March 2010 Round up

Knowledge & Networking News

Members & Colleagues,

Welcome back from your Easter holidays and hello to AIME’s K&N News round up for March 2010. I hope you find this a useful summary of our ongoing efforts to support your business and if you have any views on how to improve the News update or feel there is particular industry information you would like us to add please don’t hesitate to get in touch with myself or Zoe. Likewise if you have any significant company news/announcements or would like to raise your profile as a member just get in touch (our news is now emailed to over 2,000 subscribers).

We are pleased to welcome two new members in March, the Venista Group who have joined as a Sponsor Member and All Points North. Most members will know All Points North, a leading UK premium rate service provider for a number of years, specialising in voice and text chat.  Venista Group, based in Cologne Germany, is a significant merchant promoter operating in multiple markets around the globe providing mobile media content direct to consumers. Led by Oliver Wimmeroth (currently standing for the AIME Executive Board), Venista has a significant presence in the UK market and will be dedicating some of their time and wealth of experience from other markets to contribute to AIME’s UK initiatives.

Looking forward to this month, we will usher in a new AIME Executive Board. Having spoken to numerous members at last month’s GM, it is widely appreciated that the departing Board has achieved so much in keeping AIME on the front foot in tackling key industry issues, and transformed the organisation that was Network for Online Commerce to the influential force that is AIME today - so thank you to all Board members for your support and guidance over the last two years.  The departing gift of the last Board at last week's meeting was to sign off the AIME 3 Year Plan (soon to be released) and a hefty bar bill. I am sure the new Board will be ready to take AIME to the next stage in its development and I hope they’re prepared to stump up for the odd round.

To highlight a few key meetings this month. We will be meeting with Ofcom to discuss the recently released BT PRS Bad Debt notice (5.24%), considerations from their appointed consultants BDO and implications of increased bad debt provision. We will also follow up with Ofcom regarding their recent request for further information on Psychic broadcast programming, and we expect a Statement to be released on the PTV3 consultation later this month. We will hold our quarterly meeting with PPP, to discuss key objectives of the 12th Code and areas of the regulatory process that we see as critical to progress under the new code – investigations triage, executive training, SLAs & KPIs, EP notices and content, CCP hearings. We will keep you posted on the key items for this month’s ILP meeting where we expect further information on the Ofcom NTS consultation and its bearing on price transparency, and also further debate on what services will be classed as controlled PRS.

Your views and input are always welcome: toby@aimelink.org.

Toby Padgham
AIME General Secretary

Chairman's Brief

Dear Industry Members, Colleagues and Friends,

I hope that a Happy Easter was had by all and that business prospects are looking better for the year ahead. It's Election fever all over town with Gordon v David on the one hand and the results of our own AIME Board elections which will be announced shortly.

I would like to thank my Board colleagues over the past 12 months who have supported me as chairman and who have covered an awful lot of ground and invested a lot of time on behalf of your Trade Association over the last two years.  We definitely say "goodbye" to three who are not re-standing and they are Adam Maxted, Bindi Norwell and Tony Couch, all of whom have contributed extensively to AIME. A number are re-standing including Jeremy Flynn, Rory Maguire, David Sheridan and Rudd Apsey.  As I mentioned above, we have been lucky to have had such a high calibre list of members applying for the 7 Board positions which came up for rotation last month, there are at least 5 new members who have put themselves forward for Board positions and the results of this process will be communicated shortly.  As soon as the new board has met for the first time in May, I will also update members on any specific roles and responsibilities.
 
We had a very good turn out to the March General Meeting and discussion was healthy.  The presentation by PhonepayPlus' Bradley Brady was informative on the forthcoming 12th Code and we will be coming back to members on AIME plans to maximise awareness of 12th Code implications in due course.  I am also hoping that we will be able to increase representation of Promoters at both membership and Board level as the 12th Code will certainly be more focused towards promoters.

Your Board instructed the Executive to follow up on concerns regarding the fairness and proportionality of fines and the hearing process and a new working group has been formed to take this forward.  

