The two-day Industry Consultation Roundtable held last weekend among telecommunications operators will lead to greater clarity on licensing regulations, one of the participants said this week

Igility Limited director Jamie Thain said the Ministry of Telecommunications and E-Commerce roundtable could lead to a unified set of rules for telecommunications providers that would clear up ambiguity in the current regulations.

?I thought this was a very positive move by the Ministry, heading towards a unified set of rules and I think the Government is moving in the direction of making its policy understood,? Mr. Thain said.

He said current licensing regulations are ambiguous about interpretation and have not been applied consistently.

?There needs to be criteria to offer new services and we understand that the Minister of Telecommunications will have the final say,? he said.

?There also needs to be a clear, well- defined policy as the telecommunication industry is a multi-million industry and people in the industry will have to adjust their business plans.?

New products and advancements mean that companies have the capability to offer more than one service but do not have the licences to do so.

Cellular One chief operating officer Michael Leverock said: ?I thought the meeting was productive. If Bermuda wants to develop an advanced telecommunications infrastructure, change is unavoidable.

?It is time for the existing legislation to be reviewed as it has not been reviewed in ten years so the timing is good and there needs to be some transparency.

?You will never please everybody and you will always have conflicts but hopefully we can reduce these conflicts.?

Mr. Leverock said as telecommunications develops faster than technology, there needs to be flexibility and a degree of adaptability.

He said single networks provide a multitude of services and there will have to be change in regulations as the convergence of service and technology is happening globally.