Great Britain to institute lifetime Amateur Radio licenses
Telecommunications regulator Ofcom has unveiled plans to reform Amateur Radio licensing in Great Britain.
The main change is that Amateur Radio licenses will be issued for life, although licensees will have to confirm
their license details every five years. Paper licenses are going away too, for all intents and purposes, and
Ofcom instead will provide an on-line service to issue electronic licenses. Hard-copy licenses will remain
available for those lacking Internet access, but there will be an administrative charge. Starting October 1,
Ofcom will take over from the Royal Mail the role of issuing, renewing and amending Amateur Radio
licenses. The Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) says it welcomes Amateur Radio licensing reforms.
"The policy Ofcom has adopted is good news for Amateur Radio and justifies the stand the RSGB made last
year when Ofcom launched its consultation into Amateur Radio, RSGB General Manager Peter Kirby,
G0TWW, said. "All the other safeguards the Society asked for are also in the license." Kirby notes that while
Ofcom announced it was deregulating the Amateur Radio license, the RSGB is quick to point out that the
changes to the licensing system "do not add up to deregulation" of ham radio. "Please be reassured that the
hobby has not been deregulated and that all the safeguards the RSGB fought to retain are still in place and
will remain so," Kirby said. The RSGB last year went on record as being "strongly opposed" to any steps by
Ofcom to deregulate Amateur Radio in Great Britain, fearing that it could lead to the elimination of amateur
licensing altogether. Ofcom said its new approach to Amateur Radio licensing will "reduce unnecessary
bureaucracy." -- RSGB [via ARRL web Extra]
RAC committee eyeing new entry-level license
A seven-member Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC) advisory committee is looking into whether to ask
Industry Canada to institute a new entry-level Amateur Radio license north of the border. Under the
leadership of RAC Midwest Director Bj Madsen, VE5FX, the committee is studying the success of the
Foundation License implemented in the UK, Australia and Gibraltar to encourage youth to take an interest
in science and radio and to promote growth in Amateur Radio. "Amateur Radio is not dying--it is changing,
and we must be sure to change with it," Madsen says. The RAC panel is seeking the opinions of Canadian
radio amateurs on the topic and will make a recommendation to the RAC Board of Directors on what course
to pursue. For the scope and details of the advisory committee's work, and how to contribute, read "The
Foundation License Concept" on the RAC Web site. The ARRL and other petitioners have so far been
unsuccessful in convincing the FCC to establish a new entry-level Amateur Radio license in the US.
ARRL VEC Announces Vanity Call Sign License Renewal Program
The ARRL VEC has announced that it now can process license renewals for vanity call sign holders for a
modest fee (see "Processing Fee Schedule"). The service is available to ARRL members and nonmembers,
although League members will pay less. Routine, non-vanity renewals continue to be free for ARRL
members. In addition, ARRL VEC Manager Maria Somma, AB1FM, points out that trustees of club stations
with vanity call signs may renew either via the Universal Licensing System (ULS) or through a Club Station
Call Sign Administrator, such as ARRL VEC.
Update
In 2003, News of the Weird reported that the Pentagon's Defense Threat Reduction Agency had been
Internet-monitoring a facility on Scotland's Isle of Islay whose webcam was showing images suggesting
a chemical weapons lab but that, after lengthy surveillance, the agency had found it to be a whiskey
distillery. In February 2006, that distillery (Bruichladdich, one of the U.K.'s most adventurous) announced
it is preparing to make a 92 percent-alcohol whiskey whose recommended dose is two spoonfuls. Said
the managing director, "To be honest, I'm just hoping the distillery doesn't explode."
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