USSD requests are simple and fast way receive from the operator mobile communications necessary information. All you have to do is enter the required request on your phone. However, it is simply impossible to remember all of them. So save and use the HF directory with all USSD requests for velcom subscribers.

General information:

Information about the state of the balance at the time of the request
Information about the remaining minutes, SMS, MMS and Internet traffic included in the subscription fee
Information about the amount of the monthly payment, the balance of the amount for paying for the goods in installments and the date of completion of the write-off of contributions
Remaining of included minutes of velcom service international 100/250, remnant of Internet traffic of “ITV velcom” service package
Information about the amount payable on the last issued invoice, for clients working without prepayment
Information about the number of minutes of outgoing calls made within the Closed Subscriber Group (CAG)
The total number of minutes used when calling the "favorite" number (tariff plans "Pair", "It's time for couples")
Possibility quick shutdown communication services in case of debt
Registration of an unconfirmed payment
Checking the balance of a subscriber of the "Privetik" tariff plan (available to velcom subscribers whose number is assigned as "favorite" by the subscriber of the "Privetik" tariff plan)	*101*Subscriber number Hello#
“Waiting for a call”: the subscriber whose number was specified will receive an SMS notification asking them to call you back with your number.	*131*Company subscriber number#
Replenishment of the account with an express payment card
Change the postal address for delivery of invoices to e-mail
Repeat invoice for the closed period by e-mail
Refusal to receive invoices

Information and service management:

Operation	USSD request
Information about subscriber's connected services
Information about the list of services available for connection
Phone number and plan information
Tariff plan change
Information about your number in international format
Setting / canceling the ban on listening to ACCA news
Receiving USSD messages in transliteration
Receiving USSD messages in Russian
Setting/cancelling the ban on the use of conditional forwarding in roaming
Connecting minute packages to all networks
"Connected again": all velcom subscribers who called you when you were unavailable or your phone was busy will receive an SMS notification when you are connected again
Providing the opportunity to work without prepayment
Switching to prepaid work
Activation/deactivation of the "Stopitsot" service (available to subscribers tariff plans"Sneakers", "Half-sneakers")
Activation / deactivation of the service "Anti-detector"
Activation/deactivation of the Melofon service
Connection/change of "favorite" number (not available on the tariff plans "Own network", "BUSINESS.PRO", "BUSINESS.PRO.WEB")
Activation/deactivation of the "Pause" service
Connecting / disconnecting CCIS
Obtaining an ISSA password
Connection/disconnection/change of the package within the framework of the "Director's package" service for the tariff plan Manager+
USSD help.

Mobile Internet and MMS:

Operation	USSD request
Obtaining settings for the Mobile Internet service, MMS, streaming video ("Mobile TV"), all available
Receiving test MMS
Activating/deactivating the Mobile Internet service, changing the Mobile Internet service package, changing/deleting an application for changing the Mobile Internet service package
Enable/Disable MMS
Information about the connected "Mobile Internet" service package and access point
Information about the activated package of the Mobile Internet service, the cost of the package and the date of the next debit of the package cost
Information about the provided static IP address
Enabling/disabling the Anti-Virus service
Enable/disable Firewall service
Activation/deactivation of the "Children's Internet" service
Connecting additional traffic to WEB Start, WEB 4, WEB 8, WEB 16
Activation of "Roaming.Vacation", "Roaming.Business" services
Deactivation of "Roaming.Vacation", "Roaming.Business" services
Information about roaming partners
Validity period of Roaming.Vacation, Roaming.Business services

Mobile operators operating in Belarus, for example, Velcom, often inform their customers about the increase in the range of gadgets or the provision of new services by SMS. It is not surprising that such actions annoy many subscribers and, sooner or later, they wonder how to turn off advertising on Velcom. Not everyone is aware of the existence of simple and not contradicting the conditions of the operator ways to disable SMS mailing from Velcom and refuse many unnecessary services (for example, disable Melofon), and it is about them that will be discussed in this article.

Opportunity to unsubscribe

For quite a long time, namely since 2008, Velcom has provided its customers with the opportunity to disable SMS messaging. The exceptions are messages related to subscription services and the fulfillment of the conditions specified in the agreement between the operator and the client. Cancellation of SMS distribution is carried out by means of CCIS, USSD requests or by submitting an application to employees of the Welcom service point.

