REGULATION OF VOIP SERVICES: ACCESS TO THE EMERGENCY SERVICES

Transcription

1 REGULATION OF VOIP SERVICES: ACCESS TO THE EMERGENCY SERVICES Cable&Wireless welcomes the opportunity to respond to Ofcom s consultation on Regulation of VoIP Services: Access to the Emergency Services. Previous Cable&Wireless responses have highlighted the importance of providing a balanced approach to VoIP regulation in terms of competition and consumer protection. In relation to access to the emergency services it is essential that the level of identified end-user confusion and mis-understanding is rectified. Ofcom s proposals will help achieve this aim and Cable&Wireless are generally supportive of the stance that all VoIP allowing calls to the PSTN should provide 999 access. We fully support Ofcom s technology neutral regulation and the recognition that VoIP should be regulated to the same level as fixed or mobile operators, both in terms of the provision of caller location information and service reliability. We also welcome the introduction of consumer protection measures for domestic and small business consumers through General Condition 14, although we would like to understand how this fits in with the planned revision of the General Conditions. Cable&Wireless is of the opinion that the current situation could have been avoided. NICC ND1016 requires that calls from public subscribers to the PSTN have to be made with the correct CLI. This document was originally required by Oftel to be technology neutral and if it were to be enforced fully then the ability to obtain caller location information for 999 is partly resolved. 999 operators such as Cable&Wireless and BT would still require a means independent of the CLI to identify the location from where a call was placed due to nomadic usage, but a valid / trustworthy CLI would at least allow a call back to be made to establish location. There are also requirements to trace calls for security reasons and the provision of a correct CLI would go a long way to meeting both security and 999 requirements. Cable&Wireless emergency services require as a minimum: a) the best available information to be available for the call to be handled, b) the ability to call back where required and to identify the location, c) a uniformly consistent process for operatives to prevent the need to remember a long list of exceptions. Ofcom needs to be mindful not to dilute the quality of information available to the Emergency Services through its proposals. Cable&Wireless also questions the impact that Ofcom s proposals have on the distinction between PATS and PECS services. The amendment to General Condition 4 does not limit the requirement to supply 999 only to all VoIP type 2 and type 4 services, but seems to apply it to all PECS that allow calls to the PSTN. We ask Ofcom to clarify the intended scope of their proposals and how this links with the current PATS gating criteria. In terms of scope, Cable&Wireless believes there is a need to ensure that the regulations cover all VoIP available to UK consumers and not just those Service Providers who are situated within the UK. We believe that further work is required with the various parties responsible for the Emergency services databases and services. As a result the proposed timescales for full compliance are too short. Further areas that may not be possible to resolve within a three month timescale are: service level negotiations between the service provider and the underlying network and the updating of systems. Our responses to the consultation questions are set out below:

2 QUESTIONS 1. DO YOU CONSIDER OFCOM SHOULD CONSIDER ANY OTHER POLICY OPTIONS? PLEASE DESCRIBE YOUR PROPOSED OPTION(S) AND EXPLAIN WHAT YOU CONSIDER WOULD BE THE ADVANTAGES AND ANY DISADVANTAGES Cable&Wireless believes that Ofcom has covered all of the available options. The rapid growth in VoIP makes it essential that a clear policy is set in terms of providing emergency services. In this respect the two positions are clear; either mandate all Service Providers providing VoIP which allows PSTN access to enable 999 access or make it clear that it is a voluntary choice. Furthermore Cable&Wireless maintains that this should apply to all type 2 and type 4 VoIP made available to UK consumers, irrespective of the Service Provider s location. Otherwise, there is a danger that Service Providers will seek to avoid compliance with the General Conditions through offshore locations. We welcome the that Ofcom is adopting an international approach in this respect and we support a harmonized approach across international regulators. 2. DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS ON OFCOM S EVALUATION OF POLICY OPTION 1, WHICH IS TO NOT REQUIRE VOIP SERVICES TO ALLOW 999 CALLS? Cable&Wireless believes that Ofcom s evaluation thoroughly covers policy option DO YOU CONSIDER OFCOM SHOULD ADOPT POLICY OPTION 1? PLEASE GIVE YOUR REASONS. The disappointing voluntary adoption of 999 access and the high level of customer confusion delineated in Ofcom s research clearly indicate that option 1 is not a sustainable policy position. Consumer protection has to be a priority in this rapidly developing sector and Cable&Wireless believes the current low take up of voluntary 999 access is unlikely to change in the absence of regulatory mandate. For these reasons Cable&Wireless does not consider that Ofcom should adopt Policy Option DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS ON OFCOM S EVALUATION OF POLICY OPTION 2, WHICH IS TO REQUIRE VOIP SERVICES THAT ALLOW CALLS OUT TO ORDINARY NUMBERS TO ALLOW 999 CALLS? Cable&Wireless believes that Ofcom s evaluation thoroughly covers policy option 2. REGULATION OF VOIP SERVICES: ACCESS TO THE EMERGENCY SERVICES 2

