Are There Backdoors to the New Do Not Call Regulations?

TRAI, post deliberations, had earlier this year released a new Do-Not-Call / NDNC or Unsolicited Commercial Communication regulation. This was well in the right direction, but it seems that companies are already finding backdoors to the regulation.

For example, I have lately been finding SMS' from Amazon seeming to be non-compliant to the present regulations. Present regulations require a set naming protocol in setting the sender ID.  But the SMS' from Amazon being sent to me seem to be from a generic prefix - 51466.  (Till recently they used to come from Sender ID XX-Amazon).

Sender ID Seems Compliant with #NDNC Regulations

Is this SenderID Compliant with #NDNC Regulations?

One of the largest Internet Companies in the world bringing this change, is something that made me notice this. Could these be SMS' sent from some international gateway and be a back-door the regulations? If so, this may warrant some introspection.  How will the new Do-Not-Call regulations handle such scenarios? Would it lead to a scenario, that the regulation can be by-passed using global networks and cheap inter-connectivity to India? If that happens, it's just going to economically impact Indian enterprises with companies overseas getting windfall benefits (and a drain of foreign exchange). This aspect of the new regulations may merit a deeper analysis.

Notes:

1. My tweet to @amazonIN asking for details on this and their reply is here. 
2. I have contributed to comments on the policy prior to it's being published.

Response to Mr. Vir Sanghvi's Comments on NDNC

Dear Mr. Sanghvi,

Since you have not responded to my tweets or bothered to provide any further inputs, I write this open letter in response to:

1. Your blog post regarding TUCC: http://www.virsanghvi.com/CounterPoint-ArticleDetail.aspx?ID=531
2. Your Aritcle in the Hindustan Times regarding TUCC: http://virsanghvi.com/CounterPoint-ArticleDetail.aspx?ID=531&sms_ss=twitter
3. My questions sent on Twitter to @virsanghvi: https://twitter.com/#search?q=ujwalm%20%40virsanghvi

While I lack your eloquence in the written word, I will try to put my point across as succintly as my skills permit. My two simple questions (that I have also asked you on Twitter) are:

• How long has it been that you have been registered on NDNC registry?
• What's been the response post the 45 day period of registering on the NDNC registry?

I am not against your inputs or providing constructive criticism on wide ranging issues. These questions I ask since it is this very reason of mis-information and that too often by reputed personalities such as yourself cause this. Plus in our country with much lower than average awareness levels these create difficult public perceptions than what the reality holds.

The answer to my queries is, that it is less than 45 days since you registered on the NDNC. While there are breaches on the NDNC registry; I have experimented on multiple networks, Tata, Reliance, Airtel, Vodafone and BSNL. These together form about 80% of the operator traffic; and the number of non-compliances after 45 days of registration is negligible, if not zero.

Based on the above self-answer to my questions, it definitely is evident that you are either not aware of the NDNC Registry process or have decided to turn a blind eye to those to write what in normal journalism consumer parlance would be called a sensational and hard-hitting article or you really have a problem. But considering my empirical tests; the probability of the third option is very low. Also, that brings me to a separate question; when you received TUCC, how many times have you taken the effort to complain to your telecom operator regarding this (that is after the normal 45 day stipulated period of NDNC registration)?

I would have much appreciated that along with the articles that you published; which, though a little self-gratifying are fine and acceptable in the normal course of freedom of speech. However, it would have been much more constructive had you participated in the Consultative Paper process and the Open House kept thereafter by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. As did another gentleman from the fourth estate, who did give very pertinent inputs. Unfortunately, he is probably not as senior as yourself.

Truly,

Ujwal Makhija.

p.s. I still await your feedback on when you regsitered on the NDNC Registry and the outcome (after 45 days).