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Friday, December 30, 2011

A pro-active regulator acting on behalf of consumers

Verizon (a telephone operator in the US) wanted to charge a "convenience fee" of $2 to its customers making a payment through the telephone. It drew protest from consumers. The regulator, i.e. the Federal Communication Commission, felt that it was their duty to look into this fee "on behalf of consumers" to see if any regulation has been infringed.  Verizon changed its mind and decided to withdraw this fee.

Read this report "Verizon scraps $2 fee" http://money.cnn.com/2011/12/30/technology/verizon_fee_canceled/index.htm?section=money_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fmoney_topstories+%28Top+Stories%29

The approach of the regulator in America seem to be quite different from the regulator in Singapore. The US regulator felt that it was their duty to look after the interest of the people. The Singapore regulator would probably say that this is a commercial decision, and that consumers could go to another service provider.

I prefer the US approach.


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