Last summer your Board asked the Executive to write a 3-year plan for AIME and this is almost complete.  A summarised final draft will be sent to members shortly and thank you all for your input.  This plan will be reviewed annually and covers a number of key objectives for AIME including:
1) Membership targets and positioning of AIME in the market place 2) CID and registration scheme 3) Events and networking strategy 4) PR and marketing of AIME 5) Research and defining metrics to better track industry trends 6) Market growth and defence initiatives 7) A new AIME sanctions policy and 8) A forward look into new areas which can be exploited by members.

However, the ultimate metric which will be most valuable to all will be a return to growth in industry revenues especially after a long period of decline, heightened by various crises. I am encouraged to read that Q1 2010 should see a growth over the previous quarter and let's hope that we can recover some of the lost revenues from last year over the coming months.

A massive "well done" to the MX Telecom team who have sold the business to Amdocs recently for over $100m. This is a continued upward trend in M & A activity in our sector in both US and UK.  It should be remembered that for some members, a key goal is to build businesses and create capital value and so it's heartening that we are seeing deals of this nature.  Warmest congratulations to Mark Fitzgerald, Alex Moir and David Sheridan (Board member) and the team for achieving this sale, it is thoroughly deserved.
 
I look forward to seeing you all at the next General Meeting on 2nd June.

It's always good to get feedback from you all and so I welcome members getting in touch with any issues which they may prefer to discuss on a one-to-one basis.  The best way to contact me is via AIME: zoe@aimelink.org.

Best wishes

Edward Boddington
AIME Chair

Showcase

Amdocs acquires AIME member MX Telecom in a move to open up US Mobile Billing

Hearty congratulations go out to long-standing AIME member MX Telecom after it was announced last month that the company has been acquired by US customer experience and operator billing giant Amdocs for $104million in cash.

MX Telecom is one of the world’s leading messaging and billing companies and is also considered to be one of the most reliable. Once the transaction is complete, the company will become part of Amdocs’ OpenMarket, a business that operates a market leading mobile transaction hub. The acquisition should accelerate OpenMarket’s plans for global expansion into key markets in which MX already has significant presence. The joint OpenMarket MX Telecom business will provide a hosted platform to extend mobile payment and messaging capabilities through an integrated network and product portfolio. 

Read more here...

 

Representation

Meetings

  • Stakeholder meeting with IMRG - 3rd March
  • Stakeholder meeting with MEF - 3rd March
  • Ofcom re Psychic PTV - 3rd March
  • PhonepayPlus re Regulatory Best Practice Initiative - 8th March
  • AIME Members' GM - 10th March
  • ILP Mobile Complaints Working Group Conference Call - 24th March
  • Payforit 3.0 Workshop - 24th March
  • PhonepayPlus Forum - 25th March
  • Stakeholder meeting with IMRG, IAB & Orange on Industry research - 29th March
  • PRS Industry Group (pre-ILP) meeting - 30th March
  • AIME Board Meeting - 30th March
  • PhonepayPlus re Registration Scheme Data Security - 31st March

AIME Initiative - Interactive Broadcast Forum

  • Proposal to change PTV Regulations submitted to PhonepayPlus - Details can be obtained from AIME
  • PhonepayPlus Board & Ofcom review of proposals in April
  • Next Interactive Broadcast Forum 28th April

AIME Initiative - Regulatory Best Practice

  • Executive Board working group met 4th & 30th March to discuss next steps on Triage Process, Case Officer Training, Emergency Procedures and SLAs
  • AIME submitted Triage Process suggestions to PhonepayPlus
  • AIME met with PhonepayPlus 8th March to discuss AIME's proposal for a Case Office Training Programme - PhonepayPlus to supply spec to AIME
  • Issue 2 of AIME's Terminating Provider Best Practice Guide has now been published

AIME Initiative - Registration Scheme & its enhancements

  • AIME continues to work with PhonepayPlus on the specification of a registration scheme and met with them 30th March to discuss member concerns over security of Registration data
  • Letter received from PhonepayPlus on Governance issues, which AIME is currently reviewing
  • AIME continues to monitor the accuracy of the PhonepayPlus number checker

