AT&T takes flak for Idol SMS push – is operator spam really not spam?

I guess it must have been a slow news day, but last week the New York Times reported on a promotional text sent out by AT&T, which it claims had rebounded badly on the US network.  AT&T, it seems, sent a considerable volume of texts promoting an upcoming American Idol show to some of its 75m subscribers. The issue was taken up on Twitter, and being presented by NYT and others as a ‘backlash’ against operator spam.

In reports, AT&T rather weakly claimed that the message was not spam, because it had gone to subscribers who had voted for Idol singers in the past, and other “heavy texters.” A spokesperson for the network also suggested that the message was not really spam because it was free and allowed people to opt out from future promotions.

Hmm, hardly a convincing rationale on any front, especially when you consider that Idol text voting is a big money spinner for AT&T.

Could it happen in the UK? Well yes, it can and it does. Check your operator Terms and Conditions – most specifically allow them to send subscribers promotional SMS and MMS, with no opt-out. Used reasonably, this is surely not a problem. I expect, even appreciate, the service messages that I get when I’ve exceeded a plan or am abroad, but do I want to be pushed third party products?

I actually fell ‘victim’ to such a ‘spam’ message from my UK operator a couple of weeks ago. It wasn’t that I got a message promoting a third party service that irked me,  but rather the inappropriateness of the content. The message was an MMS advertising a sports subscription service, with a link to subscribe via the Operator Portal. This annoyed me because I really don’t like football, have never accessed football content via my phone, and never plan to. Sorry for those football fans out there, but 1.5 hours of kicking around a leather ball has never appealed. Why did I get the message? Probably because I am male and in the right age-bracket. Well, this stone-age targeting wasted 30 seconds of my day and means that I am unlikely to open another MMS from the operator any time soon.  At the very least I want the right to opt out, especially if they are for products that don’t interest me. No such luck.

Now I am not not saying its a massive problem, mainly because the level of network initiated promotional messages is really very low – but it does raise some interesting questions.  Firstly, should consumers tolerate this type of marketing when they’ve paid for the service in the first place, and secondly, when it’s this poorly targeted, does it really serve any clear marketing purpose for the networks and their advertisers?

Granted, you see ads at the cinema and in magazines, (where you’ve paid) but these are hardly as instrusive as text messages, and they are expected (and normally appropriate to the film or publication). Some would argue that such ads, in certain media channels, ad value and even contribute to the experience. But mass messaging to people’s personal inboxes, with little attempt at targeting, can’t be good for anyone, now can it?

I recommend networks keep their powder dry and only send out promotional messages when the subscriber has declared or demonstrated an interest. I am not a privacy freak, so if my network wants to send me the occassional link to new 3rd party content in an area of their mobile portal I access all the time, then bring it on. Keep sending me untargetted messages from advertisers I don’t want and I just might be tempted to jump ship, or start to expect some money off my subscription! Whatever you might think about the state of their commercial model, at least the quid pro quo deal with ad funded MVNOs like Blyk is clear.