Ofcom Announced Today

[M3KCK]

Ofcom has announced today that following the recent Consultation on Amateur radio licensing:
consultation on reform proposals - A lighter, electronic licensing process

Ofcom will make the U.K Amateur Radio Licence Free for Life and will implement it from 1 October 2006

You can read the Executive summary by Ofcom on their Website http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/aradio/statement/

73
Regards,
Andrew M3KCK

[G3SEA]

Amen ! #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif

# # # KH6/G3SEA

[g7jhw]

Give it a few more years,, then a licence wont be neccessary at all,Tony Blair can then sell some of the bands to other users.Then the uk Hams can feel free to operate like fully fledged cbers ,.You only need to listen to 2mtrs in my local.
It is a hobby in the uk (toy time) where as other countrys it is a service..(respect)

Bob/G7JHW

[M3KCK]

Hi Bob,
I guess it is which way you look at it?
From what I have read in what Ofcom have stated it is Only to make the licence free and Not to change it!

As for other countries, I can think of one that has a licence exam that the Answers to the questions are published therefore requiring no study and also No practical work involved and I believe they call that a Service http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif No disrespect intended as each country does things differently.

After taking the Foundation licence and the Intermediate licence exams and now studying the Advance, I think it has been well thought out here in the U.K and works well.
I see No changes to this from what Ofcom has announced, Perhaps I missed something in the Ofcom document but not that I can see?
The Full document is available for download from here http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult....dio.pdf (http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/aradio/statement/statement_amradio.pdf)
73
Regards,
Andrew M3KCK

[KH2D]

It is a hobby in the uk (toy time) where as other countrys it is a service..(respect)


Can you take a test for a U.K. ham license at McDonalds in Tokyo with a pre-published list of questions and answers, administrated by foreign nationals?

Can you take a test for a U.K. ham license at a hamfest in the Philippines with a pre-published list of questions and answers, administrated by foreign nationals?

Can you make up six phony ham clubs in the U.K. and get six amateur call signs issued to them?

Can I use your address in the U.K. to get a U.K. ham license even though I've never been to the U.K. and I have no intentions of ever going, just so I have an extra callsign to put on my QSL card?

Do hundreds of Japanese hams have U.K. callsigns for international radio passports, so that they can get reciprocal operating privledges in countries that don't have reciprocal agreements with Japan?

Ham radio may be a "service" in some places, but in the U.S. it's become a disservice; it's definitely a joke here. Good thing that nobody at the WTB in Washington likes popcorn because if they did, they'd be putting U.S. amateur licenses in Cracker Jack boxes.

73, Jim KH2D

Hi andy and The Boys,
I downloaded the Ofcom document and I still can't make head nor tail of it, even after reading it through several times.

Suppose we'll have to see what we have to pay for an (alledged) "free lucnch",

regards to the Dutchy of Cornwall from us poor people in Shropshire,
73
Howard

Hi andy,
just a quickie,
I was looking at Jim's post (KH2D), and he seems a bit peeved about something.

Perhaps it was irony, but I could'nt understand his point,
cul8r
Howard

[2E0GYD]

sounds like bad news,
if a group of people dont pay for a particular part of the spectrum, then they will sell it to the people that will.

ofcom is there to make money, its a non government organisation.

Ham radio has seen its last days in britain. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

73 de Rick 2E0GYD

[KH2D]

I was looking at Jim's post (KH2D), and he seems a bit peeved about something.

Nope, I'm not peeved about anything. I just wanted to let the guys on the other side of the pond in on the secret that the "service" aspect of ham radio in the U.S. is just the con used to support the argument that we need to exist.

Amateur radio in the U.S. is by far not the standard by which any other country's amateur program should be judged.

