities now transact commercially and contract with individuals (that is, consumers-customers (Bessant 2004)) who gain personal benefit from the delivery of education services in a competitive market environment (Fels 1998) . This view has been endorsed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) .  \nIn this paper I will briefly review the applicability of the Trade Practices Act 1974 (TPA) and the Competitive Neutrality principles to Australian universities, focussing particularly but not exclusively on researchrelated activities. A hypothetical costing scenario using information provided by Australian universities has been used, and the tensions between Competition Law and Competitive Neutrality compliance are discussed.  \n2. Applicability of the Trade Practices Act  \nMany of the activities universities undertake can be viewed as being ‘commercial in character’ and will fall under the definition of engaging in trade or com-  \nvol. 51, no. 1, 2009 The Trade Practices Act, competitive neutrality and research costing, Tania Bezzobs 21  \nA U S T R A L I A N U N I V E R S I T I E S ’ R E V I E W  \nmerce, thereby being applicable activities under the TPA (for examples, see Clarke 2003) . As per Quickenden v Commissioner O’Connor of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission [2001] FCA 303, the University of Western Australia successfully argued that it was a trading corporation as it engaged in commercial activities from which it derived a substantial proportion of its revenue. In recognition of this changing view of university activities, many institutions have adopted guidelines concerning commercial activities. For example, University of Sydney Guidelines provide that an activity is likely to be commercial in nature if it involves the commercial development or exploitation of any facility, resource or property of the University; or meets the criteria under Competitive Neutrality Principles (see below) or involves the establishment of a joint venture or company; whereas an activity that falls within the core functions of the university and does not carry any significant commercial risk to the university is unlikely to be a commercial activity (University of Sydney 2007) .  \nTo date, most scrutiny has been placed on competitive ","cbCaih5Rdmcgfwp9","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaih5Rdmcgfwp9","pdf",191766,"English","# Introduction\n## Declining government funding and market pressures\n# Applicability of the Trade Practices Act\n## Commercial character of university activities\n## Examples of potential breaches (s45, s47, s48)","[{\"question\":\"What problem does the paper focus on regarding Australian universities?\",\"answer\":\"It focuses on how Competitive Neutrality requirements interact with Competition Law when universities undertake commercially oriented research and related activities.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the paper justify universities’ activities as “commercial in character”?\",\"answer\":\"It explains that many university activities can be treated as trade or commerce under the Trade Practices Act, supported by case reasoning about trading corporations and commercial revenue sources.\"},{\"question\":\"What approach does the paper use to discuss tensions in compliance?\",\"answer\":\"It uses a hypothetical costing scenario based on information from Australian universities and then analyzes how improved costing and pricing transparency can resolve or reduce compliance tensions.\"}]","The Trade Practices Act, competitive neutrality and research costing - Issues for Australian universities | PDF",1792081062,23]