Your phone number is on sale

On March 21, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India postponed for the fourth time, implementation of their new set of guidelines to regulate rampant telemarketing. Pesky calls and SMSes selling anything from travel packages to meal deals, are only going to increase. The market is flooded with fly-by-night operations selling CDs of your phone numbers, email IDs and residence address

THE woman on the other end of the line speaks hesitatingly at first. She does not disclose her name or the name of her company. "First, tell me your name and what you want?" she asks, firmly. We tell her we are involved in a start-up company, and interested in her database. Satisfied, she asks, "So, do you want contact addresses of people in Mumbai or across India?" "How much does each cost?"

Illustration/Jishu Dev Malakar

"Rs 5,000 for 1.3 crore phone numbers in Mumbai. Rs 15,000 for 44 crore phone numbers across India." She is ready to send a CD packed with these numbers immediately, but suggests we go through a sample first. Within a minute, an email from her arrives in our inbox. Her name is Dimple, and she works for Matrix Infobiz. Not only are phone numbers available, there are email IDs, residence and office addresses attached. And on shelling out a little more money, we are offered numbers of specific target groups.

For instance, Matrix Infobiz can provide contact information of 9,800 CEOs working in MNCs, 26,500 top executives of Blue Chip companies, 2,200 builders and promoters, 69,250 members of 'high-society' with a high-net income. And the list goes on. Her's is in fact, one of several such companies operating within the country.

Mysmsmantra, a Jaipur-based operation that deals in bulk SMSes, is currently offering a 'platinum' buy-one-get-one free offer. On purchasing a deal of SMSes to 1 lakh phone numbers for Rs 5,515, you get SMSes to another 1 lakh numbers absolutely free. Which means, a travel firm keen to advertise its latest summer vacation package, only needs to pay Rs 5,515, and SMSes will be sent to a total of two lakh people.

Another Jaipur-based operation called Sms'n'database is offering, along with SMSes to 1 lakh phone numbers for Rs 3,000, a database of email IDs of NRIs. Nishikesh, an employee here, explains why his company is one of the best. "For a 10 gigabyte data of 30 crore phone numbers across India, you pay just Rs 5,000. Also, unlike many other companies, our database has been updated till August 2010. So, there is a minimum of 75 per cent accuracy rate." The remaining percentage, according to Nishikesh, takes into account people who have discontinued their numbers.

Ruchika Bajaj, a 30-year old entrepreneur who runs Bulk Email SMS India, a telemarketing firm of 10 employees based in Kolkata, says while telemarketing companies have existed for many years, it is only recently that phone numbers have been made available at dirt cheap rates, and that too with intense classifications of people from groups. "Earlier it was difficult to come by these phone numbers. Nowadays, we have so many outlets to buy numbers from."

Bajaj, who was a homemaker until recently, started Bulk Email SMS India a year ago. The company doesn't sell databases, but maintains a database of contact numbers to help companies target customers. According to her, when the company was launched, she bought databases from the grey market apart from other sources, which she refuses to disclose.

Is there an end in sight?
It looks unlikely that contact numbers will stop being sold openly, and to mobile phone users receiving unsolicited calls. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on March 21 postponed the implementation of new guidelines to regulate telemarketing for the fourth time. According to the new guidelines, telemarketing companies found to be contacting people on the National Do Not Call (NDNC) registryu00a0-- set up in 2007u00a0-- will be issued heftier fines. A first-time offender will be charged Rs 25,000, with fines getting steeper on more offences. A company that contravenes rules for the sixth time can be fined as high as Rs 2.5 lakh and another offence will lead to it being blacklisted for two years. In comparison, a current first time offender has to pay a penalty of only Rs 500, rising to Rs 1,000 for subsequent offences.

The other important point is the laying down of a separate numbering series for telemarketers, beginning with '140' so that these calls can be easily recognised, and if needed, ignored. Adding these three digit series to numbers will take the total digits to 13. According to telecom companies, such an increase in digits will require more time. Sanjiv Swarup, co-director of Direct Marketing Association, India, however is surprised with the excuse being offered. "I believe we have some of the best software engineers in the world and if telecom operators try in all earnestness, it is a half-hour job."

The source of these numbers
But where are these numbers coming from? Bajaj explains: "This data is got from various outletsu00a0-- banks, telecom service providers, web listing services, restaurants, shopping centres, and just about any place where people leave their contact details." According to Swarup, the major offenders are telecom service providers and banks. "Despite the existence of an NDNC registry, many banks and telecom service providers pass on the contact information of people on this very registry to their employees," he says, adding that this information then gets leaked and sold in CDs to other business ventures.

According to Direct Marketing Association, telemarketing is a Rs 2,000-crore industry that employs a minimum of seven lakh people in India. There are reportedly 110 million subscribers registered with the NDNC registry, and thus, telemarketing companies cannot afford to leave out this major target group.

The rise of the SMS
Another recent trend that has emerged in telemarketing in the last one year is the decrease in the number of calls being made and a subsequent increase in SMSes. "Phone calls are expensive," says Anil Prakash, president of Telecom Users Group India. "In comparison, SMSes are cheaper. Thus businesses that might find calling up customers unfeasible can now send lakhs of SMSes at a far cheaper rate."

"A company needs to spend about Rs 400 for 5,000 SMSes. Even if three or four people revert and go ahead, the firm makes a good profit," says Bajaj. A day after contacting Matrix Infobiz, this reporter was contacted by another individual. He called himself a former employee of the company who now is an independent entrepreneur. "Why take that database? I can provide you the same for half the price," he promised.

The price
Rs 5,000 for 1.3 crore phone numbers in Mumbai classification 9,800 CEOs 2,200 builders and promoters 69,250 members of 'high-society' with a high-net income the guideline that's being ignored Rs 25,000 the fine a first-time offender will be charged if contacting people registered on National Do Not Callu00a0