The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (“TRAI”) has invited comments on the draft Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulation, 2018 (“2018 Regulation”) which seeks to supersede and repeal the Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulations, 2010 (“2010 Regulation”).
Background:
The 2010 Regulation was introduced to curb the menace of unsolicited commercial communication or spam faced by telecom subscribers. Though the 2010 Regulation was met with much commercial success with over 23 Crore subscribers registering themselves onto the national DND Registry which was a creation of the 2010 Regulation, over time, it has faltered.
Unscrupulous businesses have begun exploiting loopholes by illicitly obtaining a subscriber’s content or by engaging unregistered telemarketers to escape strong arm of the current regime. In view of that, TRAI back in 14.09.2017 introduced a consultation paper seeking suggestions to curb this menace. Basis the comments and feedback received from the general public, TRAI has come out with the current draft 2018 Regulation.
Key Highlights of the 2018 Regulation:
- Adoption of Blockchain technology to enforce regulatory compliance.
- Co-regulation with Telecom Service Providers/Access Providers.
- Creation of a regulatory sandbox to enable compliance.
- Detection of unregistered telemarketers through a more collaborative approach etc.
The general public is requested to share their comments and feedback by 11th June, 2018 at the link enclosed to this email.
In case of any further clarification, TRAI has requested the general public to contact Shri Asit Kadayan, Advisor (QOS), TRAI over email at: advqosAtrai.gov.in or over phone at : +91-11-23230404.
Source: Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