73, Jim KH2D

[g4zpl]

In my humble opinion whether we pay or not is irrelevant.How we use the bands and what the comercial returns and service to the community in general will be far more important in the long term. It is possible to cheat the system and yourself by getting the ham licence without understanding the basics, but you will soon realise that the licence soon become a complete waste of time. If your only aim is to talk a load of twaddle to someone in another country why not just make random phone calls. You may find it is more cost effective in the long term. It may not provide the wide audience your ego yearns (although most hams don't listen to you for more than a second or two), but will be interference free. A lot of this hysteria is down to the propaganda circulated by the R.S.G.B. in there push to get there hands on the control of the UK licencing (I for one thank God they failed). So all the best to those of you that are truly interested in radio communications lets get on with our hobby in peace. 73 to you all John G4ZPL.

[g0oil]

OK, well having read the Ofcom document I can see that they're just trying to do as little work as possible (no surprise there) and are following the trend in UK government of putting as much stuff online as possible. I'm all in favour of this provided that there's a safety net of paper backup for those who can't or won't use Mr Babbage's new-fangled computer thingy. After all, many UK amateurs are oldies and the last thing we want to do is to alienate them.

I'm not used to getting something for nowt from this government so would be deeply suspicious - however deregulation is NOT an option due to the ITU regulations and I think that although they'd like to just forget about amateur radio they can't for that reason. So even if that little twerp Blair would love to sell off the bands, he can't - at least not the international shortwave bands. Whether we have to worry about UHF/SHF is another matter.

I look forward to my licence renewal in November. Free. For NO money.......just double the price for the electricity....

Dave G0OIL

[M3KCK]

Quote[/b] (g4zpl @ Feb. 20 2006,09:40)]A lot of this hysteria is down to the propaganda circulated by the R.S.G.B. in there push to get there hands on the control of the UK licencing (I for one thank God they failed). So all the best to those of you that are truly interested in radio communications lets get on with our hobby in peace. 73 to you all John G4ZPL.
Hi John,
I could not agree with you more,

After reading your Bio, I thought the Rsgb were supposed to issue Novs Free?

At least Ofcom now have control of this and see what happens with them?

Did the Rsgb (Rsgb Licences Ltd) not get a subsidy from Ofcom for issuing Novs?
73
Regards
Andrew M3KCK

[M0ZZO]

Quote[/b] (M3KCK @ Feb. 14 2006,10:53)]Ofcom has announced today that following the recent Consultation on Amateur radio licensing:
consultation on reform proposals - A lighter, electronic licensing process

Ofcom will make the U.K Amateur Radio Licence Free for Life and will implement it from 1 October 2006

You can read the Executive summary by Ofcom on their Website http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/aradio/statement/

73
Regards,
Andrew # M3KCK
Can you tell me which bit of the document says that the licence will be free?

Having read the complete document the only reference I can find to charges is in section 5.5 "The licence charge will be determined as part of the Wireless Telegraphy Licence Charges consultation process."

As far as I can tell Ofcom have not yet stated that the licence will be free.

In any case I don't think the major issue is the price or duration of the licence. #It is the integrity of the process of obtaining one. #I think that the fuss that has been caused over the issue of pricing and duration will make Ofcom think twice before the change the criteria for obtaining one.

73,

James M0ZZO

[M3KCK]

Quote[/b] (M0ZZO @ Feb. 21 2006,12:24)]As far as I can tell Ofcom have not yet stated that the licence will be free.
Hi James,
Ofcom have stated this:
To continue to make paper licences available (but subject to a small administrative charge).

To modify the original proposal by requiring licensees to validate their licence details at least once every five years in order to maintain their lifetime licence.

What Ofcom are saying is that the Amateur Radio Licence will be Free for Life for those who Update their details every 5 years and do this on-line.

For those who require a Postal service a Fee will be charged and Ofcom are yet to set that fee.

So in short the Only change to Ofcom original proposal is for Amateurs to Confirm their details every 5 years.

Even though Ofcom have issued a statement it would seem that some Amateurs are confused by this and others that have not even heard of the Consultation!

