By Kelly Fiveash for The Register. This
article has been reproduced with permission.
ITSPA said that the telecoms regulator Ofcom is to change the
regulations on VoIP providers which provide access to 999 - the
emergency service. Providers in the UK do not have to provide
access to emergency service numbers but those that do will face
changes to regulations.
The lobby group reckons Ofcom wants to link access to emergency
numbers with regulations covering the Publicly Available Telephone
Service (PATS).
ITSPA provides “a self-regulatory model” for the UK VoIP
industry and has a mandatory code of practice that its members have
to adhere to.
The report raised concerns about “red tape” restricting economic
growth within the VoIP business sector.
“Ofcom is fundamentally ignoring its statutory duties and
regulatory principles by imposing unnecessary regulation that will
both hinder competition and not further the interests of the
customer,” said chair of ITSPA Eli Katz.
It also suggested that Ofcom could “put lives at risk” if
regulation prevented some VoIP users from contacting 999.
But an Ofcom spokesperson said that the telecommunications
regulator has “not made any proposals as to whether or not we
should mandate all VoIP providers” regarding 999 access.
He added that “consumers should be aware of what they can or
can’t do on a VoIP service”.
CEO of Ofcom, Ed Richards speaking today on the future of the
telecommunications industry said: “Convergence is an unstoppable
force which in a few short years will transform the conventions of
commercial and regulatory practice.”
“They will pose questions and demand answers for every company,
every regulatory agency and every government over the next decade,”
he added.
