"So, um
You recieved an unsolicited txt message, it offered you stuff for free, you clicked to download the ringtone, and you got scammed. And you're surprised?

If you received a spam email that asked you to run an EXE file attached to it, would you? Of course not. Well, I wouldn't, anyway. On the strength of this article, I suspect that you actually may.
posted by : Dave B, 19 May 2008"

Fair point ............ except that this industry (unlike the internet) is supposedly regulated - by PhonePayPlus.

They are always telling us that their regulation means that we can have confidence in this industry. Tanla mobile is not some isolated fly-by-night operation, it is one of the main players in PRS in the UK and has recently been accredited by O2 to run the PayForIt (phone becomes electronic wallet) service which (unlike "free" ringtones) the consumer might reasonably expect to be run by an honest company.


You recieved an unsolicited txt message, it offered you stuff for free, you clicked to download the ringtone, and you got scammed. And you're surprised?

If you received a spam email that asked you to run an EXE file attached to it, would you? Of course not. Well, I wouldn't, anyway. On the strength of this article, I suspect that you actually may.

WHY WHY WHY do people buy ringtones for there mobile phones for those who can use MP3's as a ringtones. Just use Windows Movie Maker 2 add the ringtones and cut it at the part you think sounds cool fade it out or in depends. Save it to My Movies (default location) and then find a MP3 converter to convert it from WMA to MP3 and bam 1 ringtone.

I've done that for years and whats the toll on my wallet NOTHING!!!

The behaviour of PP+ here is, sadly, par for the course.

As for AIME, their former chariman Neil Penny actually represented Tanla and 2Comm at one or their PP+ hearings. I don't think you will get any help from AIME.

Also, Neil Penny is friend of James McAteer who registered the 2Comm domain name. James McAteer works for Tanla.

2 Comm Ltd is Tony Kelly and Alan Scott. Tony Kelly is a former business partner of Ian Vaughan (Google "flying lessons" and these names!)

Alan Scott is a friend of James McAteer and of Neil Penny.

2Comm and Tanla are members of AIME along with most of the big networks.

Parliamentary Dinner – 18 October 2005 

A dinner hosted by Alun Michael MP, minister of State for Industry & the Regions, and Sir Peter North of ICSTIS. The invitees were a select band and included NOC, City of London Police, Vodafone, BT and others and was declared to operate under ‘Chatham Rules’ hence nothing said at the meeting could be quoted but an open exchange of views was ensured.

It was an encouraging session with widespread support for a healthy, valuable and responsible PRS Industry but managed in a collaborative fashion with a light regulatory hand.

“From an NOC perspective I was greatly encouraged to see us moving in this direction at long last and I am confident that we will see continuing change in the way PRS is regulated to the benefit of us all and including ICSTIS,” said Roy Ellyatt.

...not when there's absolutely no protection from people dipping the hands into it. Why on Earth do the mobile company regulators (Ofcom?) think it's acceptable for mobile network companies to set up an intermittent opt-out system of 3rd-party direct access to your account. If you're a contract customer you can refuse to pay the bill (but not without massive grief and probable credit rating blackening), but for us PAYG customers our money is already on the phone (un-technically), so these 3rd party 'services' companies literally have a hand in our pockets that we can't do anything about.

The whole system for text-based payments should be opt-in from the start and easily disabled by the network company with a simple code or quick call to the customer services number. Just like they do with international roaming - so don't tell me it's not technically feasable!!