On September 27, 2011, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India?s (TRAI) regulation ? The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference ? was implemented after several deferrals. The regulation aims to put a stop to unwanted telemarketing calls and messages. Telemarketers who fail to comply with the regulation are liable to pay a fine of up to Rs 250,000 for disturbing people registered under the ?Do Not Disturb? category. Moreover, according to the new regulations, telemarketers will have to register with TRAI under a distinct number series beginning with 140 in order to enable consumers to easily distinguish between ordinary and marketing calls.
This move is expected to offer major relief to mobile users. The National Do Not Call (NDNC) registry, which was set up in 2010 to prevent telemarketing calls and messages from disturbing users, had registered over 130 million mobile subscribers till August 25, 2011. However, users continue to receive unsolicited commercial calls and messages.
With the new regulation coming into effect, telecom users, both mobile and fixed, can now register with the National Customer Preference Register (NCPR), the erstwhile NDNC, to stop getting unwanted calls and messages. To register, the consumer can either log onto www.nccptrai.gov.in, or dial 1909 toll free. In case the user does not want to block all marketing calls, a partial blocking option is also available.
According to TRAI, though the number of such calls has reduced over the years, users continue to be harassed by messages. On an average, as many as 47,454 complaints are being registered per month in this regard.
Currently, telecom service providers offer SMS packages allowing as many as 2,000 SMSs per day. Unregistered persons can make use of these for sending commercial communications from ordinary numbers. In order to reduce such a possibility, TRAI has, in the interest of consumers, prescribed a limit of 100 SMSs per day per SIM for all customers.
However, this has raised concerns among telecom operators as they believe the provision could impact the flow of transactional messages such as those from banks to their customers or from airlines to their passengers, or from schools to students/parents, etc. The Cellular Operators Association of India had, in fact, asked TRAI to reconsider its recommendation to limit the number of SMSs per SIM, saying that such a regulation could pose a potential challenge to the fundamental rights of ordinary users.
According to TRAI, such worries are misplaced. In a recent notification, the regulator clarified that the limit of 100 SMSs per day for prepaid users and 3,000 SMSs per month for post-paid users does not apply to transactional messages. TRAI has exempted certain categories from the limit of 100 SMSs per day. These are agents of telecom service providers for sending electronic recharge messages, e-ticketing agencies, certain social networking sites and directory services. TRAI has also stated that it will notify further categories, as and when warranted.
It has explained that the time restriction of 9 p.m. to 9 a.m. does not apply to transactional messages, which can be sent at any time. Besides, the limit on text messages will not be applicable on ?blackout days? (festival days), when customers are free to send as many messages as they want.
According to J.S. Sarma, chairman, TRAI, the 100-SMSs per day cap, which is intended to restrict telemarketers and tackle the menace of bulk SMSs, will not inconvenience consumers. ?A study by a private telecom provider shows that only about 70,000 of their 140 million customers sent more than 100 SMSs per day. That is only about 0.5 per cent. The majority of the people send only about 20-30 SMSs per day,? notes Sarma.
TRAI has also pointed out that mobile users need not deregister from the NCPR to receive transactional messages as some telemarketers have been suggesting.
In all, TRAI believes that the new regulations are more consumer friendly and will empower them against the menace of telemarketers selling unwanted products and services. Despite missing four deadlines since January 1, 2011, the regulator is confident that consumers will finally be free from the telemarketing onslaught.
