More mobile consumer protection from WASPA.

The latest initiative by the Wireless Application Service Providers’ Association (WASPA) aimed at protecting mobile consumers kicked in over the weekend.

From 15 November 2008 all South African WASPs providing mobile content and subscription services via any mobile access technology will have to send subscribers a notification when their bill reaches a threshold of R300. The subscriber has to explicitly provide consent before incurring any further bills for that particular service.

“This latest consumer protection step will prevent subscribers from ringing up huge bills because they will always be aware that they have reached a certain key threshold,” said Leon Perlman, chairman of WASPA.

WASPA has introduced a raft of consumer protection measures recently with a new set of advertising rules also coming into effect on 15 November. The R300 threshold rule adds to other new WASPA Code of Conduct measures that will ensure the industry organisation is better able to enforce ethical behaviour by its members and protect the interests of consumers.

The WASPA Code of Conduct, which all of South Africa’s WASPs must subscribe to, outlines in detail how the organisation’s members should conduct themselves in their interactions with the public.