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ICSTIS tells sex lines to clean up their act

Warns on warnings

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UK premium-rate regulator ICSTIS has told sex lines to clean up their act by 31 August or face sanction.

The warning comes in response to complaints from the public that some services are launching directly into salacious content, without the required warnings, while others are leaving frustrated punters on hold.

Recorded sex lines must remind callers to be over 18, and that the service name will appear on their phone bill. Live sex lines additionally need to say how much the call costs, the name of the company running the service, as well as stating that all calls are recorded.

Companies have until the end of August to make sure those warnings are in place, and no more: some services have been using lengthy warnings to keep punters waiting, while pretending it's their legal responsibility.

Quite why sex lines deserve such a warning when breaches could be addressed immediately is unclear. ICSTIS couldn't be reached for comment. ®

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Latest Comments

Talking v-e-ry s-l-o-w-l-y

Unless, as suggested above, the warning is made before charging, there is a huge incentive to delay the hapless punter with an excessively slow message. in fact I seem to remember an episode of The Simpsons featured Homer dialling a premium rate number and getting annoyed at the v-e-ry s-l-o-w speech.

By the way, there was a great story of a guy who sued a sex line for misrepresentation: the line was advertised 'hear me moan' and featured a woman complaining... The judge said he got what he deserved.

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Re: KISS

And you know this because? :-)

There was the cop who spent $10,000 on lap dances while performing surveillance on topless bars (and some all nude establishments).

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Anonymous Coward

KISS

In some places you have to listen to the legal warnings and the price of the call - this is not billed - and then are told to press 1 if you want to go on and be billed from then on. Seems like common sense...

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