Another issue that was raised locally here was, If an Amateur has more than one Callsign will they All still be valid?
The Answer to this is Yes, Any Call signs you currently have that are up to date will become valid for Life,

To get the most up to date Information then contact The Amateur Radio department
At Ofcom, The gentleman’s name is: Abdus Salam
e-mail: Abdus.Salam@ofcom.org.uk
Tel: 02079813198
I hope this Helps?http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif
73
Regards,
Andrew M3KCK

[M0ZZO]

Thanks for the post Andrew.

I do fully understand the document and am being picky here. Nowhere in the document does it say that the licence will be free. At one point (as mentioned in my previous post) it says that the charges have to be decided.

Personally I think it is going to be free but that is an opinion not a fact.

What you have done is built an assumption from a series of facts. Page 7 of the document is the policy statement and it Cleary says that licence charges have to be decided.

I can see where your assumption comes from and am fairly sure you will be proved correct.

I just thought it best to point out that there may well be a charge forthcoming. That way it won't be a surprise if they decide to instigate an initial charge for new licences or a small annual fee which covers their processing costs.

73,

James M0ZZO

[M5AKA]

As has been said Ofcom carefully avoided saying the licence would be free.

When the Eire regulator ComReg announced their plans for license for life last year they set the fee for the Amateur license at 100 Euros which is about £68 or $118.
See http://www.southgatearc.org/news/december2005/comreg_consultation.htm

Currently people under 21 and Seniors over 75 get a UK licence for free but there is no guarantee from Ofcom that they will stay free. In Eire a 16 year old will still pay the same 100 Euros.

Ofcom will be consulting on the fee structure later in the year. We need to ensure there is a strong response from Amateurs to the consultation or we may end up with a similar charging structure to that inflicted upon Amateurs in Eire.

The long awaited consultation on BR-68 should also be taking place later this year. I made some comments on that at http://www.southgatearc.org/articles/m5aka/br68.htm

73 Trevor M5AKA
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[n2nh]

Great, now I can study for that new G-land licence and get a nifty new call for free for life. I wish they'd do that here, but I think the FCC would feel they're losing too much money by giving lifetime licences. Good luck G-land. Ta.

[M3KCK]

Interesting posts,

But it could be back to Speculation as Ofcom have not been seen to set this in Stone for All to understand.

My best take on this is that by Ofcom stating that....

To modify the Original proposal by requiring licensees to validate their licence details at least once every five years in order to maintain their lifetime licence.

As I see it the Original proposal was for a Licence Free for Life with no 5 year renewal http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/aradio/summary/?a=87101
So if the Only change is that we have to update our details at least every Five years then it will be Free?http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

The BR68 is also another Interesting subject and I am sure this will be in the limelight in the near future.

The real shame about the whole consultation process that Ofcom had regarding the Amateur licence was the lack of Response they had from Radio Amateurs, Less than 2000 responded from over 60,000 Amateurs?

If what Trevor M5AKA is saying is correct and Ofcom do consult us on any Licence fees (which I believe is for Postal applications and Novs only) then lets Hope Ofcom receive a better response than the last consultation and preferably not Mirror images of the Rsgb`s!!
73
Regards,
Andrew # M3KCK

Just to add:
There is a Gentleman named Rod that works in the Amateur Radio department @ Ofcom who is himself a Radio Amateur and his number is 02077834488
perhaps he would be the best person to speak to at Ofcom should anyone wish to phone them?

[ke4pjw]

Quote[/b] (n2nh @ Feb. 21 2006,07:02)]Great, now I can study for that new G-land licence and get a nifty new call for free for life. #I wish they'd do that here, but I think the FCC would feel they're losing too much money by giving lifetime licences. #Good luck G-land. Ta.
FCC does do that here.

[2E0JFS]

I see no reason to Panic at all.

Ofcom have got specific problems with selling of Ham bands. Namely that they are in use in other countries other than ours and will remain for amateur use in those countries.