3 5. DO YOU CONSIDER OFCOM SHOULD ADOPT POLICY OPTION 2? PLEASE GIVE YOUR REASONS. It is Cable&Wireless view that option 2 provides consumers with the level of protection required. We also note from Figure 3, that adoption of this policy will bring the UK in to line with other EU countries, at least in relation to type 4 VoIP. The increasing consumer uptake of VoIP, particularly as a replacement technology dictates that policy 2 is the preferred option. Cable&Wireless does however highlight the need for a suitable time period for providers to alter their services and to put in place the necessary contractual requirements. 6. OFCOM INVITES INFORMATION ON (A) THE CURRENT MEANS, FUTURE POSSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS FOR PROVIDING CALLER LOCATION INFORMATION; (B) HOW LONG IT IS LIKELY TO TAKE A VOIP PROVIDER TO MEET CURRENT REQUIREMENTS ON CALLER LOCATION INFORMATION, IN THE EVENT THAT OPTION 2 IS ADOPTED. We draw Ofcom s attention to the UKCTA response for comments on the NICC work currently being undertaken. Cable&Wireless agrees that the future solutions pinpointed by Ofcom are still several years from implementation. We welcome the pragmatic and targeted approach Ofcom has adopted in the meantime through the use of GC14 and a code of practice for domestic and small business customers. The strong parallels Ofcom draws with mobile services are valid and we welcome the maintenance of a level playing field through technology neutral application of this regulation. The current provision of caller location information is often associated with the CLI. If ND1016 was enforced fully then the ability to obtain caller location information for 999 is partly resolved. 999 operators such as Cable&Wireless and BT would still require a means independent of the CLI to identify the location from where a call was placed due to nomadic usage, but a valid/trustworthy CLI would at least allow a call back to be made to establish location. Ofcom s proposals address the location requirement for VoIP, but do not go far enough to allow Emergency Service to maintain their level of service by providing a means to call back the end-user. We comment further in terms of timescales in response to question ten. Cable&Wireless emergency services require as a minimum: a) the best available information to be available for the call to be handled, b) the ability to call back where required and to identify the location, c) a uniformly consistent process for operatives to prevent the need to remember a long list of exceptions. The ability to call a caller back is in our view an implicit element of the Emergency Services. The pragmatic steps Ofcom suggests in terms of caller location information through the use of flags and providing information before logging on to the service to cross reference with the E.164 number is vital for maintaining the quality of emergency services. Cable&Wireless current plans for a scalable product solution are envisaged to take between 12 and 18 months. 7. OFCOM INVITES INFORMATION ON (A) THE CURRENT MEANS, FUTURE POSSIBILITIES AND LIMITATIONS FOR PROVIDING NETWORK INTEGRITY AND SERVICE RELIABILITY; (B) HOW LONG IT IS LIKELY TO TAKE A VOIP PROVIDER TO MEET CURRENT REQUIREMENTS ON NETWORK INTEGRITY AND SERVICE RELIABILITY, IN THE EVENT OPTION 2 IS ADOPTED. REGULATION OF VOIP SERVICES: ACCESS TO THE EMERGENCY SERVICES 3

