By Juliet Umeh

ON July 1st, 2016, the Nigerian Telecommunications Communication, NCC, mandated all telecoms operators to dedicate a common short code which will enable subscribers of their services take informed but independent decisions on what messages to receive from the network.

NCC

The direction took cognizance of the broad range of services among which are banking, financial and consumer goods. The commission directed service providers to give the necessary instructions and clarifications that will enable subscribers subscribe to a particular service, services or none at all.

In spite of this directive by the Commission, Nigerians are still at the mercy of network providers with their incessant unsolicited text messages, annoying mobile adverts and unwarranted short code calls.

Recently,  the  Industry Consumer Advisory Forum, lCAF, met in Lagos to discuss: “Progressing from Customer Service to Customer Experience -The Consumer ’3 Point of View”.

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The meeting convened by the NCC, saw some Nigerians expressing disappointment over the continuous call and forced promo harassments by the telecoms operators.

While lodging his complaints, the President of the Nigerian Institute of Management, Prof. Olukunle Iyanda,  pleaded with NCC to do more on public education and information on some of the short codes like 622.

He said: “I never heard about it and I do not think I am not at alert. I read the newspapers and I do a bit of the internet. I believe NCC needs to do more about where I could reach on some of these complaints.

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“Our problem in this nation is not lack of information policy or regulation, our problem and challenge is always implementation. The NCC just rolls out policies to the service providers but I wonder how much it monitors compliance,” he said.

NCC however, said its role in protecting customers still stands but noted that some  customers are yet to activate some of these codes like ‘Do not disturb.’

Director, Consumer Affairs Bureau, NCC  Mrs. Felicia Onwuegbuchulam, said that even though some people still experience unsolicited messages but  the frequency of customer complaints against network service providers in 2018 has reduced compared to previous years.

She noted that complaints have reduced on the issue of forced/automatic renewal of data services and activation/subscription to data and Value Added Services without prior consent since May 2018.    She explained that the lCAF was established to act in an advisory capacity on the interests, issues and concerns of consumers of ICT products and services with a view to ensuring protection from unfair practices.

Onwuegbulam said the bureau’s intervention on a number of consumer related issues in the past contributed to formidable changes for the betterment of the Consumer.

“So it’s not surprising that their advice on the unwholesome practices of data termination and forced subscription on VAS supported the Commission’s directions to Service Providers in these areas.  This has promoted competition among telecommunication companies.”

She said the event will present a better opportunity for the commission to also listen to what telecoms service providers are doing in trying to perfect excellent customer experience as much as the service providers will gain insightful feedback on their efforts from their customers.

She however advised that, “In order to remain relevant, telecom operators need to invest more in retaining and serving their customers.

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Creating exceptional customer experience, CX, will tackle these concerns and lead to a general increase in Average Revenue per User, ARPU, given that the demand from customers for multi-play services such as broadband, mobile wallets, data and content-can actually boost revenues if customers can be retained.”

Meanwhile, the Executive Commissioner Stakeholder Management NCC, Mr. Sunday Dare, said the ICAF, deserves accolades because of its achievements so far. He reeled out some of the achievements of the forum like the subscriber registration exercise, Mobile Number Portability, MNP, implementation, and Service provisioning for persons with special needs, just to mention a few.

ICAF, Chairman Mrs Felicia Monye said the forum established in 2009 has recorded many land mark achievements, especially on the issue of unsolicited text messages which culminated  in the adoption of the 2442 Do-Not-Disturb short code.