- Advice for Consumers
- How to complain
- Ofcom licensing
- Find a document
- Research and Market Data
- Consultations
- Competition and Consumer Bulletin
- Media and Analysts
- Contacting Ofcom
- About Ofcom
Home > Telecoms > Industry Groups > CPS and WLR
Carrier Pre-Selection and Wholesale Line Rental
Carrier Pre-Selection
Carrier Pre-Selection (CPS) is a mechanism that allows end-users to select, in advance, alternative Communications Providers to carry their calls without having to dial a prefix or install any special equipment at their premises. The end-user subscribes to the services of one or more CPS operators (CPSOs) and chooses the type of calls (e.g. all national calls) to be carried by them. The end-user may have a direct retail relationship with the CPSO, or may purchase the service via a CPS Reseller. The end-user is billed for these calls by the CPSO or CPS Reseller.
Wholesale Line Rental
Wholesale line rental (WLR) is a product that BT is obliged to provide to other Communications Providers. It enables other Communications Providers to offer both line rental and calls to end-users over BT's local network. This usually means that the end-user no longer has a contractual relationship with BT and is billed solely by the WLR Provider.
Service Providers Forum
The Service Providers Forum (SPF) is the primary means for industry stakeholders to be involved in the policy discussions and implementation of processes for indirect access (IA), carrier pre-selection (CPS) and wholesale line rental (WLR). The SPF’s remit does not include issues relating to number translation services (NTS) or FRIACO.
The SPF is open to all communications providers and meets once a month. The SPF is chaired by Ofcom.
CPS groups and papers
The CPS Commercial Group has been subsumed into the SPF and therefore is no longer operational.
The CPS Process Group and CPS IT Automation Group are still operational. However, the minutes of these meetings are not hosted on the Ofcom website.
Old meetings minutes for these groups (up to the end of 2003)
WLR groups and papers
This is responsible for the further detailed work on product specification, process design and associated assessment criteria that is required as part of the implementation programme. The Process Working Group is chaired by Ofcom.
New minutes of the WLR Process Working Group are no longer published on the Ofcom website. Detailed updates from the WLR Process Working Group to the SPF can be found on the SPF pages.
Joint CPS and WLR groups
CPS/WLR Consumer Issue Task Group
The comprises representatives from consumer groups and industry to consider the implications for consumers arising from CPS and WLR, and develop measures aimed at the prevention of deceptive and/or misleading sales and marketing practices.
Back to top