On 24 June 2024, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has issued the directions, simplifying and improving regulatory compliance for Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) through Mobile Apps and Web Portals of Access Providers.

Context-

The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2018 (TCCCPR, 2018) aimed to control Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) by facilitating mechanisms for users to lodge complaints, register preferences and record consents.

 Key Highlights-

• Prominence and Accessibility: Directs Access Provider to display options/ hyperlinks on the main/ home page of their mobile apps and web portals, streamlining the complaint registration process for users, and managing preferences and consents easily.
• User Permission: To include mechanisms in Mobile apps informing users about permissions for accessing call logs and other necessary details. Also, users should be provided with the option to accept or deny these permissions, ensuring transparency.
• Automation and Data Integrity: Directs to auto-populate essential details of their customers (such as sender’s number/header, date of UCC, SMS text etc.), only if permission is granted for accessing these details by the users. Access Providers are also required to apply backend validations to prevent invalid entries during complaint registration.
• Updated Codes of Practice: Directs to update their Codes of Practice (CoPs) and submit a compliance report of the direction to TRAI within forty-five days i.e. 8^th August 2024.

Implications for Users and Providers-

Leading to greater satisfaction, the users will be provided with simplified processes to register their preferences and lodge complaints. These directives will emphasize transparency in handling users’ data and their consents, empowering them to make their own preferences.

Ensuring the strict adherent to the directives by the Mobile Apps and Web portals, Access Providers facilitates a more regulated framework for telecom services.

Conclusion-

These directives issued by TRAI emphasize enhancing the protection of consumers and managing Unsolicited Commercial Communication (UCC) effectively. By mandating these advancements in Mobile Apps and Web Portals of Access Providers, TRAI aims to create a more user-friendly framework for telecom services in India.

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