Unlocking of cellphones and number and e-mail portability are all issues the new Regulatory Authority is looking at and will soon be seeking public input on, its chief executive Philip Micallef told a Rotary Club gathering yesterday.And with communications technology changing at such a rapid pace, Mr Micallef said the RA foresees having to deal with a number of other challenges, including:l Mobile and broadband are no longer luxuries but critical necessitiesl Use of video and other data services will grow as internet data traffic and mobile broadband consumptions soarl Communications and content will become more ubiquitousl Bundles will play a major role in customer choicesl Roaming and the associated voice and data bill shocksl Distinction between over the top players like Google, Skype and network providers will become more blurredl The Regulatory Authority which was set up in Bermuda on January 28 and has been initially tasked to deal with the telecommunications sector.l The RA is also dealing with cross-ownership as this can have an effect on competition and the market dynamics.He said the RA was working with the carriers to make cellphone number portability a reality, whereby customers can switch carriers yet keep their numbers.“This project requires a lot of technical work cooperation between carriers and the target date is March 2014,” he said.He added: “The Regulatory Authority also has the remit of spectrum management and a full efficiency spectrum exercise is being carried out.“The RA has consumer protection powers and a great deal has to be done in this sphere.“We have started from the basics of putting in place a customer complaint procedure for customers and will soon start reviewing all the customer contracts and their terms and conditions.“On this front this summer we shall be launching two consultations which we would urge the public to provide feedback on: unlocking of cellphones and e-mail portability.“E-mail portability will help switching from one ISP provider to another as the old provider will forward your e-mails to your new e-mail address free of charge for six months and then at a fee after the first six months. The RA is about to start undertaking a series of customer surveys and the first one in the pipeline is on broadband service with the scope of getting the real pulse of the customers and taking the necessary steps to correct the negative points that arise from this survey.”He said the RA has also taken on the functions of the Department of Telecommunications when it comes to issuing and administering of licenses to non carriers such as two way radio, communications equipment for vessels and aircraft.“Here we intend to streamline the process and build an online portal for payments as well as explore possibilities as was done back in Malta to outsource some of these functions to the Maritime and Aviation Authorities to provide these ship owners and aircraft owners with a one-stop shop service and make Bermuda more competitive.”Mr Micallef said the first regulatory task of the RA was to radically change the licensing regime which until early this year was “confining carriers to one narrow slice of the telecommunications market”.“Since April 29th, when the carriers were awarded what we are calling ICOLs (ICOL stands for Integrated Communication Operating Licenses) the hermetic cellphone, landline, television and internet silo divisions have started disappearing,” he said. “Twenty ICOLs were issued which in practical terms means these ICOL holders can compete in different segments of the telecom market. As an example a pay TV company could now offer its customers telephone and internet service bundled together as carriers in many jurisdictions have been doing for a while. RA can also impose conditions on dominant carriers to ensure other smaller carriers can compete on a level playing field.”However, he said: “Difficult to give an example of these conditions or obligations or remedies as they are often referred to without seeming to prejudge the situation in Bermuda as this is a something the RA is dealing with as we speak.“But as an example if in an imaginary large city somewhere one carrier dominated the broadband market we would give competitors access to that network for a fee.“RA is working hard to ensure that the new regulatory regime will bring about more competition and reduction in prices which we have already started to see. We hope downward pressure on prices will continue.”On fears of cut-rate competition from large international companies, he said: “Efforts have been on the whole quite successful but telecommunications is a truly global industry. Telecommunications sector changes at an incredibly rapid pace.“In fact telecommunications changes too quickly and often too radically to be caught and pinned down easily by a legislator’s pen. Managing rapid change is a vital skill in the telecommunications industry. The four key industry drivers are: competition, customers, regulation and technology advances. Early attempts to regulate the telecom sector in Bermuda by Government had their ups and downs. Innovation and value for money services were not being fully reaped by Bermuda and it was increasingly more difficult for Bermuda to quickly receive many of the dividends of technological progress. Government decided to do something about it and passed two progressive pieces of legislation.Mr Micallef noted the legislation is very modern in that the Regulatory Authority Act is sector-neutral while the Electronic Communications Act is specific to the Telecommunications industry. Therefore, Government can in future decide to give the Authority powers over another sector besides telecoms by just legislating a specific act and leaving the regulatory Authority Act intact.