Forum: Electronic Communications Reform
Tomorrow, the Minister of Environment, Planning and Infrastructure Strategy Marc Bean will initiate a process designed to move the electronic communications industry closer to full alignment with 21st century best practices and strengthen Bermuda’s reputation as a customer friendly international business jurisdiction.
Minister Bean will launch a pre-consultation process covering a range of important proposals that will enable the conversion of the current public telecommunications licences to Individual Communications Operating Licences (“ICOLs”). Completion of this process will be a critical step towards implementing the Electronic Communications Act 2011 (“ECA”) in January 2013.
The ECA creates a new regulatory framework designed to promote increased competition, stimulate product and service innovations and widen consumer choices in this critical sector. This new framework will differ in significant ways from the model that is currently in place.
Every firm in Bermuda that provides “electronic communications” – a term that covers a broad range of telecommunications, Internet and subscription audiovisual networks and services – needs to take this opportunity to learn, raise questions and seek a full understanding of the potential impact of the new regulatory framework on their business.
This includes not only current licence holders but also, for example, hotels, guest houses, hospitals, alarm companies, and Internet cafes, as well as “closed user groups,” companies with private networks and private pay telephone providers.
Commenting on the pre-consultation process, Minister Bean said: “This is an important stepping stone for implementing the ECA and I encourage all interested parties to participate actively in these pre-consultations.”
A public forum on this subject to discuss the preliminary recommendations contained in the pre-consultation documents will be held on Friday, 19th October, from 9:00am – 12:30pm at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess Hotel, Victoria Room. Participation by industry stakeholders and the general public is welcome.
There will be three separate pre-consultations covering the following issues:
- ICOLS: The scope and form of Individual Communications Operating Licences that will be converted from the existing Public Telecommunications Services and subscription radio and television licensees;
- Class Licences and Exemptions: The scope and form of electronic communications services that will be authorised under a class licence framework or be granted licence exemptions; and
- Market Definition and Significant Market Power: Economic analysis of the relevant markets and assessment of the need for regulation.
Copies of these three documents will be available on the Department of Telecommunications website at www.mtec.bm
The deadline for the submission of public and industry responses to the two licensing pre-consultations (ICOL’s and Class Licences and Exemptions) is 14th November, 2012.
The deadline is 21st November for the Market Review pre-consultation. A full schedule may be found on the Department of Telecommunications website www.mtec.bm For further information please contact Nakia Smith, Regulatory Administrator at the DOT via email: nssmith@gov.bm.
Category: All, Business, News, technology
This process will be a “dogs breakfast” and we’ll not see any major changes until at least the middle of 2014.
Those consultation docs are not at http://www.mtec.bm
Well in the reform i hope that when the pricing for the end user is taken into consideration and that it is affordable and that the services provided are actually what they say they are.
Blind leading the blind
An unecessary exercise. Didn’t they hire a consultant with experience in framing regulations for a competitive telecom enviroment? What a joke this process has become. The telecom industry players are anxious to grow their business and offer new toys to us. Who the hell is in charge of that department?
Hiring friends of friends from Overseas – see what happened at the hospital – friend of EB – they do it all the time and it is time to stop.
Hope they consider letting the ISP’s make VoIP available to anybody, not just if they’re also the access provider.
Me and de bredren will kick our heels up and shoot a few spliffs, all the important stakeholders will be there(mine). Gum’t will carry the spliffage.
About time… Broadband in Bermuda is such a joke and so so so far behind the rest of the world. They brag about rolling out 10 mb while they offer 50 in most places in North America. The framework is half the problem, not to mention the insane cost… 10 mb is not worth 200+ a month…. 25 mbs = 40$ or less everywhere else.