 AIME Initiative - PTV Psychic / Tarot

  • AIME met with Ofcom 3rd March re-emphasing points raised in AIME PTV3 consultation response 
    • to allow Psychic services to broadcast on Freeview
    • to request ability to spot advertise Psychic services outside of EPG and to run teleshopping on non dedicated channels
    • need to review the definition of Psychic and Occult
  • New BCAP Code released 16th March, stating that advertising rules relating to Psychic practices and PRS are still the subject of an ongoing Ofcom Consultation
  • Working group meeting 17th March to discuss AIME's future approach with Ofcom and ASA  
  • Formally wrote to Ofcom to express concern over the publication of the BCAP code despite the ongoing Ofcom consultation
  • AIME currently compiling research on the impact ASA's proposed continuing advertising restrictions would have on this Industry Sector
  • The consolidated draft of AIME’s Psychic Best Practice Guide has now been completed and is awaiting the Ofcom PTV Statement before publication
  • Status Update available to members on the AIME website

 AIME Initiative - PRS in Print

  • AIME is currently finalising its Best Practice Guide for PRS in print publishing

 Payforit 3.0

  • Following the publication of Payforit 3.0 AIME hosted a Payforit workshop on 24th March with constructive conversation between the 5 UK Mobile Operators and Mobile Terminating Provider (TPs) members.
    • Changes to Payforit rules and Web / Web Lite / WAP flows were presented
    • Mobile TPs were provided the opportunity to discuss any concerns over Payforit 3.0
    • The group also looked at the wider opportunities for Mobile Payments in e-commerce
  • Next stage is to form a Payforit Research working group   

Regulatory Updates

  • Ofcom and Association for Television On Demand (“ATVOD”) are now co-regulators for editorial content on UK video on demand services that include TV-like programming - formal designation document
  • PhonepayPlus announced updated administrative charges invoiced to companies found to be in breach of the 11th Code of Practice

PhonepayPlus Forum

  • Panel Discussion Mobile Security
    • Examples of Mobile dialler software, such as ‘Red Browser’, have been seen in USA, Russia and China, these have normally been in the form of virus within downloaded applications
    • Issue has been exacerbated by consumers turning off protection measures or ignoring T&C
    • Repeat of 2005 internet dialler fiasco not anticipated as easier for consumers to spot mobile dialler activity quickly on handset call logs, UK market also less susceptible due to 30 day withhold arrangements
    • Industry should still be vigilant as potential to destroy consumer trust if issues develop in UK
  • Thinktank Research  
    • Market Report by Think Tank has now been published by PhonepayPlus
    • Total Market for 2009 731.8M an 11.4% decline over 2008
    • Competitions by SMS largest proportion of market, followed by DQ, TV voting and text alerts
    • Internet advertising main trigger for interaction, followed by word of mouth and TV adverts
    • Consumer trust no longer main barrier to consumer interaction (10%), most consumers report the lack of interesting products for their failure to engage (71%)
    • PRS payment mechanism struggling to compete with low margins of Credit and Debit cards
    • Innovation of products being constrained by slim margins
  • Forthcoming PhonepayPlus consultations
    • Draft of the new 63 Page 12th Code currently with Ofcom for comment, PhonepayPlus to consult mid-April
    • Details of the industry registration scheme, implemented under the 12th code, will be covered in a separate update document in April and comments will be invited from industry
    • Consultation on PhonepayPlus  three year strategic priorities will take place over the summer 

Industry Consultations

 ComReg - Scope of Premium Rate Services Regulation

  • Consultation published 1st April
  • Members' working group being formed - please contact zoe@aimelink.org to register interest
  • AIME response to be submitted 30th April

PhonepayPlus - Multi-Party Chat

  • Consultation published 29th March
  • Members working group being formed - please contact zoe@aimelink.org to register interest
  • AIME response to be submitted 9th June

 Ofcom & ATVOD Regulatory Fee Structure for Video on Demand 2010/11 

  • Consultation published 26th March
  • Members working group being formed - please contact zoe@aimelink.org to register interest
  • AIME response to be submitted 7th May

PhonepayPlus - Annual Business Plan & Budget 2010/11

  • PhonepayPlus Statement published 30th March
  • Budget reduction of 3% and Industry levy reduced to 0.21%
  • Busines plan includes introduction of new Code of Practice and Registration Scheme for Premium Rate Providers
  • PhonepayPlus has committed to delivering an extension to their compliance advice service and to work with industry on a better approach to handling consumer complaints and providing redress.

