Watch: Why India Tops the List of Most Spammed Countries

India is ahead of US, Brazil, Chile and South Africa, with an average user receiving over 22 spam calls a month.

Truecaller CEO and co-founder Alan Mamedi.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

Are you bombarded with calls from banks offering loans or rival operators promising free data or unlimited calls coaxing you to switch? Are you peeved by the nuisance that spam calls create in your life? You are not alone.

India is touted as a gold mine for scammers, topping the list of countries plagued by spam calls, says Truecaller chief executive officer and co-founder Alan Mamedi.

Speaking to BlooombergQuint, the founder of the Swedish-based company says that the reason for India being the hotspot for spam calls can be mainly attributed to the route of messaging services and phone calls that corporations adopt to reach out to subscribers.

According to a Truecaller report published in 2017, India is ahead of countries like the US, Brazil, Chile and South Africa, with an average user receiving over 22 spam calls a month. In fact, 31 million calls and 53 million SMSes were sent by just one telco in India, Mamedi says.

Telcos and banks are two tags that pop up when someone searches on the Truecaller app in India. As many as two-thirds of women users take action against spammers, the Truecaller co-founder adds.

“Your phone number is an open gateway for anyone to reach you and the inaction of telcos and mobile manufacturers adds to the woes,” says Mamedi.

Digital Payment Space

The company has recently forayed into the digital payment space with the launch of a Unified Payment Interface-based service called Truecaller Pay.

On attempts to gain ground amidst the the dominance of Paytm and the imminent arrival of WhatsApp, the Mamedi says:

Every transaction happens after a call and this is where Truecaller steps in. So our approach is set to be very different and can certainly be better for the end consumer.

Alan Mamedi, Truecaller CEO

He went on to add that the merger of True Messenger into Truecaller in a way to better the communication experience of an end user.

“We are monetising on advertisements and improving our premium subscription offering as the paths for its business model,” Mamedi says while discussing the business model of the app.

However, the path for developing new products isn’t in adopting monetary routes.

While building new products, monetisation is not a big concern but a great experience for the customers is of utmost importance.

Alan Mamedi, Truecaller CEO

On whether the launch of Truecaller’s premium service defeats what the company’s model stands, Mamedi says, “The core Truecaller offering that makes communication easier will remain free.”

Since 60 percent of the Truecaller user base lies in India, Mamedi considers India as the starting point for replication of its products for other markets.

(This interview first appeared on Bloomberg Quint)

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