Smart, Globe, content firms fined for text spam

The National Telecommunications Commission on Tuesday fined leading mobile phone companies Smart Communications Inc. and Globe Telecom, along with a number of content providers, for violating regulations against text spam, or the mass sending of unsolicited messages. Two separate orders issued by the NTC showed that Smart and Entertainment Gateway Group were penalized a total of P20,800 for sending unwanted text messages. In another decision, the NTC ordered Globe Telecom, Information Gateway Inc. and Paysetter International, Inc. to pay P12,200. In the case of Smart and Entertainment Gateway, they were found to have committed the following violations: sending text spam to those who did not opt to get the messages; transmitting between 9p.m. and 7a.m., which is barred except for paid subscription; failure to provide for a command on how to opt out; and failure to adopt the keyword "STOP" as the universal keyword for opting-out. The complainants against Smart and the content provider said they continuously received broadcast messages every time they load up. "The complaint is filed due to the disturbance it causes and violation of the NTC rules," complainant Samuel Sabile said. For its part, Entertainment Gateway, a registered value-added service provider, said messages sent to subscribers should not be considered as text spam since these messages are not promos but are free upon successful top-up. Smart also said the are not broadcast messages but part of a tail-end message which comes with every successful top-up on a Smart pre-paid account. Both parties said subscribers do not receive instructions on how to cancel the free broadcast messages because they never opted in or subscribed in the first place. "What he received are free contents sent every time he loaded up. Opt-out command will only be sent if a subscription was made but the free contents sent are rewards so opt-out messages are unnecessary," Entertainment Gateway said. In its decision, the NTC however said that these free messages are text spam and therefore are unwanted messages. "The fact that the messages are automatically generated upon loading only proves that at no moment did the subscriber opt-in or his prior consent secured before the message was sent and received by the subscriber. The messages are unsolicited and unwanted," the NTC said. In Globe’s case, the NTC said they repeatedly committed several violations, including sending of text spam, sending promo messages not registered with the Department of Trade and Industry, resending of text spam messages to those who did not opt-in, and failure to display Globe's name in all broadcast messages, among others. The NTC is set to issue another decision against Globe and content providers for violating the same rules. -GMANews.TV