The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released a consultation paper seeking public comments. The paper, titled Review of the Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2018 (TCCCPR-2018), was implemented in February 2019 to address the issue of unwanted promotional calls and messages. The public has been invited to submit their comments by September 25.
The consultation paper discusses a broad range of issues, including the definitions of commercial communications, provisions related to complaint redressal, UCC detection systems, financial disincentives for violators, and regulations for senders and telemarketers. The paper also analyzes the high number of voice calls and SMS, which have been a significant concern for consumers.
The TRAI has stated that these regulations aim to protect consumers from unwanted promotional calls and messages while allowing businesses to send targeted communications to customers who have consented or set preferences to receive them. However, during the implementation of the regulatory frameworks, certain issues have been observed.
The consultation paper aims to bring forward these issues, which need immediate attention and may require amendments to the existing regulations. The paper seeks input on areas to strengthen the regulations, including stricter provisions against unregistered telemarketers who harass the public through spam calls, improved complaint redressal mechanisms, more effective UCC detection systems, stronger financial disincentives for violation of regulatory provisions, and revised regulations for senders and telemarketers.
The government has also urged industry stakeholders to protect mobile users from spam and fraud. In a meeting with representatives from various regulatory bodies, TRAI stressed the need for a joint effort to tackle the problem of spam messages and calls. The government has observed several instances of misuse of headers and templates, with fraud usually taking place through the transmission of malicious links using variable parts of the messages.
The move by TRAI is a significant step towards regulating the digital communication space, which has seen a surge in unsolicited communications in recent years. The issue of spam calls and messages is not unique to India. Globally, regulatory bodies have been grappling with the challenge of protecting consumers from unwanted communications while ensuring that businesses can reach out to their customers effectively.
In the United States, for instance, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) outlawed robocalls containing voices generated by artificial intelligence in 2024, sending a clear message that exploiting technology to scam people and mislead voters would not be tolerated. The new ruling classified AI-generated voices in robocalls as artificial and enforceable by the same standards.
In the United Kingdom, the Office of Communications (Ofcom) directed UK phone providers to identify and block spoofed calls, which are a common source of spam and fraud. The move was aimed at protecting consumers from nuisance calls and ensuring fair competition in the telecommunications market.
The consultation paper by TRAI is a welcome move in this direction. By seeking public comments, the regulatory body is ensuring that the views of all stakeholders, including consumers, are taken into account while formulating regulations. This participatory approach is crucial in ensuring that the regulations are effective and strike a balance between the interests of consumers and businesses.
