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UK: Ofcom wants cost of phoning TV shows clearer

By  |  April 27, 2015

Telecoms regulator Ofcom said that from 1 July, the cost of entering competitions or casting votes on TV and radio programmes will be simpler and easier to understand.

Broadcasters often invite viewers to interact with shows by using phone numbers starting 084, 087 and 09.

Yet the cost of engaging in this way with programmes like Big Brother, The X-Factor and Britain’s Got Talent, can vary considerably. While some calls only cost a few pence, others could cost more than £2 per minute.

To make call charges for TV or radio consumers clearer, anyone offered the chance to interact with such numbers must be shown an ‘access charge’ which goes to the phone provider, and a ‘service charge’ which is set by the broadcaster.

Ofcom said the clarification of call charges forms part of the biggest change in phone calls in more than a decade.

 

Full Content: The Telegraph

 

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