Press Release
August 20, 2009

Gordon wants NTC to enhance consumer protection
through toll-free hotline

Senator Richard J. Gordon (Ind.) today said that the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) should strengthen its consumer protection program by putting up a toll-free number to enable mobile phone subscribers to make queries and report complaints in the telecommunications system and in other mobile services.

Gordon sent the proposal to the Senate committee on trade and commerce to be included in the panel's recommendations regarding its investigation on the nefarious activities committed by telecommunications companies (telcos) against their subscribers.

"A toll-free hotline would be a strong tool to protect the public against abusive mobile phone companies and/or content and service providers. This number would serve as the customer complaints hotline so that the public could easily report any problem they encounter with the services of telcos and content providers," he said.

He added that there should also be a zero tariff short code wherein subscribers, even if they have no load, can text or call to cancel or quit from any service.

"What we want is that when a person receives spam text messages, he could call the NTC right away through the toll-free hotline. The NTC then should immediately investigate and must have the authority to cut down the number and even track it down," Gordon said.

Gordon also proposed that the NTC should require carriers or content providers to identify the source of the content in all messages sent to subscribers so that they can easily identify the content provider involved in any controversy.

Furthermore, the senator recommended that the NTC require mobile phone content providers to inform consumers of the amount they will have to pay and the frequency of the services they are about to subscribe into.

"We have submitted these proposals to the committee on trade and commerce because we want to create a more accountable and responsive telecommunications sector for the benefit of our 70 million Filipino cellular phone users," said Gordon.

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