Hi Ken

You should send your opinions to Ofcom by 5pm tomorrow in response to their two current consultations.  Send two if possible.  The first title is  “NTS - Options for the future.”  The second is “NTS – Call termination Market review”.  The consultation documents, as is usual for Ofcom, are complex and almost impenetrable on first reading: For that matter on any number of readings. Just tell them what you think of 087x and 084x numbers, any response is better than none.

Look at the following topics for further information:

“Ofcom targets competition and consumer safeguards”
“Ofcom bends the truth again. Can we trust them”
“A solution for Ofcom re 087X and 0845”

Others may be of help.

Email your responses to NTS@ofcom.org.uk before 5pm Friday 7 Jan 05, together with an Ofcom cover sheet, obtainable from the Ofcom web site.  If you have a problem finding the cover sheet, you can copy and paste the one in “Ofcom bends the truth again. Can we trust them.”  The 3rd reply.  I have sent the same response to both consultations, as I find the structure of Ofcom’s proposals not a helpful way to respond, but you can respond in any way that suites you.  You may feel that a sort response may be better considering the time available and the forced complexity of the consultations. 

In reality the solutions are simple.

Prohibit all revenue sharing from the 08 category completely. All 08 numbers should be put on the same footing as 01 and 02 numbers.  Organisation not interested in revenue sharing would continue to use their existing 08 number which would cost callers from 3p to 0p/min depending on their telecom provider.

Organisations who have to have a share of the revenue to exist, should move to an appropriate 09 category, where call charges could be set in the range 1p to 150p/min.  (1p could be used for internet dial up) The costs to the consumer would be transparent for all to see, if the cost was set too high, market forces would decide who survived.  The 09 classification was set up for revenue sharing and ICSTIS regulation would automatically apply to any call costing more than the UK Universal Rate of 3p/min during the day.

Having clandestine revenue sharing,  which exists under the present 08 classification, should end within weeks, as it is dishonest and should never have been permitted by Ofcom.

Agreed, kencrisp, but the problem is that 'Watchdog', newspapers etc all tend to have their noses in the 0870 trough - and will turkeys vote for Xmas??  (Particularly when these turkeys are raking in money from covert premium lines!!).

I'm certainly not holding my breath for Ofcom action, old cynic that I am.

Hi Ken
Sending Ofcom copy of your comments above would be better than nothing.