"Telephone numbers are at the heart of a well-functioning communications industry,” said Ofcom Chief Executive Stephen Carter. "From 01 to 09 we are proposing a planning framework that provides clearer consumer information and is future-proofed for growth."
It has long been recognised that telephone numbers, which underpin all telecoms services, are a finite resource. But a growing number of demands are being made upon them.
Competition has resulted in an increasing number of providers, all demanding new number blocks, while developing technologies such as internet telephony and changes in demographics mean that there is a need for increased flexibility.
Ofcom is therefore seeking to adapt its telephone numbering framework to encourage greater innovation, support the creation of new services, increase consumer awareness and enhance consumer protection.
It has six main proposals:
- Create a new countrywide number range – 03 – which would be charged to the consumer at the same rate as calling a geographic number. Organisations requiring a national presence would be able to use this range without charging consumers a premium for contacting them; and calls to 03 numbers could be included in any inclusive or low-cost call packages offered by landline or mobile phone companies.
- Introduce a new consumer protection test to the allocation system, which would deny numbers to providers who have previously abused consumer trust and might do so again through their involvement in telephone scams.
- Introduce a new 06 number range for personalised number services. Over time this new number range would replace the current 070 personal numbers, and both the old and new numbers would have a price ceiling. Many consumers confuse 070 numbers with mobile numbers (which also begin with 07), leading to the potential for abuse and scams. The use of 06 numbers would remove confusion, strengthen consumer protection, and allow the 07 number range to be uniquely identified with mobile services.
- Simplify the structure of the 08 range used for chargeable services. Ofcom plans to band new numbers by price and type of service to develop an association in the consumer's mind that the lower the digit that follows 08 the lower the price in that range. For example, calls to a number beginning 082 would be charged at a lower rate than those to a number beginning 089.
- Simplify the structure of 09 premium rate service numbers in a similar way to 08, by making different groups of 09 numbers represent different prices and services. This would also enable consumers to bar specific types of 09 numbers.
- Introduce a new allocation system to avoid changes to geographic numbers in the future. Ofcom wants to encourage providers to use the numbers available in blocks already allocated to them as efficiently as possible and is consulting on principles for a new administrative pricing system (at a nominal cost). It also proposes to allocate more numbers in smaller blocks of one thousand instead of ten thousand, to maximise supply.
Ofcom is seeking comments by 4th May.
