Abu Dhabi - Mubasher: The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has imposed administrative fines worth AED 3.8 million on violators since the implementation of the Cabinet Resolution on marketing call violators, which was implemented on August 27, 2024, according to the authority’s recently issued data.

About four months ago, specifically last June, the UAE government issued a decision on the controls and mechanisms for regulating marketing via telephone calls and a list of violations and penalties associated with it.

The Ministry of Economy, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority and the Digital Government explained, in the decision it announced at the time, that the decision will begin to be implemented in mid-August 2024.

The decision included the imposition of progressive administrative penalties, including a warning, a fine of up to 150,000 dirhams, the total or partial suspension of the activity, the cancellation of the license, the deletion from the commercial register, the cutting off of telecommunications services, and the deprivation of telecommunications services in the country for a period of up to one year.

The decision obliges the marketing company to obtain prior approval from the competent authority to practice telephone marketing activity.

Under the decision, individuals are prohibited from making marketing calls using phones issued in their names, and calls may only be made from phones registered in the name of the licensed company.

The decision prohibits making marketing calls outside the period from 9 am to 6 pm, and prohibits calling the consumer back if he rejects the service or product in the first call, and prohibits calling more than once a day if he does not answer the call or ends the call.

The decision allowed the consumer to submit a complaint to the competent authority regarding illegal marketing phone calls.

The Cabinet’s decisions in this regard aim to regulate the marketing of products or services via marketing phone calls in order to maintain economic and social stability, and to ensure that companies adhere to the channels and times for marketing the products or services provided by them or through them, in addition to limiting unwanted marketing phone calls in a way that achieves consumer comfort and does not violate their privacy.