Bernard Durkan

Boston

What is the general concensus on this Guy. I've read afew press releases and some of this parlimentary questions, but whats the substance behind it? Is the guy just throwing mud, or has be put forward a solid agenda.

damien

Great at asking questions, bad at providing solutions.

Blaster99

I think people who can't get broadband should be compensated.

OfflerCrocGod

Blaster99 wrote:

I think people who can't get broadband should be compensated.

That idea I like and approve of - hit the only place it hurts, the wallet.

Boston

Blaster99, are you durkan?

Yea, thats the feeling I've got. I see lots of questions. I get him slaming the regualator (Rightly) and slaming self regulation in the mobile industry(Rightly to), but I've no read anything about his ideas on how to improve things.

Galen

yeah he was sending out to me transcripts of parliamentary questions for months although they have dried up lately, christmas no doubt. All he seems to do is ask a lot of questions and bugger all else.

Boston

His plans for telecom industry

• Buy back eircoms network
• Create one single regulator for all utilities.

Galen

yeah, now that looks like someone looking for voters dumb enough to believe him.

Liam Byrne

That depends on whether they are actual plans or just ideas......

Boston

I think their probably two of the most god awhful things I've ever heard and I hope that they never happen.

Blaster99

Boston wrote:

Blaster99, are you durkan?

No, just speculating what a likely FG position would be on broadband.

OfflerCrocGod

Boston wrote:

I think their probably two of the most god awhful things I've ever heard and I hope that they never happen.

Nod. Making Eircom public property would just be one giant leap backwards the problem isn't the fact it's private the problem is to do with our hopeless regulators not actually regulating.

Liam Byrne

Valid point, 'CrocGod - I've been wishing that the idiots in Government hadn't sold our network, but if they had it's possible that it'd be in the same state as the health service due to lack of interest/investment.

What we need is a regulator that barks and causes eircom to jump; if there was any good news recently it's that ComReg are to be given more power.....now they'll only have themselves to blame if they don't do their job.

damien

Liam Byrne wrote:

if there was any good news recently it's that ComReg are to be given more power.....now they'll only have themselves to blame if they don't do their job.

That's a huge ****ing lie. ComReg are well able to do their job with the power they have. It's the lazy way out. "Oh we can't do anything because of x, y, z". Bull. They can do a lot but they won't. A regulator that can fine a telco exists but the telecoms poodle has never ever ever fined a company. Look at the 100s of complaints on boards every week about something to do with the telecoms market and you have to wonder why no action is being taken by ComReg.

They have a massive budget that could easily be sent on court cases but they don't like them because when there is a court case they lose them due to sheer incompetence or settle out of court because they know they'll lose. Such was the case when Vodafone and o2 took them to court. They settled on the steps, paid them their 5 million in legal costs and withdrew their directive on MVNO.

It's an attitude change that's needed in ComReg and I don't think you'll get it with the current staff in there.

I see Labour are also suggesting new powers will mean ComReg will stop being a malicious entity in the telecoms market. I do wish that idiot politicians would realise that throwing money at a solution or giving terminally incompetent groups like ComReg more powers will do absolutely nothing. Wipe them out and bring in a group that is up for a fight and making a difference.

Boston

Apparently ComReg are great when It comes to requesting rescoures for research.

Cabaal

Blaster99 wrote:

I think people who can't get broadband should be compensated.

Considering the UK has 99% ADSL coverage and they don't compensate people if they can't get Broadband its def not going to happen anytime soon here

Liam Byrne

Such was the case when Vodafone and o2 took them to court

Odd that they managed to screw Smart the same month as eircom did, so....maybe they knew that Smart didn't have the money to risk a court case by calling their bluff ?