July 26, 2016

The UK’s premium rate services regulator, PhonepayPlus, is changing its name to the Phone-paid Services Authority, and adopting a new statement of purpose, which reads: “The UK regulator for content, goods and services charged to a phone bill”.  The name change will be implemented in autumn 2016.

PhonepayPlus’ new 14^th Code of Practice for premium rate services has also come into force, providing “increased transparency and fairness and streamlining of our investigations, adjudications and appeals procedures”, the regulator says.

PhonepayPlus ran an open-source consultation and suggestion process to gather ideas from stakeholders and staff. The new name is informed by stakeholders’ feedback that PhonepayPlus should make it clearer to consumers what the organisation is and does and it reflects the changing market of content and services that can be charged to a phone bill, the regulator says.

The main changes to the new Code relate to Part four and specifically the investigations, adjudications and appeals procedures.  To read PhonepayPlus’s press release in full and to access the new Code, click here.