Telecommunications in New Ingerland
New Ingerland has a modern and freely available system of telecommunications infrastructure that is provided to all people in any part of the country as a public utility. By law, all New Ingerish must be able to have a connection to a telephone and the internet made available to their home or business at a reasonable price as set by the Communications Regulations Commission. On top of this, the quality of the service must be the same regardless of where in New Ingerland a person wishes to establish a connection. This means that high speed internet and fully functional phones are available to 99% of New Ingerland homes.
Management
The government has legislated that it has full control over all public communication infrastructure in New Ingerland. Private companies are welcome to participate in the phone and internet market, but they are do not own the major telecommunications infrastructure, which is maintained and operated by the government through an executive agency.
Communications Regulations Commission
A crown statutory agency responsible for the regulation of the telephone and internet industries. In particular, the Communications Regulations Commission regulates the pricing of internet services and telephone calls, as well as ensuring that the highest level of service is being maintained by New Ingerland's telephone and internet providers. The CRC has the power to impose fines of up to £100,000 on providers, individuals and businesses that breach the Telecommunications Act and other guidelines that make up the regulatory framework.
Domain Names Commission
An executive agency of the Ministry of Communications, the Domain Names Commission is responsible for the management of all internet domains under the .gz country code top level domain (ccTLD). The Domain Names Commission registers all domain names, and is also responsible for the implementation of any new second-level domains that may be created. The commission has full regulatory authority over disputes that may emerge between owners of different domains, or over the ownership of a particular domain. In rare circumstances, it has the power to veto the registration of a domain if it believed to be excessively offensive or in poor taste. The Domain Names Commission does not have authority over web content, which is managed by the Communications Regulations Commission.
Telecommunications Infrastructure Corporation
A crown monopoly, Telecommunications Infrastructure Corporation is responsible for the management of New Ingerland's public network of telephone and data hardware. All cabling, exchanges, microwave links, as well links to overseas cables and satellite links are owned and maintained by the authority. Telecommunications Infrastructure Corporation was established in 2003 when the assets of the Telecom New Ingerland were transferred to a new entity.
Providers
Both the telephone and internet provision market is fully open, with competition shared between a number of public and private companies. All must operate according to statutory guidelines that are policed by the Communications Regulations Commission.
Telephones
Internet
Internet domains
New Ingerland's country code top level domain (ccTLD) is .gz. By law, only New Ingerland residents can obtain a domain under the .gz ccTLD.
There are currently eight permissible second-level domains available in New Ingerland. Depending the nature of entity and purposed use of a domain, restrictions apply on the use of almost all of New Ingerland's second level domains. These are statutory restrictions which have been placed on the SLDs to prohibit their registration or use by entities other than those stated by law. The only unrestricted domain is .gn, which is available to any New Ingerland resident. The restrictions are as follows:
- .ac - Educations institutions, eg. www.uck.ac.gz or www.williamdene.primary.ac.gz
- .as - Associated entities, eg. www.gftu.as.gz or www.sdlp.as.gz
- .co - Registered businesses, eg. www.richardsons.co.gz
- .gn - Personal websites, eg. www.jacksblog.gn.gz
- .gv - Civil service and crown statutory agencies eg. www.rtg.gv.gz
- .ml - Ministry of Defence agencies, eg. www.army.ml.gz
- .nt - Registered internet providers, eg. www.clear.nt.gz
- .or - Registered non-profit organisations, eg. www.rspca.or.gz
Management of the second-level domains in New Ingerland is carried out by the Domain Names Commission, which is responsible for the registration of all of New Ingerland's domains. Depending on the domain required, the Domain Names Commission is allowed to charge for use a domain, and this charge is usually renewed every two or five years. In practice, the role of registration and receipt of money is carried out by New Ingerland's internet providers. The providers then pass the information required onto the Domain Names Commission for entry into the Domain Name System.
Telephone numbering
All private or commercial telephone numbers are eight digits in length, and are usually written as xxxx-xxxx. The first two digits identify the exchange of the number and the following six numbers identify the individual telephone line. In large exchanges, there are usually two or three ranges taken up.
There are four area codes in New Ingerland, each having been assigned to one or more of the counties. These codes separate out the phone numbers, and make it possible for a number to be made available in each of the different zones. The codes are also used by telephone providers to set the rate of charging for Standard Trunk Calls. It is still common to see telephone numbers beginning with 65, 66 or 67. These are a part of the old numbering system. No new numbers have been assigned with these prefixes since 1980, and the system is slowly being phased out. The current area codes are as follows:
- 01 - Centralia
- 02 - Albanyshire
- 03 - Beaufortshire and Fitzroyshire
- 04 - Deverauxshire and Westerland
- 05 - Lunen Island
To dial a number inside of one's area code, a person would dial xxxx-xxxx, whereas a person wanting to dial outside their area code would need to dial the code and then the telephone number like: 02 xxxx-xxxx. Persons dialling from overseas must also add the country code, but can omit the leading zero from the area code: +693 2 xxxx-xxxx. Mobile telephone numbers are seven digits and all have a three digit prefix of 061-069 for commercial and private phones. A standard mobile number is usually written as 06x-xxx-xxxx.
Outside the standard dialling system are the Special Code Plan of numbers. These are used for specialist situations and are dialled with a prefix of four numbers followed by a six digit number like: 0800-xxx-xxx. Usage is generally assigned as follows:
- 0700: Directory assistance and telephone support
- 0800: Freecall numbers
- 0900: Premium services and competition lines
111 is the universal Emergency Telephone Number in New Ingerland, which is used to contact the emergency services. By law, every operating telephone must be able to dial 111 without charge or interruption. Calls to 111 are routed through a call centre before being passed to the appropriate emergency service.