The BBC and government departments and charities still using these 0870 numbers at this stage will in my opinion keep them and lose the revenue share, having been shamed out of moving to another revenue share number on 0871.

Everyone else like Sky in particular and all their numerous commercial counterparts like banks will move either to an uncontrolled 5p per minute at all times 0844 number or to a watered down ICSTIS controlled number at 10p per minute at all times on 0871.  No one will move to 0845 as the revenue share on 0845 off peak is far too low to be attractive to anyone currently on an 0870 number.

Also no one will move to a 1p to 4p per minute 0844 number or a 6p to 9p per minute 0871 number.  They will obviously go either for the 5p per minute at all times 0844 number or the 10p per minute at all time 0871 number.  The companies concerned have no ethical concerns whatsoever for their customers or any concern about their own reputation with customers and are solely motivated by greed and so it is almost inevitable that this is what they will do.

Another interesting issue to consider is the very difficult position faced by users of voice based 0845 numbers, many of which are government departments, local government or charities, by the crazy Ofcom decision to keep them as revenue share numbers after 1st Feb 2008 on the spurious grounds of not impacting the dial up internet business when dial up internet will be nearly dead by that date.

If users of voice based 0845 numbers (who originally got them many years ago in some cases when they were Lo-Call) want to do the right thing they now have to go the inconvenence of getting a new 0345 number charged at 01/02 rates that they will clearly start paying a fee on related to the number of minutes of calls per month received.  It seems very odd that those wanting to go on benefiting from 0845 revenue share can stay put while those who want to do the right thing have to change number, especially when just the opposite is happening on 0870.

Ofcom's proposals are utterly mad and illogical and will leave the public even more confused over what is and is not a standard priced number included in fixed cost fixed line calling plans and bundled minutes.  But all of Ofcom's senior executive board directors who agreed to this nonsense will have pushed off by the time it is implemented with the sole exception of Ed Richards, who is now CEO.

Surely not in monetary terms.  Only total number of customers.  But most of these customers hardly use the internet at home.  This is why they are still on dialup.

BT Wholesale do need to be forced to lower their base line rental cost for a broadband line and get rid of the connection fee if they actually want to convert most of the remaining dial up users to broadband.

Cruz wrote on Feb 3^rd, 2007 at 5:58pm:


Or they will try to blame their outsourced third party production company for making the choice but obviously they could easily be forced to work to standard rules when it comes to phone numbers.

I still fail to see why various phone in shows on Radio Five Live use Freephone 0500 numbers while consumer programs like Points of View use 0870.  The whole thing is utterly mad and llogical.

Whole parts of the BBC act as though they are just like a private sector operator such as Sky and completely ignore the fact that they are totally funded by the tv license payer.

lucaltmann wrote on Feb 5^th, 2007 at 9:20am:

You appear to have missed 2 vital words at the start of that sentence.

lucaltmann wrote on Feb 5^th, 2007 at 9:20am:


Yes but why are the phone in programs on Radio Five Live using 0500 Freephone numbers that impose a cost drain when no one has to call these shows and there is surely an absolutely endless raft of willing cranks who want to get their views on air, even if they have to use an 0870 number to do so.

By contrast why should viewers and listeners who feel that the BBC has in some way failed in their public service obligations in broadcasting and who wish to make comments about that have to use a covert premium rate number that is especially expensive from mobiles and BT Payphones, thus creating the very real danger that the poorest members of the community will not be able to afford to contribute the same level of input on these issues as those from other sections of society.

Ditto re Points of View which is supposed to be a viewer feedback program on all other BBC television programs.

lucaltmann wrote on Feb 5^th, 2007 at 9:41am:

6p per minute?  Dream on.

Even using a BT line, the cost of calling an 0871 number can be as much as 3p connection and 10p/minute (see BT's Specialised Numbers Price List).  Strangely, although there are, indeed, some 0871 nunbers which cost only 6p/minute to call, very few of those used are outwith the 10p/minute category.  No prizes for guessing why that is.

In any case, all the costs you mention used to be costed into the business plan and not covertly funded from the use of premium rate telephone numbers.

You appear to have accepted that making money from the phone calls as a way of paying the staff etc. is acceptable.

It isn't to me.