Cheers International Sales Ltd (Case reference: 03283)
| Case Number | 03283 |
| Published date | 18 July 2012 |
| Adjudicated Party | Cheers International Sales Ltd |
| Procedure Type | Oral Hearing (Phone-Paid Services Authority) |
1
PHONEPAYPLUS LIMITED
and
CHEERS INTERNATIONAL SALES LIMITED
ORAL HEARING DECISION
Tribunal members: Emma Boothroyd (Chair)
Howard Webber
Louise Povey
1. The oral hearing in this matter took place on 12 June 2012. At the hearing the
PhonepayPlus Executive (“the Executive”) was represented by Selman Ansari of Bates,
Wells & Braithwaite. Cheers International Sales Limited (“CIS”) was represented by
Alan Bates of counsel. David Levitt of the Executive, and Anton James (PRS Manager)
and Miles Samaratne (Managing Director) of CIS gave oral evidence. The clerk to the
Oral Hearing Tribunal (“the Tribunal”) was Alexander Macpherson of counsel.
Summary of Tribunal’s decision
2. The Tribunal’s decision as to the alleged breaches of the PhonepayPlus Code of
Practice (12th edition) (“the Code”) is as follows:
2
2.1. The Tribunal finds that CIS was in breach of paragraph 2.3.1 of the Code because
consumers of the relevant premium rate service were not treated fairly and
equitably.
2.2. The Tribunal finds that CIS was in breach of paragraph 2.4.3 of the Code because
it failed to ensure that consumers’ personal information was not collected
without their consent.
2.3. The Tribunal finds that CIS was in breach of paragraph 3.6.2 of the Code because
the relevant service (being a service which involved the collection of personal
information) failed to make clear to consumers the purpose for which the
information was required and may be used in the future.
3. The Tribunal’s decision as to the sanctions to be applied as a result of the breaches of
the Code is as follows:
3.1. Formal reprimand;
3.2. Fine of £50,000;
3.3. For a 12-month period, CIS is to seek prior permission for any new service
running on multiple premium-rate numbers.
Description of the service
4. The service operated by CIS which forms the subject of this adjudication was called
“Register Now!” and it offered customers the opportunity to register their interest in a
new Voice Over Internet Protocol (“VOIP”) service which was to be offered by CIS at
some time in the future. The service was promoted by means of leaflets distributed at
various locations in the United Kingdom which invited customers to call a specified
premium-rate number to register their interest in the proposed VOIP service.
5. A singular feature of the “Register Now!” service was that CIS operated the service on
around 90,000 premium-rate phone lines. Each individual ‘09’ number was printed on
9 leaflets only, and over the period under investigation, CIS distributed some 584,000
leaflets to members of the public.
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