Minister of Environment, Planning and Infrastructure Strategy Marc Bean yesterday announced “significant progress” had been made on planned regulatory reform of the Telecoms industry and that Government will soon be seeking input from the public.He said it was decided to delay the date on which the new laws become fully effective and the new Regulatory Authority assumes responsibility for the sector from next month to the first week of January 2013. But he said the delay would “have no impact on the first issuance of ICOLs”.“I would like to stress at this time, that I remain committed to converting the licences of existing A, B and C carriers and other PTS licensees to Integrated Communications Operating Licences (ICOLs) by 1 April 2013,” Mr Bean said.“This move will benefit Bermudian businesses and consumers by increasing competition which, in turn, will bring greater efficiency and more innovation to the sector under a modernised regulatory regime.“He said that the three commissioners who will serve on the board of the Regulatory Authority have been appointed: John C Cunningham, Carlyle Musson and D Kent Stewart.Mr Cunningham and Mr Stewart are current members of the Telecoms Commission. Mr Musson has extensive senior management experience within Government and the private sector and is the current chairman of the Development Applications Board.“Taken together, the skills and experience of the commissioners will ensure that the Regulatory Authority will be expertly guided as it assumes responsibility for the day-to-day regulation of not only the telecommunications industry, but other industries as well,” Mr Bean said.Secondly, Mr Bean announced progress had been made in identifying a highly qualified candidate to serve as the Authority’s CEO.And thirdly, he said: “The Department of Telecommunications, with the cooperation of industry and support from our external advisers, has completed substantial work regarding licensing, spectrum, budgeting and other administrative issues in preparation for the transition.”Mr Bean added: “At the time of the drafting of the existing Telecommunications Act 1986, given the state of technologies at that time, it was natural and appropriate to provide different classes of licences for different services. For example, video services were not provided along the same highway as voice services.“Today, it is difficult to naturally separate the provision of voice services, from video services, from data services. It is time for our regulatory structure to reflect the current technology, and be positioned to rapidly adjust to the ever-changing nature of the telecommunications industry.“However making the transition from a system that has been in place since 1986 to one that is fit for the Twenty-First Century requires time and care. And, despite the substantial progress we have made over the past months, additional work must be completed before the new Authority can begin operations.”Mr Bean said Government will also early next month publish a notice in the Gazette, requesting comments from the industry and general public on the following:- Proposed definition of relevant markets and the proposed identification of operators who have dominance in one or more of those markets.- Proposed terms and conditions of the model ICOL and associated licences for the radio spectrum used to deliver wireless services.- Proposed terms and conditions for those providers that will not request or require the standard ICOL, or Class Licence.He said all the comments from experts and the public will be collated and “used by the Regulatory Authority to assist it in making sound decisions”.He also plans to schedule a public forum next month.“I am pleased with the excellent progress made to date, and I strongly encourage industry participants and all interested parties to engage fully and actively in the pre-consultation process, working cooperatively with the Department and our advisers to achieve completion of the ICOL conversion process by the end of the first quarter of 2013.“- Shadow Minister of Infrastructure Sen. Mike Fahy said in a statement yesterday the One Bermuda Alliance hopes the introduction of ICOLs next March will bring down telecoms prices for consumers.“Bermudians pay well above the odds in the technology sector as it is, and ICOLs will, we hope, help bring prices down,” he said. “As a party, we believe that competition is healthy, but competition must benefit Bermudians in both the short term and the long term. We have to make sure that the consumer benefits, but also that local companies, which have put so much work into building the existing infrastructure, are given a fair deal. We are pleased when any company says they will be providing jobs for Bermudians. The key here is to make sure this does, in fact, happen.”