No More Bulk SMS - INDIA

A government directive to telecom operators, asking them not to allow cell phone users to send more than five SMSs or MMSs at one go over the next 15 days not only failed to check spread of threats to people from the northeast but also ended up creating a communication hurdle for many consumers in Mumbai on Saturday.

Many had no problem sending as many SMSes as they wanted to at one go while many, especially pre-paid customers, were barred from sending more than five SMSs during the entire day. "I was unable to send even a single SMS through the day," said Avanti D'Souza, a bank employee. 

Many telecom operators themselves seemed confused about the government order. A Vodafone message to pre-paid subscribers said: "There's been a restriction on sending more than 5 SMSes a day as per government recommendations." 

"For bulk SMSs sent by telemarketers, such a directive can be implemented. But blocking such a facility for every single consumer is a technically difficult task. The telecom industry is yet to acquire any such mechanism," said an official. 

Officials with different telecom operators expressed surprise over the ban order, pointing out that the government was aware of the technical difficulties in implementing such an order and should have taken a decision after consulting the operators.

The directive for all their post-paid consumers due to 'technical constraints'(has not implemented). But for a chunk of pre-paid consumers, it could be implemented, albeit with certain difficulties. "For bulk SMSs sent by telemarketers, such a directive can be implemented. But blocking such a facility for every consumer is technically difficult," said an official. 

Officials with different telecom operators expressed surprise over the ban, saying the government was aware of the technical difficulties in implementing such an order and should have taken a decision after consulting the operators. Some officials said the problem could be due to congestion; it was unlikely to have had anything to do with the the directive's implementation.

Source .

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