The license of the shopping channel was extended another 6 years

The plenum of the Council for Cable and Satellite Broadcasting extended the license of the shopping channel for another six years. The channel has been operating continuously for 24 years, since 1995, of which 11 years as a special license granted by the Council in 2008. The channel is the only one in Israel that focuses on marketing and sales broadcasts and is granted a special license by the Council for this purpose.
The Commissioner of Consumer Protection in the Council said that her examination showed that the channel mainly serves elderly populations, residents of the periphery and people with disabilities who find it difficult to physically reach the stores in order to make purchases. The Commissioner's examination also indicates that the waiting time for a human response at the customer service center is fast and is possible by means of a toll-free call. In addition, the channel does not collect cancellation fees for canceling a transaction even though the law allows it to do so, and the Council has not received any complaints against the channel in recent years.
The channel's representatives appeared before the council and presented the need for the channel's existence and its contribution to the consumer public in their opinion. They emphasized to the Council the high level of customer service they are careful about and even noted that most of the channel's customers are repeat customers. The channel also introduced improvements in information security, customer service and various technical issues in the broadcasts.
As part of the discussion of the extension request for the license, the Council decided that during 2019 an examination of the provisions of the license will be carried out and they will be updated accordingly.
Chairman of the Cable and Satellite Council Asher Biton said after the decision: "The shopping channel plays an important role in making consumer products accessible to populations that do not make purchases via the Internet, as well as residents of the periphery and older populations. At the same time, the Council and the professional team will examine the provisions of the existing license in order to update them accordingly. The channel faces important challenges, primarily coping with the changes in consumption habits in light of the increasing popularity of online shopping sites and I believe they will be able to. "