In my personal opinion there are bands we could afford to loose to strengthen our argument. All in the upper end of the spectrum. However people who use those bands as part of their specilaist interest would disagree. Of course. They'll never be selling of 40m for instance as there would be interference from hams all over the world.
The wont de-regulate completely because they have CB as a model of deregulation. They wont allow the UK to be embarressed by idiots shouting obscenities that can be heard all over the world.

As for VHF/UHF poor ops. Its not like that around my way aside from the odd idiot on non CTCSS repeaters (they cant work those they are too stupid!), but they are few and far between.

As for it being a hobby. Rather than a service. With all respect, the clues in the name. Amateur Radio. It IS primarily a hobby and should be regarded as such. A hobby that can be a service, as soon as we become pompous and non receptive (!) to changing ideologies then the whole POINT of the hobby is lost in my view.

73 everyone. Next Novemember I'm off down the pub to spend my license fee on a pint (or 3)

[M5AKA]

Quote[/b] (M3KCK @ Feb. 21 2006,16:11)]The real shame about the whole consultation process that Ofcom had regarding the Amateur licence was the lack of Response they had from Radio Amateurs, Less than 2000 responded from over 60,000 Amateurs?
There isn't a single country in the world that has acheived a higher percentage of responses from their Amateurs to a consultation.

The UK response was little short of superb.

Bear in mind Ofcom usually only get a dozen or so responses per consultation. They were overwhelmed by the scale of the UK Amateur response.

73 Trevor M5AKA

[M3KCK]

It is a Shame that Many of those Responses that Ofcom received where a Mirror image of the Rsgb response!

How many of those Amateurs will now follow the Rsgb knowing that their Grim Reaper campaign was not based on Fact but only an Attempt by The R.s.g.b (Rsgb licences Ltd) to gain Control of the Administration of the U.K Amateur Radio Licence?

Here is a reminder of the Rsgb poster http://www.ukirlp.co.uk/g3zhi/rsgb_advert.jpg
73
Regards,
Andrew M3KCK

[M0ZZO]

Quote[/b] (M3KCK @ Mar. 01 2006,20:12)]How many of those Amateurs will now follow the Rsgb knowing that their Grim Reaper campaign was not based on Fact but only an Attempt by The R.s.g.b (Rsgb licences Ltd) to gain Control of the Administration of the U.K Amateur Radio Licence?
Can you prove that to be the case?

The RSGB may have gone over the top with their poster, but it was an attempt to make sure that the deregulation option was not pursued and, in my opinion, absolutely nothing to do with gaining control of licensing.

73,

James M0ZZO

[M3KCK]

Ofcom has published a consultation regarding the Free Amateur Licence.

Ofcom have now confirmed that the Amateur licence in the U.K will be FREE for those who update their details via the Internet and those wishing to have a Paper licence by Post will pay £20

To read about the Wireless Telegraphy Act Licence Fee Proposals for encouraging internet licensing click here http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/internetlicence/323226/

To download the consultation and send your Response click here http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult....nce.pdf (http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/internetlicence/internetlicence.pdf)

This is a chance for Amateurs to Support a FREE Licence http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif?
Comments can also be made regarding issuing Free Nov`s Notice of variation
e-mail your response to SpectrumPricing@ofcom.org.uk
73
Regards,
Andrew M3KCK

[PE1RDW]

Quote[/b] (M3KCK @ April 30 2006,19:39)]Comments can also be made regarding issuing Free Nov`s #Notice of variation
Interestingly our goverment just gone from free "notice of variation" to a payed version.

Now we pay 140 euro for the first year and about 80 euro for the next years.
luckely this is per experiment and not per station otherwise multi staion experiments would get costy (co-located repeaters)

[LA6IMA]

Our telecom authority abolished the yearly based fee some time ago.
New hams still have to pay a "one time fee" ..
But all old/new licenses are for lifetime, one of the reasons
behind the removal of the yearly fee was, from what
i have heard that the cost for sending out
and handling invoices where actually larger
than the income from them.

# # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # 73s Mike