Subscribers say telecom firm imposes online gaming service citing free trial period and then bills them

For customers of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) broadband Internet service, this is a tangle they are finding hard to get out of. BSNL customers complain that they are being unethically charged for a value-added gaming service that was firstly, thrust upon them and secondly, meant to be free for the first one month of trial period. What's more, they are unable to even discontinue the service.u00a0


Feeling cheated: Sanjay Sajnani, who has been charged Rs 200 for
'Game on Demand' facility in his BSNL telephone bill

The service in question 'BSNL games on demand' facility having various online games which has been initiated by the telecom company in partnership with the online gaming portal 'www.indiagames.com'. "The customer care executives lured me into subscribing by saying that the first one month was free and I can discontinue it later. Ideally, they should automatically discontinue when customers do not voluntarily unsubscribe.

After the first month, I was shocked to find that I was being charged Rs 200 for the gaming service in my monthly bill (MiD DAY has a copy)," said Sanjay Sajnani (42) from Mundhwa. "I went to their office in Hadapsar where they asked me to call on a toll-free number 1800-425-0500. Here too, the operator told me to log on to my online ID and de-activate it, but I couldn't, as I had forgotten my account details. The BSNL executives then promised me that they would e-mail my account details which they haven't till date."

Not unlike are complaints that have been pouring in from all over the country on consumer forum web portals such as https://www.consumercomplaints.in/. Some have even threatened to move the consumer court against the telecom service provider. Rohit Kumar (19) from Nizamabad in Andhra Pradesh said he did not even subscribe for the trial period offer and one fine day the charges were reflected on the bill. "I have paid almost Rs 1,000 since the last five months and I didn't even know about any such gaming offer. The BSNL officials here have done nothing despite repeated complaints," he said.u00a0u00a0

The Other Side
R K Upadhyay from New Delhi, chairman and managing director of BSNL, said he was unaware of any such practice and the company had hitherto not received any such complaints. "I am sure if the one month trial period is free, customers won't be charged," he said. When MiD DAY pointed out that it had a copy of one such bill, he said he would look into the matter and take corrective action if such a practice existed. Despite repeated attempts, Alok Kaul, chief general manager for Pune region, was unavailable for comment.u00a0u00a0u00a0