Principle
The price and nature of premium-rate telephone services must be made clear. Advertisements that include premium-rate telephone numbers or short codes should comply with the Phone-paid Services Authority Code of Practice. For more information on the Phone-paid Services Authority code go to: psauthority.org.uk.
Definition
Text short codes are premium-rate SMS services, which often consist of four or five digits and begin 5, 6 or 8.
Rules
22.1
Advertisements that include a premium-rate telephone number must comply with the Phone-paid Services Authority Code of Practice.
22.2
Advertisements for premium-rate telephone services must include clear pricing information if the service generally costs 50 pence per call or more.
22.3
Advertisements for premium-rate children's services, services accessed by automated equipment or subscription services must always include clear pricing information.
22.4
Advertisements for premium-rate services must state the identity of the service provider or the information provider.
22.5
Radio only – If it is not included in the advertisement, radio broadcasters must retain and, on request, make available a non-premium-rate telephone number for the premium-rate service for customer care purposes. This rule does not apply if the Phone-paid Services Authority has expressly exempted a specific service or a number range from the need to provide a non-premium-rate telephone number for the premium-rate service.
22.6
Television only – Television advertisements for premium-rate services must include a non-premium-rate telephone number for customer care purposes. This rule does not apply if the Phone-paid Services Authority has expressly exempted a specific service or a number range from the need to provide a non-premium-rate telephone number for the premium-rate service.
22.7
Advertisements for services, excluding live or virtual-chat services, that normally involve a telephone call of at least five minutes must alert the audience that use of the service might involve a long call.
22.8
Advertisements for live premium-rate services must not appeal particularly to people under 18, unless those services have received prior permission from the Phone-paid Services Authority to target people under 18.
