Mobile News

A marketer that obtains electronic contact details for electronic mail from its customers, in the context of the sale of a product or a service, can use these details for the direct marketing of its own similar products or services. The first implementation issue for mobile marketing providers is to define the term “customer”. This term is not defined in the directive. The provision on unsolicited messages makes it clear that a customer is someone who has purchased a product or service from a marketer in the past. Each legislator (or ultimately, a court) will have to indicate the break-off period beyond which a consumer cannot be considered a customer of a marketer. Some agencies have observed a one-year rule in this regard. Others have used the warranty periods on the goods and services as a proxy for customer status. Mobile marketing players should make sure that they respect the local guidelines on the length of time needed to justify a customer relationship.

The other issue that needs to be resolved is the level of similarity of products and services. Can a bank offer an insurance policy to an account customer who has never purchased insurance from that bank? These kinds of issues need to be refined and explained by each legislator (and ultimately, each court) that may be seized with such issues. Again, the pragmatic test that mobile marketing providers should apply is to assess the level of surprise of their target audience. The more different the product or service, the greater the risk of subsequent legal and business problems.