4 We agree with the UKCTA assertion that changes in technology are making it increasingly difficult to assess what is reasonably practical. We support the position that VoIP is in compliance terms no different to fixed or mobile technologies and should be subject to the same network and service reliability obligations. VoIP providers required to meet the obligations of General Condition 3 must under the proposals conduct a formal risk assessment. A three month period to carry out this work is too burdensome a task to be realistically or indeed effectively conducted. A thorough risk assessment is preferable to a superficial survey conducted within the timescale. Additional tasks relating to the performance agreements with wholesale networks and providing details to the emergency services databases will also impact on this timescale. 8. DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS ON COMPLYING WITH THE OTHER PATS GENERAL CONDITIONS, IN THE EVENT THAT OPTION 2 IS ADOPTED? Cable&Wireless believes that services using VoIP should comply with the same General Conditions as other fixed line and mobile services and we welcome a technology neutral approach. It is our understanding that Ofcom are about to embark on a review of the General Conditions. We ask that Ofcom incorporate any new requirements with this work prior to enforcement in order to ensure an optimal regulatory approach. 9. REFERRING TO THE FULL IMPACT ASSESSMENT IN ANNEX 5, DO YOU AGREE WITH OFCOM S APPROACH TO ASSESSING THE POTENTIAL COSTS AND BENEFITS OF POLICY OPTIONS 1 AND 2? We refer Ofcom to the UKCTA response for detailed comments in relation to the impact assessment. 10. DO YOU AGREE THAT 3 MONTHS WOULD BE A SUITABLE COMPLIANCE PERIOD, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE STEPS VOIP PROVIDERS WOULD HAVE TO TAKE TO COMPLY WITH THE MODIFICATION TO GENERAL CONDITION 4 AND ANY ADDITIONAL GENERAL CONDITIONS AND THE NEED TO REDUCE THE RISK OF HARM TO CONSUMERS AND CITIZENS? PLEASE GIVE DETAILED CALCULATIONS AND REASONING TO SUPPORT YOUR RESPONSE Cable&Wireless does not believe that 3 months is a suitable compliance period. Cable&Wireless emergency services have to be able to provide the highest level of consumer service. There is often a misconception that alterations to the emergency services involve a single database which is jointly populated by BT, Cable&Wireless and Kingston. This is not the case. Cable&Wireless do not hold address details for BT s subscribers and vice versa. In this case there are multiple databases that need to be populated should calls be handled from a specific VoIP provider. In this case 3 months is not a realistic timescale and a minimum period of 6 months is likely to be required for the VoIP providers, plus any development time required for any individual providers requirements. Cable&Wireless current timescale for developing a scalable, product-orientated solution for VoIP services that provides caller location information and an appropriate CLI is in the region of 12 to 18 months and we believe this represents a far more realistic timescale. REGULATION OF VOIP SERVICES: ACCESS TO THE EMERGENCY SERVICES 4

5 11. DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS ON OFCOM S PROPOSED APPROACH TO MONITORING, REVIEW AND ENFORCEMENT? Cable&Wireless supports the need to monitor, review and enforce compliance with policy option 2. We have commented earlier on the lack of enforcement in relation to technical standard ND1016 and whilst Ofcom does have a good record of enforcement under General Condition 14, it is vital that the focus goes beyond General Condition 14 particularly given the potential unfortunate results of non-compliance. We support UKCTA s view that practical guidance may be necessary on the sorts of best practice that is required to comply with what is in practice a new and developing technology. REGULATION OF VOIP SERVICES: ACCESS TO THE EMERGENCY SERVICES 5