Disabling SMS-mailing "What's new" from Velcom

The Velcom operator provides its subscribers with an SMS mailing list called "What's New". Here is what company representatives say about this option: “For the convenience of customers, the What's New SMS mailing starts functioning by default after a person inserts a SIM card into his mobile phone. Regularly after the end of an incoming or outgoing call (or sending an SMS message), notifications on a variety of topics pop up on the device's display. Subscribers who are interested in the content of the SMS mailing simply click "OK" and study the detailed information, as well as use Velcom's entertainment services.

For the use of SMS-mailing is not charged subscription fee, but if the user accidentally clicks the "OK" button, they can suffer serious financial losses. The most unprotected in this situation are the elderly and young children, who, without reading the notification, can confirm the action only in order to close the interfering window. This can lead to spending more than a thousand rubles for receiving some trifling news. You may have to pay a fee for the use of traffic.

It is quite difficult to disable Velcom advertising sent by SMS to your phone. This cannot be dealt with in the Subscriber’s Personal Account, but it’s still worth logging into it to activate the “Disable newsletters” and “Disable SMS mailings” options.

Such actions will help to disable some part intrusive advertising on Velcom, but not the SMS-mailing "What's new". There is also no universal SMS or USSD request to block or completely disable unnecessary messages received by SMS mailing.

How to disable "What's New":

1. Enter the sim-menu of Wellcome.
2. Click "What's new" -> "Settings" -> "Service activated" -> "Disable" -> "OK".

Judging by the feedback from Velcom subscribers, not everyone can turn off SMS in this way: on some mobile phones, the menu of the operator does not have the items described above.

The only option that will work for sure is to call the call center (numbers 410,411) and ask them to unsubscribe from the mailing list and turn off the What's New SMS mailing list.

Disabling Melofon

Finding information about the function called "Melofon", provided by the Velcom operator, is quite difficult. Description of tariffs, the procedure for connecting and disconnecting options, a full description of the service - none of these sections includes information that Melofon is activated by default on the numbers of all people who have recently become Velcom customers.

Only by making an effort, you can find the “Rules” section on the official website of the Velcom company, and then find the necessary one in the extensive list of documents - “The procedure for the Melofon service”.

It says here that it is connected by default immediately after the conclusion of an agreement on the provision of communication services at Velcom tariffs (everything, except for Internet tariffs).

What Melofon is for: when other people call the subscriber to whose number it is connected, instead of beeps they hear music. Naturally, not everyone needs this option, but they connect it everywhere.

Important! Using the option will cost the client 7900 Belarusian rubles per month (only the first thirty days are free). If we recall the budgetary tariff offers of the operator Velcom, for example, "In touch" with subscription fee at 13,900 rubles, it turns out almost a fifty percent increase to this amount. Therefore, it must be disabled.

It will not be possible to remove Melofon online through CCIS - the list of connected services displayed in the Personal Account does not include it.

You must disconnect in one of three ways:

• register on a separate service website and switch off there;
• send a message "rbtoff" to number 424;
• send USSD command *425*5*1#.

Turn off Voka (Woka) TV

Voka TV is a service that provides subscribers who have installed on their phones special application, the ability to use it as a TV or cinema. All sessions and broadcasts are available around the clock.

The service can be used by individuals and legal entities located on the territory of Belarus and who have concluded an agreement with Velcom for the provision of communication services.

How to turn off Voka TV on Velcom:

• in mobile application in the "Subscriptions" tab;
• directly from the voka.tv website.

A notification that the Voka TV service on Velcom has been disabled will be sent to the subscriber's number by SMS.
It is worth using the services of mobile operators as carefully as possible in order to avoid unnecessary costs and connect only what you really need. To do this, it is enough to take into account the recommendations and instructions given in this material.

1. "Melofon" is a service that allows you to set an audio accompaniment (melody, sound message) against the background of the sounding ring back tone (CPB):

when a subscriber of the Unitary Enterprise "A1" (hereinafter - the company), who has activated the "Melofon" service, makes an outgoing call to a certain subscriber number of the A1 network;

when other subscribers of the company make a call to the number of the subscriber who connected Melofon.

2. Audio is played if the called party is available and the line is free.

3. The service "Melofon" is provided to all subscribers of the company at the conclusion of the contract, except for tariff plans for the Internet and special tariff plans.

4. Subscribers - individuals and legal entities have the opportunity to disable / connect the Melofon service on their own in one of the ways specified in clause 9 of this procedure.

5. New users of the Melofon service and subscribers who re-activate the service 30 or more days after disconnection are given the opportunity to:

use the Melofon service without charging a subscription fee for 30 days, including the day the service is activated. The validity of the period without charging a subscription fee is not extended in case of disconnection and reconnect services before the expiration of 30 days. Starting from the 31st day, the Melofon service is provided with a subscription fee in accordance with clause 7 of this order;

upload one of your own audio files to your personal list free of charge.

