It is difficult to believe they could do a worse job than OFCOM or ICSTIS (or whatever they are called now).

Interestingly ICSTIS found in my favour (completely) with regard to a complaint I raised recently. However in just about every respect the result was useless. They completely misunderstood the problem, the penalty was a slap on thew wrist and the wrong party in my opinion was slapped!

And the whole process was like pulling teeth!

NGMsGhost wrote on Nov 5^th, 2007 at 6:22pm:


Off topic - but can you enlighten me on the above statement. I'm in active correspondence with McPlod here in Scotland to get them to adopt 03x as their standard non-emergency number instead of 0845!

    "The harmonisation of regulation across Europe works only when it respects the freedom of independent nat­ional regulators to respond to conditions in their own markets."

    The revised EU telecoms framework must "strike the right balance between promoting consistency and harmonisation in European regulation, and the need to reflect different conditions in national markets".
    Ed Richard (Chief Executive), Ofcom

NGMsGhost wrote on Nov 6^th, 2007 at 9:50am:
OfFraud seems to have taken up 03 numbering for itself:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/about/cad/foiindex/foi_act_pub_scheme/

Obtaining information
Most of the information described in this Scheme is available on the Ofcom website at www.ofcom.org.uk, or is available as paper copies. If you do not have access to our website, cannot find information or wish to obtain paper copies, please contact us by letter, fax or email.

If you require help or advice in accessing information, you can telephone the Ofcom Contact Centre on

Telephone: 0300 123 3333
Textphone: 0300 123 2024
Welsh Line: 0300 123 2023

Address letters to:

Information Requests
Ofcom
Riverside House
2a Southwark Bridge Road
London SE1 9HA

Fax: information requests on 0300 123 0811
Email: information.requests@ofcom.org.uk

Overall responsibility for the Scheme is held by the Secretary to the Corporation who can be contacted at:

The Secretary to the Corporation
The Office of Communications
2A, Riverside House
Southwark Bridge Road
London SE1 9HA

Telephone: 020 79813601
Fax: 0300 123 0811
Email: graham.howell@ofcom.org.uk


Wondeful stuff. The UK telephone regulator publishing numbers that it will not force providers to terminate. It doesn't get much better than this.

NTS is one massive fraud. Ofcom is complicit in that fraud. There seems to be no end in sight now.

farci wrote on Nov 5^th, 2007 at 11:24am:


http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2007/nov/14/telecoms.eurocommission

<<
The European commissioner for telecoms, Viviane Reding, today warned the telecoms watchdogs across Europe that she would no longer tolerate them "cosying up" to the industry they are supposed to regulating.

Their collective failure, she said, was stifling the development of the EC's information-based economy and cross-boarder competition. It was also keeping the prices paid by the EU's 500 million telecoms consumers artificially high.

Her speech has been seen as an effective warning to Ofcom that the commission will step in and act if the telecoms regulator fails to tackle poor customer service and overcharging by the UK's home phone and broadband providers.

Speaking in London on the first date of a European tour to promote the commission's proposed single set of telecoms regulations, Reding said:

"Today's telecoms reform proposals put Europe's citizens centre stage. In the past, Europe has made substantial progress by opening telecoms markets to new players and by progressively ensuring more competition. However, dominant telecoms operators, often still protected by government authorities, remain in control of critical market segments, especially of the broadband market."

She said it was absurd that 10% of EU citizens still had no broadband access, adding past failures by regulators across the EU had held back investment.

"We need a new dose of competition, an effective system of independent telecoms regulators, new investment into competitive infrastructures and more space for new wireless services are needed to put Europe's digital economy on track," Reding said.

"Too many of the national regulators have been too close to the firms they are supposed to be regulating. I want to shake the whole thing up."

Her statements will be welcomed by anyone unable to access broadband, and come as relief to consumers who have been on the receiving end of poor service from their telecoms provider.

Ofcom's critics have complained its "light touch" regulation of the UK telecoms market has led to consumers being treated appallingly by some firms, which operate safe in the knowledge no action would be taken against them. Critics have also complained it is almost impossible for consumers to switch supplier.

[...]

A spokeswoman for Ofcom said the UK telecoms market was one of the most competitive in the world and that many of Reding's proposals were pioneered in the UK. She also pointed out that competition has brought down prices substantially for British consumers.

"We are yet to see her proposals in full and will examine them in detail in due course," the spokeswoman said.

"However, we feel we do have the structures in place to regulate the telecoms market. We always want the company to deal with a complaint in the first instance but there are very clear procedures to help consumers – something we are upgrading in the next few weeks."
>>

It seems at least two Scottish MEPs - Elspeth Attwool and Catherine Stihler - are interested enough to reply to my mail (see above).

Has anybody else written or had responses?

http://web20.telecomtv.com/pages/?id=e9381817-0593-417a-8639-c4c53e2a2a10&vidid=...