iWorld
Now, Shah Rukh Khan is just a phone call away
MUMBAI: In this era of social engagement with audiences and fans alike Bollywood’s King Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, takes one step ahead to reach out to his fans and become the first celeb to enable all his Indian fans to ‘Dial to follow him on Twitter’.
Riding on the success of Chennai Express, in response to the love and affection shown by his fans worldwide SRK announced a groundbreaking global integration with Twitter India and ZipDial in which everyone living in India can follow and engage with him on Twitter via SMS.
Effective immediately, anyone with a mobile phone in India can follow @iamsrk on Twitter by dialing (or giving a missed call) at 09015500555. The experience works for 100 per cent of mobile users in India on any phone, any operator network and is completely free, irrespective of whether they have a Twitter account or data-enabled phone.
On calling the number this is the text message that is received – Thanks for dialing. Enjoy my Tweets by SMS. To reply to me or see my photos, just follow me on Twitter. Love, Shah Rukh Khan; followed by his latest tweet.
Commenting on the integration, Shah Rukh Khan said, “I have always believed in the power of technology and use it in various ways to further my connection with my audience. In recent years, Twitter has been a magical place for me to engage with my fans. I hope all my fans in India will avail this new service to connect with me. I thank ZipDial and Twitter India for helping me inaugurate this innovation and help bring together my entire national audience who don’t access Twitter. Very soon I hope to also expand this to multiple countries, languages and platforms.”
Twitter’s India market director Rishi Jaitly said, “Twitter is the world’s leading real time information network where hundreds of millions of people follow the people and organisations that interest them. In India, Twitter among other things brings our users closer to their favourite stars and icons. We are pleased to see Shah Rukh Khan and ZipDial use the Twitter platform in this way.”
iWorld
Telcos push for unified rules as spam shifts to OTT platforms
Over 80 per cent fraud moves online, operators seek common framework.
MUMBAI: The spam may have left your phone network but it hasn’t left you alone. India’s telecom operators are once again dialling up the pressure for a unified regulatory framework, warning that fraud is rapidly migrating to internet-based platforms where oversight remains far looser. According to industry communication, a leading operator has written to multiple arms of the government including the Department of Telecommunications, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Ministry of Finance arguing that tighter controls on traditional telecom networks are inadvertently pushing bad actors towards over-the-top (OTT) communication platforms.
The concern is not new, but the framing has sharpened. What was once an industry grievance is now being positioned as a consumer protection issue. Operators say that tackling spam in silos no longer works, as fraudsters seamlessly shift across platforms, exploiting regulatory gaps. The result: a moving target that traditional safeguards struggle to contain.
Executives point to a clear shift in fraud patterns. OTT platforms are increasingly being used for phishing links, impersonation scams and bulk unsolicited messaging, with industry estimates suggesting that over 80 per cent of spam activity has now migrated online. In this environment, the lines between telecom networks, messaging apps and financial fraud are blurring fast.
At the heart of the industry’s demand is a call for a technology-neutral regulatory framework, one that applies consistently across telecom and internet-based communication services. Operators argue that the absence of uniform safeguards, such as sender verification systems, robust spam filters and clearly defined accountability mechanisms, has created enforcement blind spots that fraudsters are quick to exploit.
The proposal is straightforward but far-reaching. Telcos are pushing for baseline anti-fraud measures across all communication platforms, alongside faster response systems and deeper coordination between ministries. Given the interconnected nature of telecom networks, digital platforms and financial systems, they argue that fragmented oversight only weakens the overall defence.
The broader issue is regulatory arbitrage, the ability of bad actors to hop between platforms based on which is least regulated at any given time. Without harmonised rules, operators say, efforts to curb fraud risk becoming a game of whack-a-mole.
As digital communication continues to expand, the debate is shifting from who regulates what to how consistently it is regulated. For now, telecom operators are making their case clear: in a world where spam travels freely, regulation cannot afford to stay fragmented.
