An open letter to Noel Dempsey (from Sunday Business Post)

Dangger

From Sunday Business Post 3/10/04

Small correction required in reference to IOFFL!

An open letter to Noel Dempsey

03/10/04 00:00

By Adrian Weckler

Dear Minister, First of all, congratulations on your appointment as Minister for Communications.
There were certainly some pretty duff portfolios you could have been handed. I mean, who would want to be Minister for Agriculture?

The good news is that you're pretty much on your own. Since no one in the rest of the Cabinet has a clue about broadband, Wimax or wireless interconnection rates, you can do whatever you please - and without risk of censure from the Taoiseach's office. That includes solo runs. (Sorry, bad joke.)


That goes for the electorate too. In fact, don't worry about ticking off the public at all. By and large, they don't give a damn about the issues you'll be facing.

True, you will be tempted to occasionally pull off mob-appeasing political stunts, such as your predecessor's silly idea of a mandatory 'register' for purchasers of 3G phones (better ask the department's secretary about that soon, by the way, as Vodafone are launching ten 3G handsets for the Christmas market).

If you do, hopefully you'll show the same kind of guts that you did in your last job on, say, the issue of third level fees. Remember that fiasco? When 'the left' combined to protect a free university ride for the rich?

Well, not in this portfolio.

You will come up against occasional political scrutiny and a number of lobbyists. That's not to mention your statutory pitch war with Eircom. The good news, again, is that there are few silver-bullet issues to sink you. Generally, here's who you should lookout for:

Ireland Offline: lobby group on broadband charges, accessibility and telecommunications infrastructure.

Key man: Christian Cooke

ICT Ireland: Ibec subsidiary which looks out for the interests of IT companies.

Key man: Brendan Butler

TIF: another Ibec subsidiary which represents the interests of telecommunications companies, including Eircom.

Key man: Tommy McCabe

Alto: a lobby group of 'independent' (ie not Eircom) telecoms companies watchful and critical of Eircom, mainly.

Key man: Iarla Flynn

Opposition: big issues include Eircom charges and broadband roll-out. Has a big bark but a gummy bite.

Key man: Tommy Broughan (Labour)

The Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg): a powerful regulatory agency which monitors pricing and market share among phone and internet companies.

Key man: John Doherty.

Don't worry too much about these bodies. Want some advice? Make a decision and stick to it. That's what your predecessor, Dermot Ahern, did on issues such as broadband pricing structures. As a result, he was considered to be a pretty good minister and got promoted.

Above all, though, don't listen to IT journalists. They rant, froth and generally talk a lot of hot air. Especially the columnists.

Anyway, good luck - and welcome to the party.

Adrian Weckler is editor of Computers In Business, the monthly IT magazine published by The Sunday Business Post.

Xian

Originally posted by Dangger
...Key man: Christian Cooke

For the record, I told Adrian of my position vis a vis IO in a phone conversation not long after the AGM. Seems the old chap can't put a foot right this week, what with this and the swipe at Irish web hosts.

dahamsta

His research leaves a lot to be desired this week. Him and Jamie Smyth both...

damien

I emailed him yesterday about this. It appears he had forgotten.