TMCnet News

Telecoms - Re-Echoing Consumers' Lamentations and Regulator's Interventions
[October 13, 2014]

Telecoms - Re-Echoing Consumers' Lamentations and Regulator's Interventions


(AllAfrica Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) UNSOLICITED calls and text messages from mobile operators have assumed a disturbing dimension, as aggrieved consumers daily lament that the messages are not only received at odd times and in quick succession, but that they have no opportunity to opt out.



A typical example of these messages is: "Have u tried out Music Genie? Do you u know u can share & bless ur friends with latest Naija songs? Dial 39910000 now to listen to J'Odie's SEASON. Cost NGN5/min." Another is "Your number 070xxxxxxxx is one of the successful with access to MTN's N2,000,000 draw today. Send OK to 7070! Subscribe for N100/day." The trend is not peculiar to one service provider as all major players in the industry are guilty. Angry subscribers have taken to Facebook and Twitter to vent their frustration, urging the regulatory body, the NCC and the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) to take a firm position on the matter. Although the NCC has issued certain guidelines in that regard, the operators are yet to respect them.

For Barbara Akwunwa, an Asaba-based businesswoman the issue has become disgusting. "It is so upsetting and the annoying aspect of it is that when you answer the call, you are, sometimes, charged for it. I can't count the number of times I get such calls and SMS from operators. It is not peculiar to a network as all operators and service providers are culpable of the menace," she said.


She continued: "I sat down one day, ran through my phone and discovered I had received over 100 messages and 10 calls. As a banker that needs concentration, I have been distracted from doing my job for that number of times. What that mean is that each time I received such call or message, I spend my valuable time to quarantine the numbers so that they stop disturbing me." Olamijuwon Jimoh, a real estate operator, said he had to blacklist some of the numbers to resolve the issue. "Sometimes in a day, I received over 20 unwanted messages with coded numbers. As a businessman, they are distractive and they sometimes come in when I'm in the middle of a business transaction that requires my full concentration. What I do now is that each time I received such calls I abort it or don't pick. Government should do something to stop the menace," he said.

He noted that he once mistakenly subscribed to the "frivolous services" offered by one of his mobile phone operators and found himself paying more than N100 per week for something he did not ask for in reality.

Joy Becon, a graduate of the University of Benin awaiting her NYSC posting, said she has simply grown thick skin for unwanted messages and calls. "It is worse with MTN, because theirs is a combination of calls and crazy text messages. Sometimes, it can even be random phone call from an unfamiliar company or person trying to market a service or product." Another concerned subscriber, Bridget Omoyemen, went hard this time, saying, "@MTNNG, please stop the unsolicited junk text messages. They are disturbing. Use the resources and time to improve network services." Chief Executive Officer, Brandsdefinitions, Richard Adeyeye, had in a report said the operators do not respect the subscribers' right to privacy as they call and send SMS at very odd hours. He stated that the calls and SMS became so disturbing that he had to complain to his service provider. "I had to pay my way from Baruwa, a Lagos suburb, to Ikeja, where it has a customer care shop, to lodge complaints. I was assured that it would stop; it did, but it was for a very short while," he said, adding that the situation has assumed a rather disturbing dimension.

In agreement with Adeyeye, the Secretary, National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS), Bayo Omotudora, said operators do not give subscribers the opportunity to choose or receive these calls and SMS by providing a code that will do that. He stated that, based on complaints received from subscribers, the body had complained to the NCC with assurance from the regulator that it would act, but lamented that it did little.

The NCC had, in last year's warning letter to all VAS operators, directed that all unsolicited messages or telemarketing activities within the networks should be done between the hours of 8am and 8pm and number of SMSs reduced to avoid discomfort to customers, in line with the existing guidelines.

At the 75th edition of the Telecoms Consumer Parliament (TCP) organised by NCC, which held in Lagos, the forum accused some unscrupulous foreign data miners of exploiting Nigeria's networks in connivance with the local operators. The operators said the so-called data miners are working in connivance with guerrilla marketers.

According to NCC, consistent with Section 89 of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003, which mandates the Commission to monitor all significant matters relating to the performance of all licensed telecoms service providers and publish annual reports at the end of each financial year, it had developed Compliance Monitoring and Enforcement strategies to achieve ethical market conduct and optimal quality of service in the Nigerian telecommunications industry.

Giving a typical scenario on how the guerilla marketers indulge in the practice, Director, Customer Services, Airtel Nigeria, Ajay Bakshi, reportedly stated that, at a function he attended, people were asked to drop their business cards; "there, you have your phone number and email address copied, photocopied or duplicated by these people. So, some individuals play smart; find a way to duplicate the data and sell to people," he said.

However, in his reaction, Chief Executive Officer, Leadership Watch, a consumer advocacy group, Dr. Martins Iwuanyanwu, at the event noted that subscribers had remained dissatisfied and called for value for their money as well as protection on the networks. He stated that the concerns remained high, even as operators continued to claim that 'data miners' invade certain network or compromise their systems.

He said that while these things are happening, there are also technologies to counter those activities. "There is concern that the trend may persist with subscribers losing monies if not properly educated on the illegal marketing and anti-spam SMS trends," he stated.

Some experts and VAS operators who share their views with regards to the activities of value added service and telecoms providers believe that VAS mobile aggregators are playing in a non-level playing field dominated by parent operators.

Managing Director of GTS-Infotel, a VAS company, Dr. Ing. Pierre Kamanou, believes regulation is lagging far behind the fast-paced growth of mobile VAS, leaving aggregators at the whims of dominant operators. He noted that until the market becomes much more structured through regulatory interventions, the full potentials of VAS sub-sector would remain unexplored.

Director of Public Affair, NCC, Mr. Tony Ojobo, had in a reaction to the issue last year, urged consumers to exercise their own right and test the Commission's laws. "Everything should not be left to the regulator alone, because, in other climes if your privacy is invaded, you can go to court. We have to test our laws; the consumers should be able to exercise their right, because in developed countries, somebody can go to court because of two dollars or 10 dollars. What we are saying is that if someone feels aggrieved they can actually begin to exercise their fundamental human right," he said.

According to reports, the Commission stated that it has commenced enforcement process on the identified illegal VAS operators in line with Section 31 (1) of the Nigerian Communications Act 2003 and Enforcement Processes regulations 2005. Also, following the increased consumer complaints, the Commission said it has developed a database of all VAS providers together with the Short-Codes used by them. The strategy was to ensure direct engagement and monitoring of the activities of each licensed VAS provider. That has not worked.

Minister of Communications and Technology, Mrs. Omobola Johnson, at a Consumer Roundtable on Phone Rights (CRTPR) organised by the Consumer Protection Council (CPC), which held in Abuja, warned operators with conform to CPC's crusade, saying, "the CPC is an agency that can bark and bite." CPC is yet to bite and consumers are seething with anger and frustration.

Copyright The Guardian. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]