Ofcom - PRS Bad Debt Surcharge

  • BT wholesale announced revision of PRS Bad Debt surcharge to 5.24% (effective 1st July)
  • AIME liaising closely with Ofcom on next steps, which will include consultants BDO reviewing BT's latest figures and further consultation in Summer 2010

 Ofcom - Review of Consumer Complaints Procedures

  •   AIME Submitted response 12th March
    • AIME emphasised that members are actively contributing to various initiatives to improve customer information and support services and that AIME continue to co-operate with PhonepayPlus on the forthcoming registration scheme
    • Single Ofcom code with minimal prescription is preferred way forward with joint co-operation between Ofcom and Industry
    • AIME also suggested a more generic definition of a complaint

ASA Codes Review

Industry consultations & AIME responses can be found on the AIME website

Information & Networking

AIME Information & Networking

  • Member networking after AIME GM - 10th March
  • 2 New Members: The Venista Group & All Points North
  • AIME Supporting Association at Mobile Social Networking, IPTV World Forum, FT Digital Media & Broadcasting and  Guardian Changing Media Summit  
  • AIME attendance at FT Digital Media & Broadcasting 
  • AIME attendance at Guardian Changing Media Summit
  • AIME attendance at Conversions Summit North
  • Member email alerts sent out including:
    • Ofcom Consumer Complaints Procedures - AIME Draft Consultation Response for review
    • PTV3 Psychic Update & Request for Information
    • AIME Executive Board Elections
    • Consultation Updates: Ofcom & ATVOD Video on Demand, PhonepayPlus Multi-party Chat & ComReg Scope of Premium Rate Services Regulation
    • AIME Interactive Broadcast Forum Progress Update - SMS Voting
    • Publication of AIME Mobile Terminating Provider Best Practice Guide Issue 2
       

Industry Reports

Member News

Mobile Interactive Group ( MIG ), a global mobile and digital communications business announces expansion into America and Canada, with its digital agency Jigsaw, opening two new offices in Chicago and Toronto. The move has been 100% driven by growing client demand for the agency’s unique integrated approach to delivering and implementing multi-channel digital campaigns that pull on the Group’s expertise across a broad range of online, mobile, and digital marketing and technology disciplines.

Mobile messaging and mobile payments specialists Dialogue Communications has appointed Alex Crisp, formerly Investigations Executive at PhonepayPlus ( the agent appointed by Ofcom to regulate paid-for telecoms services in the UK ) to be its new Compliance Manager.

Gaming companies looking for a simple and secure method for customers to top-up their accounts via their mobile phones and to provide continuous betting will welcome InstantBet©, a new specialist mobile payment service from mobile payments specialist paythru announced today. A full customer demo of InstantBet© can be seen by texting ‘demo’ to 67766.

Westbury Wiltshire, UK – March 31st, 2010: Square1 Communications Ltd, one of the UK’s largest and leading independent providers of fixed line interactive IVR and mobile SMS services has announced that it has been awarded the contract to provide voting platform service for this year’s BritAsia Music Awards.

 

Dates for your diary!

11-12th May - MVNOs - AIME Supporting Association, member discount
25-26th May - Open Mobile Summit - AIME Supporting Association, member discount
9-10th June - World Telemedia - AIME Supporting Association, member discount
22-23rd June - Global Messaging Congress - AIME Supporting Association, member discount
22-23rd June - MeM 2010 - AIME Supporting Association, member discount
21-22nd Sept - ad:tech 2010 - AIME Supporting Association, member discount

If you would like further information on any of AIME's activities, initiatives or benefits of membership, please contact me at zoe@aimelink.org

Kind Regards,

Zoe Patterson
General Manager

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