Brands must market services ethically, says MHK

MHK unhappy over Manx Telecom communications

An MHK believes companies such as Manx Telecom have a duty to market their services ethically.

Rob Callister has accused the telecoms provider of guerilla marketing and scare tactics, after some customers received a letter warning of pending price rises.

The firm has since apologised for any confusion, as some MT users can actually cut their bill by switching to a newer tariff.

Mr Callister says service providers have to contact customers responsibly:

In a statement to Manx Radio, Ed Jennings, Manx Telecom Chief Commercial Officer, said: “Manx Telecom reassures we have not written to customers and encouraged them to move onto a tariff at a higher price point. We are not, as other operators do, forcing them on to another tariff. We have instead provided 30 days’ notice that their existing tariff will increase because it is an old legacy product that we no longer sell. We apologise if our recent letter has caused any confusion.

“Manx Telecom has contacted a small percentage of our customers on old out of contract mobile tariffs – e.g. Pay Monthly 15GB – who are missing out on better benefits and potentially some great savings. Every year Manx Telecom writes to thousands of customers, several months before they come out of term because we want to ensure they know about our newest tariffs and benefits. We want all our customers to talk to us so that we can help personally establish their needs and recommend the many new alternative options that offer far greater value for money. 

“We urge any customer on an old, out of contract tariff to visit our Manx telecom store in Strand Street and to talk our team about our newest and latest tariffs.  We are confident that we will have something that is better value for them. Sometimes customers choose to stay on our old legacy tariffs and do not want to change. We always strive to accommodate all our customers’ needs and have legacy tariffs still in use with just a few customers on them.  We are happy to maintain old products if our customers want them but we must cover the increased cost of maintaining high volumes of old legacy tariffs within our systems."

You can view that interview in full here: