Ofcom targets competition and consumer safeguards for 0845 and 0870 services

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/media_office/latest_news/nr_20041022

I've just read the page Daniel linked to above.

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What good does this do? This doesn't alleviate the key issue which is that it costs more to call companies on NGNs that GNs. It will not reduce the prices we currently pay, it's just a change of name!

Removing the link to BT prices is way overdue. Ofcom are trying to shut the door after the horse has bolted.

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I don't know about "can", "almost always" sounds more like it.

I would rephrase this as "The cost of calling an 0870 number cannot be lowered to the cost of calling a national geographical call."

The reason for this is because of revenue sharing. Therefore those who are paying the same for a national call and 0870 must be paying in the region of 7p/min daytime!

Ofcom also state "Discounted call packages mean that if consumers want to contact organisations close to their homes they would often be better off making calls to geographic numbers rather than 0845 or 0870 numbers ....." What a load of rubbish! It makes no difference whether or not an organisation is close to your home. Calling a geographic number via the cheapest telco carrier will ALWAYS be cheaper - because there is no PREMIUM to be paid!

They state "Businesses like call centres may be able to obtain some revenues for receiving inbound calls...." Do they live in the same World? We know that anyone can get an NGN  and receive revenue. Those with high call volumes on 0870s are getting as much as almost 4.5 p per minute! That is why the cost of these calls cannot be competitive. They fail to face this issue completely and actually claim later that after their proposed "changes" telco carriers will be able to compete in 0845 and 0870. This is just complete rubbish. Even if as we know they are planning as always to follow the BT line they ought to at least get someone who can put forward an accurate statement of the facts as they are at present!!! Quite PATHETIC in MHO.

I agree with KK. You write to Ofcom and they just state what they're doing and don't acknowledge what you've put.

I think they need making aware of the situation in university accommodation with 0870. The system in Oxford university (see this thread) must be the worst. You dial an 0870 and when that answers you dial the extension. You get charged to hear ringing, even if no-one answers! It won't suprise me if this is the next scam 0870 numbers will be used for. It's worse than normal queuing which Ofcom say isn't a problem!

I think I'd prefer options 3 or 4, which would remove the revenue-sharing on 08 numbers altogether, forcing companies to either stop trying to earn revenue from calls, or to move them to 09 numbers where it is clear to customers that they are premium rate.

Ofcom want option 2, which would set the cost of 0845 and 0870 at up to 4p and 8p per minute. But isn't that approximately the cost of daytime calls already? This could mean that the calls could be more expensive in the evening, which is the only time I'd normally call them! Also, if there were various different prices for 0845 and 0870 calls, this will just confuse consumers further.

I don't believe this would create any extra competition in the market for 08 calls at all - as Ofcom point out later in the document, the revenue sharing makes it impossible for originating operators to offer any discount.

The only "advantage" would be that people would no longer be able to describe the calls as local or national rate.

I fail to see how option 2 is an improvement over the status quo!

As for the other possible measures mentioned, I think ICSTIS should regulate all revenue-sharing numbers. I also think that free call-cost advice should be played before calls are connected, but that this can be overridden by dialling a prefix (e.g. for internet calls, or for numbers you dial regularly) - just as 141 cancels caller identification.

By the way, why are Ofcom publishing some consultation responses even before the consultation has closed?  And why only those from individuals -- can't see one from BT for example.

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I don't think there'd be any real difficulty in creating 09 numbers at lower price points, although ideally they would extend ICSTIS's remit to cover calls below 10p per minute.  For ISP's, these could then use new 09 ranges, or Ofcom could reserve a special 08 range (0844, say) for them.

Option 2 just introduces different rates within 0845 and 0870 number ranges. Isn't this just confusing, much like 0844/0871 now? Most SPs opt for the highest rate within these ranges because of consumer ignorance.

Option 3 where revenue payments are banned (see 4.37) ECS* SPs could move to 0844/0871 but Ofcom would need to consider whether to prevent non-ECS from going to 0844/0871. Non-ECS could move to 09 if they wish (see 4.38). Why allow them to go to 09 and not 0844/0871?

Do Ofcom not want to admit that 0844/0871 are simply low premium rate?

Interestingly, 4.42 says that there is no lower limit for 09 numbers (for BT customers). Therefore, it would appear that currently TCPs and SPs prefer to use 0844/0871, presumably due to the lack of regulation and rules applied to them compared to 09 numbers.

Banning RS on all numbers apart from 09 should be implemented in the interests of consumers. ECS services should have their own range within 09. In 4.43 they say that consumers are more aware of the pricing of 080 and 09 numbers. If the numbering plan had been implemented better from day one, then maybe consumers wouldn't have this issue. The fact that 080 is free and, in contrast, 0871 is so expensive is so confusing.

With freephone numbers, how about making them just that? All across the board mobile phone providers should have to make 080 free to call.

Also, 0871 are fixed rates all the time, 0844 are a bit of both. Why not distinguish by using different prefixes? More Ofcom-non-commonsense.

Option 4 where RS is removed on all 08 numbers is the only way forward. The question is, if they were do take this, how would these numbers be charged to the caller? The Ofcom document doesn't make this clear. However, 4.46 seems to sum up all the issues:
[quote]4.46  Under Option 4, regulatory support for revenue sharing would be removed on all 084 and 087 numbers. The rationale for this more radical approach can be summarised as follows:
• 0845 and 0870 calls were originally designed to enable consumers to access a range of value added services at standard local and national call rates
• the concept of standard charges for local and national calls is of diminishing relevance, and the stage has already been reached at which only a small proportion of consumers pay these charges for 0845 or 0870 calls in practice;
• the case for NTS call categories with retail prices linked to geographic call rates can, therefore, no longer be sustained; and
• whilst there is comparatively good consumer awareness of the likely cost of calling the 080 freephone and 09 premium number ranges, there is low consumer awareness of the tariff meaning of the 084 and 087 number ranges, so it is arguably better for consumers to have all revenue sharing confined to the reasonably well-recognised 09 number range.[/quote]

Why have Ofcom put option 5 in there; remove all RS on all 08 and 09 numbers? Do they have to make their document so many pages long? Now they're just being ridiculous and going to the other extreme!

I repeat what I said in my post above. The issues consumers have is that in a nutshell 084/087 have become premium rate. Ofcom can sort that by calling them that, or even better, moving 084/087 to the 09 range.

*Note:
ECS are Electronic Communication Services, eg PAYG internet and services reselling international calls.

Non-ECS are call centres and other voice services.