Telcos and ISPs fear broadcast bias in Ofcom

NEWS As the consultation deadline of 12 February looms, the telecoms and internet industries are putting their final responses together and concerns are mounting that the regulator will be biased towards the needs of broadcasters. The Federation of the Electronics Industry (FEI) said today that the Communications White Paper, released in December 2000, has a disproportionate emphasis on broadcasting, and that Ofcom's objectives for telecoms and internet regulation do not match up to the government's vision. Anthony Walker, telecoms consultant at the FEI, said: "If this isn't balanced out, there is a real risk that the infrastructure will lose out to broadcasting." The FEI is also particularly concerned that the Treasury will have control over the allocation of radio spectrum even though management will be Ofcom's responsibility. Tom Wills-Sandford, director at the FEI, said: "That Treasury is selling spectrum suggests it is purely to maximise revenue and that would not be in the interests of industry." The FEI is not the only industry body to raise concerns. The Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA) is up in front of a select committee next week to argue its case against internet content regulation. Clare Gilbert, chairman of ISPA, said having a consumer complaints board that would potentially deal with internet content as well as broadcast could lead to a 'Mary Whitehouse situation' in which broadcasting standards would be applied to the internet. "They have to be treated as entirely different content," Gilbert argued. The FEI added that the White Paper raises public expectations of the extent to which the internet can be regulated. In particular it noted the idea of benchmarking filtering software for parents. Walker said: "It needs to be realistic about what can be achieved and the time frame in which it can be done." A DTI spokesman said: "We've made it clear to FEI that their concerns are unfounded. "We will not regulate the internet. It's OFCOM's job to take a balanced view of this complex, convergent industry. "Spectrum auctions are not designed to raise revenue, but to ensure efficient spectrum allocation."