No respite from unnecessary texts
Mobile phone subscribers remain getting flooded with promotional and professional messages even a month once they opted to block them, which highlighted that the regulator's directive to the carriers to avoid the nuisance isn't working.
On April 24, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) said subscribers could activate the "Do Not Disturb (DND)" service option by dialling shortcodes or sending text messages if they would like to keep promotional texts away.
But several users expressed annoyance, declaring they still have the unwanted messages. A huge selection of Facebook users vented their anger on the state Facebook site of the commission.
Sherajul Islam Shiraj, a user of Grameenphone, sent an Text message to activate the DND assistance when he saw the notification of the BTRC. He received a note that educated him that the provider will be activated very soon.
"Unfortunately, the service is not activated yet, although one month has passed. I still receive numerous promotional messages like in the past. This is annoying," he said.
Nasif Abdullah Al Saleq, a subscriber of Robi, said he directed a demand via USSD code to unsubscribe promotional messages, however the service was not activated yet.
"I feel disturbed as a result of the increasing amount of promotional messages."
Like Saleq and Shiraj, there are many subscribers across the country that have made similar complaints about the issue.
Operators introduced the option of blocking unnecessary SMS for the customers several years ago, following guidelines from the BTRC.
But customers weren't adequately informed about the facility.
In September 2018, the telecom regulator had ordered them to avoid sending professional and promotional messages to subscribers if they choose never to receive those.
When contacted, BTRC Chairman Shyam Sunder Sikder said the commission was working on the problem in the fascination of the customers.
"We want to solve the problem as soon as possible if it's a technical issue," he said.
Industry people say both complex and commercial aspects are participating with the issue.
The telecom regulator can resolve the technical problems, nonetheless it would be difficult for the commission to straighten out the challenges linked to the commercial aspect, they say.
The implementation of the BTRC order has been delayed because of the commercial contracts between mobile phone operators, clients of the operators who utilize the service to reach out to subscribers, and Text message aggregators, which sell SMS comparatively at lower rates among corporates and individuals after buying them at bulk volumes from cellular operators.
Operators are actually unwilling to put a finish to the service seeing that the segment generates huge revenues for them, said a great insider.
Grameenphone, Robi, Banglalink, and Teletalk possess 17.5 crore subscribers combined.
In line with the commission's annual survey, 443 crore SMSs had been sent on an individual level (person to person) in June 2020.
There is absolutely no official data on the promotional and marketing messages subscribers receive from mobile phone operators, third parties, and SMS aggregators.
Seeking anonymity, the official of the BTRC explained the regulator organized to formulate a fresh mechanism to extend the purview of the DND services so that all types of promotional messages from portable operators, third get-togethers, and SMS aggregators arrive under its scanner.
The BTRC chairman said the commission was likely to restore order in the segment through an effective guideline.
Robi Axiata Chief Corporate and Regulatory Officer Shahed Alam said it had applied the DND service as per instruction of the commission.
"We are happy to collaborate with the BTRC to handle the challenges and to ensure customers' pleasure because customers' basic safety and comfort comes 1st and really should be prioritised."
He didn't comment when asked why Robi's subscribers were even now receiving promotional messages despite activating the service.
Ankit Sureka, brain of corporate communications and sustainability of Banglalink, said clients could block promotional communications that originated from the operator by activating the DND services.
Banglalink individual Rasha Aziz, who's annoyed for receiving unwanted text messages, said, "I'm very upset about the problem. I am still getting the texts even after activating the DND program."
A good spokesperson of Grameenphone declined to comment.
In Bangladesh, authorities start implementing initiatives without carrying out any proper study. However when the general public faces disturbances and raises tone of voice, authorities only move to address the grievances, said Md Rokunuzzaman, a telecommunication professional.
"Authorities should carry out the analysis first," he said.
He said customers must have a choice if they wanted to receive virtually any promotional messages. "But they are getting a whole lot of messages without giving any permission."
Rokunuzzaman said promotional SMS and texts had become a nuisance for subscribers.
"Because of the barrage of unwanted SMS, important messages sometimes get ignored," he said, urging the commission to draw up a guideline to determine discipline in the complete process.
