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18/06/2004
118 services are cheaper and more accurate than ever: Ofcom
The new 118 directory services are providing more benefits to consumers and services are generally improving, according to a new research by the communications watchdog, Ofcom.
Ofcom and ICSTIS, the regulatory body for premium-rate telephone services, have today published the findings of research examining the accuracy and cost of 118 services. The study also assessed public awareness and attitudes over the year since the full introduction of competition to the market.
The study found that the top 30 providers, which account for at least 95% of calls received, are delivering "consistently reliable information" – 87% of numbers supplied to researchers in response to a realistic profile of enquiries were accurate (the top-rated supplier scored 96% accuracy, compared with the lowest of 80%). By comparison, using a slightly different methodology, an accuracy rate of 62% was measured in a survey conducted in autumn 2003.
Competition is beginning to drive down price, with half the providers surveyed now charge less than 40p to provide a single number (ranging from 27p to 65p), below the minimum charge for BT’s old 192 service.
However, there is also evidence that many consumers remain unsure about some aspects of the new market.
As many as 85% of UK adults are now aware of the replacement of 192 with a range of 118 provider – but 47% of UK adults still believe that all new 118 services are more expensive than the cost of dialling 192. Just under 60% of UK adults currently use 118 services.
Ofcom is taking a laissez-faire approach to the market and said that immediate regulatory intervention would be "premature and disproportionate".
Researchers made mystery shopping calls to the top 30 directory enquiries providers and made a total of 5,880 requests for numbers.
(gmcg)
Ofcom and ICSTIS, the regulatory body for premium-rate telephone services, have today published the findings of research examining the accuracy and cost of 118 services. The study also assessed public awareness and attitudes over the year since the full introduction of competition to the market.
The study found that the top 30 providers, which account for at least 95% of calls received, are delivering "consistently reliable information" – 87% of numbers supplied to researchers in response to a realistic profile of enquiries were accurate (the top-rated supplier scored 96% accuracy, compared with the lowest of 80%). By comparison, using a slightly different methodology, an accuracy rate of 62% was measured in a survey conducted in autumn 2003.
Competition is beginning to drive down price, with half the providers surveyed now charge less than 40p to provide a single number (ranging from 27p to 65p), below the minimum charge for BT’s old 192 service.
However, there is also evidence that many consumers remain unsure about some aspects of the new market.
As many as 85% of UK adults are now aware of the replacement of 192 with a range of 118 provider – but 47% of UK adults still believe that all new 118 services are more expensive than the cost of dialling 192. Just under 60% of UK adults currently use 118 services.
Ofcom is taking a laissez-faire approach to the market and said that immediate regulatory intervention would be "premature and disproportionate".
Researchers made mystery shopping calls to the top 30 directory enquiries providers and made a total of 5,880 requests for numbers.
(gmcg)
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