PTA orders termination of late night mobile packages: Report

Authority claims the packages counter social norms and values of the country.

Citing them as countering  social norms and values of the country, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has directed all cellular network operators to terminate all late night call packages, reports ProPakistani.

The directives were given in a statement issued by the PTA yesterday.

“We have received a number of complaints from the Supreme Court of Pakistan, the Standing Committee of the Parliament, senators, MNAs and subscribers regarding the promotion of vulgarity through such advertisements and have therefore asked CMOs to immediately discontinue such packages and to present compliance reports,” said PTA Chairman Farooq Awan.

According to the statement, regulatory heads of licensees admitted unanimously in a meeting called by the authority that their advertising was “not in line with the moral values of the society”.

PTA said a telecom company informed the attendees that a warning letter had already been issued to service providers who sent text messages related to these packages to their clients.

While recognizing liberalisation and competitiveness in the market as factors pushing operators to introduce such packages, PTA insisted that services of better quality could be provided to subscribers at affordable prices as long as practices “against the social norms” were not being encouraged.

The Reorganization Act of 1996, which mandates PTA to regulate competition in the telecommunication sector, protect consumer rights and ensure that the interests of users are safeguarded and protected is the act under which the authority claims to have taken the action.