Banning telemarketing calls: What the aam aadmi says

Telecom subscribers who were waiting to the results of the telecom regulator's crackdown on telemarketing companies from making unsolicited calls/SMSes will have to wait longer.

Telemarketing calls will continue to disturb mobile and landline subscribers through the New Year as service providers have sought more time to implement the recommendations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) by January 1.

However, some reports say that the ban on unsolicited calls could come into effect from February 1, 2011.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India had planned to impose a hefty penalty of up to Rs 2.50 lakh (Rs 250,000) on erring telemarketing companies which also face the prospect of getting blacklisted from January 1, 2011.

A different set of numbers starting with '70' will be issued to telemarketers so that any unregistered subscribers can identify commercial calls and decide whether to accept or reject them.

If an unregistered ordinary subscriber makes unsolicited commercial communication, he/she will be warned for committing the offence for the first time. On committing the offence for the second time, his/her telephone will be disconnected.

However, citing issues related to technical and network upgrade, operators said they will need 4-6 months for making the 'Do Not Call Regulations' system operational. Also, the operators need time to meet contractual obligations with various telemarketing companies for which they require atleast three months.

Click NEXT to read what the people harassed by telemarketing calls had to say....

Shibin K K
Teacher

I completely agree with the banning of unwanted marketing calls.

While knowledgeable people can handle or reject such calls/SMS, there are many people who are not aware of the consequences. They at times follow these calls/SMS instructions and end up losing money and invite more trouble for themselves.

These calls are a nuisance and I always try to ignore such calls. A high penalty will help companies realise the negative impact of this marketing strategy.

An alternate solution is a customised strategy where they can contact subscribers with their permission.

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Nitin Maurya
Senior Fellow, National Innovation Foundation

As a registered member of the 'National Do Not Call Registry", I have been lucky enough to be spared by telemarketers except a call or two once in a while.

Trai (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) has issued new guidelines for telemarketing calls and a few repositories viz. National Telemarketer Register, National Customer Preference Register, Provider Customer Preference Register, in addition to the already existing National Do Not Call Registry.

The imposition of hefty penalties has also been suggested on the service providers and erring telemarketing firms.

All these efforts (and related recurring institutional expenditure) would not have been necessary had there been conformity to ethical business practices. But unfortunately, it did not happen as companies went overboard trying to woo customers with calls and other offers.

Though for a common man like me, TRAI's new directives are welcome but I wonder if these measures will make much of a difference. The National Do Not Call Registry launched in 2007 was believed to be effective enough to handle the problem but it failed.

Let us hope that such firms do not find a way to circumvent the laws and keep on harassing mobile subscribers.

Karan Shah
Grow-trees.com

Pesky SMSes and calls are an immense problem. I get around 15 SMSes and 2-3 calls a day telling me to open a bank account, go on a 7-day, 6-night holiday to Malaysia or install a Geman-made geyser.

I have never expressed any interest in any of these products nor voluntarily given my number to anyone.

I was expecting an important SMS from a client today. Imagine my anger when the SMS I received read: "Skin problem, obesity, hair loss, asthama? Consult experts in Dr. Batras- Homeopathy before it's too late."

I am not all surprised that service provides, telemarketers and unscrupulous companies have connived to delay TRAI's recommendations.

Even if the law had come into place I doubt that it would have made much difference. India is such a corrupt country that one can break the law with impunity and pay one's way out.

I feel that the best solution would be for a service provider to realise how much these pesky calls and SMSes bother consumers and work to stop them.

The revenue loss could eventually be compensated by an increase in subscriptions and a rise in consumer goodwill. Customers can also do their part by boycotting firms that engage in such practices.

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Raghav Aggarwal
Manager, Ultimate Healthcare

TRAI should have come up with this plan much earlier. After Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee received calls from telemarketers, I was quite sure that it would trigger a corrective action soon.

These SMSs/calls at odd timings are a nuisance and a hindrance in everyday activity. It is so irritating to receive a call/SMS regarding a new offer on a Sauna Belt when you are in a meeting! It's very irritating to receive such calls during roaming as well.

Even after registering to DND service twice with my telecom service provider I kept receiving them. Hope this strict measure will bring a wave of change. The dealy in implementing the new norms is disappointing.

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Richa Gaur
Sr. PR Executive, Blue Lotus Communications

It is a great move by TRAI...hopefully all the mobile users can get rid of unwanted calls and messages.

These callers do not adhere to any timing now. Even if you tell them you are not interested in the product, they are persistent.

Telemarketers access our personal information from various corporate or marketing companies and start making blind calls without understanding whether the information that they want to convey is useful for the person in any way.

Even after registering in the 'Do Not Call Registry', I am forced to attend such calls or messages.

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Shivalik Daga
Student

Telemarketing calls and SMSs are extremely annoying and irritating as these people call at odd hours and even during the day when I am busy.

It's a pain to keep attending these calls and reading such messages all day long as they generally kill my time and attention.

I am disheartened to know that the Trai regulations will take another 4-5 months for implementation since the telemarketing companies need to register again.

I find the whole procedure faulty and misleading.

The telecom companies knew about this for so long and should have started on this technical upgrade long back. Their asking for an extension now does not make sense.

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Nikky Gupta

Telemarketing calls/SMSes are very disturbing especially when I am working or attending a meeting.

These calls interrupt my flow of thought and disturb my concentration when working on important assignments.

I loathe such unwanted interruptions! Besides, when I need some information regarding an offer I would prefer to make enquires for it myself rather than entertain an anonymous caller and listen to his/her promotional offers.

I think raising the penalty from mere Rs 500 to Rs 2.5 lakh will certainly make a difference. Once penalised, the erring telemarketing company will be wary of intruding the consumer's privacy a second time.

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Anubhav Kaviratna
Student, IIT-Bombay

I believe the Trai move can be a major deterrent to such telemarketing companies.

But some companies may still be willing to pay the fine if they are able to get more business out of these calls and SMSes.

I hope the mobile operators would not like to allow this, as people would start switching to other network providers who do not encourage telemarketing people.