Displaying items by tag: mobile premium services

The telecommunications industry regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), has completed its sunset review of mobile premium services determinations.

Industry lobby group the Communications Alliance wants changes to the telecoms code which will strengthen consumer protections for telecommunications users.

The ACMA has registered the new version of the Mobile Premium Services Industry Code, developed by Communications Alliance that provides tougher rules for the advertising and provision of premium rate SMS and MMS services. It will come into effect on 1 June, and compliance will be mandatory.

Complaints about mobile premium services reached a peak of almost 10,000 in the September quarter of 2008 but had fallen to less than 1000 in the June quarter of 2011 thanks to an industry code of conduct and tight regulation by the ACMA. The ACMA however is not resting on its laurels and has kicked of a review of its MPS regulation.

The Federal Court has imposed penalties totalling $375,000 on two subsidiaries of MobileActive (ASX: MBA) for making false or misleading representations in their TV advertisements for mobile premium services.

Communications Alliance has named Jane Smith as the independent chair for the revision of its Mobile Premium Services (MPS) Code.

The Australian Communications Authority has new powers to clamp down on the scourge of SMS based scams that, it says "cut straight to the heart of industry's rogue element by drying up their revenue stream."

The poor reputation of well-known mobile premium services could stall the uptake of much more desirable, but lesser known, forms of mobile payment services, according to an ACMA study.