6. For A1 subscribers (except for PRIVET subscribers) disconnected from outgoing and incoming communications due to debt, as well as in the case of using the Pause service, the Melofon service is not provided. For PRIVET subscribers, the “Melofon” service is provided in the “Active” status, as well as in the “Prohibition of outgoing communication” status, if there is an amount on the balance equal to or greater than the cost of the service.

7. For the use of the Melofon service, a subscription fee is charged in accordance with the tariffs approved by the company.
7.1. For A1 subscribers (except for PRIVET subscribers) the monthly subscription fee is charged daily in equal installments depending on the number of days in a month.
7.2. For PRIVET subscribers, the subscription fee is charged daily in a fixed amount.

8. Ordering a melody, recording / downloading your own audio file, setting a melody for an outgoing call are paid separately according to the tariffs approved by the company.

9. Management of the "Melofon" service (connection / disconnection, ordering / deleting melodies, operations with the "Jukebox", setting a melody for outgoing or incoming call) is carried out using:

USSD menu *424# call

SMS to 424

10. Clients of the company - legal entities, if necessary, may prohibit independent connection subscribers of the Melofon service. The prohibition is set on the basis of a written application made by the client at the A1 sales and service center or sales and service points of attorneys, or through Personal account for legal entities(access level Administrator).

11. The ordered melodies are stored in the subscriber's personal list until the subscriber deletes them. After deactivating the Melofon service, melodies are stored in the profile for 30 days.

12. The subscriber has the opportunity to order several melodies at the same time by special price- package. The package may include melodies of one or different price categories. Removal of such melodies from the personal list is also carried out separately.

13. The subscriber has the opportunity to record an audio message (his own audio file) using voice portal by number 424, as well as upload your own melody to the personal list through the web-portal of the Melofon service. For downloading your own audio content, a one-time fee is debited according to the company's tariffs, regardless
on the quality of the audio file/melody.
13.1. When downloading a melody or recording its own audio file, the subscriber is responsible for their content in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus. Unitary Enterprise "A1" provides technical capability use of own audio files in the Melofon service, and is not responsible for the quality of the files uploaded and recorded by the subscriber. The subscriber can get acquainted with the technical requirements for the downloaded audio file before downloading it on the site www.melofon.by.
13.2. Own audio files are included in the subscriber's personal list (without the possibility to present them to another subscriber).

14. Ordering a melody for a friend / Ordering a melody for two.
14.1. You can order a melody for a friend / for two, provided that both subscribers are A1 subscribers and users of the Melofon service.
14.2. The order of a melody for a friend / for two is paid by the subscriber who placed the order. At the same time, the melody (in the case of ordering a melody for two) will be added to his personal list after placing the order and debiting the funds.

15. Disabling the "Melofon" service is carried out by the subscriber independently. After deactivating the service, the subscriber's profile (subscriber's settings and melodies/own audio files from the personal list) is saved for 30 days. In case of reactivation of the Melofon service within 30 days after disconnection, the subscriber's profile is restored with all settings.

16. Tariffs, features of the provision of the Melofon service, incl. restrictions and technical requirements for your own audio file are contained in the description of the service on the website www.a1.by.

17. Correct operation of the "Melofon" service is guaranteed when making calls from/to the numbers of the company's subscribers in the A1 network.

18. The Company has the right to unilaterally change this Procedure without additional notice by publishing the changes on the official website www.a1.by.

19. In everything else not regulated by this Procedure, the client and the company are guided by the provisions of the contract for the provision of telecommunication services concluded between the client and the company.

As it turned out, a sore subject for many is how Belarusian operators make money on the gullibility of subscribers. But gullibility is not the only "sin" of clients. It is also possible to slightly increase ARPU due to our forgetfulness and inattention.

Part one, background

"Melofon"

In order to find information about this service of the first GSM operator in Belarus, you will have to tinker. In the description of tariff plans, the procedure for the provision of services, and even in full description there is not a single mention of the service itself that it is automatically connected to all new subscribers.

Only the skills of Sherlock Holmes will help lead to the lost link “Rules” and find among dozens of documents the one we need - “Procedure for the provision of the Melofon service”. Only there it is written that “Melofon service is automatically assigned when concluding an agreement on the provision of telecommunication services under velcom tariff plans (except for tariff plans for the Internet and special tariff plans) and PRIVET tariff plans.”

The essence of "Melofon" is as follows: subscribers calling you instead of the usual beeps hear different melodies, from the imperishable creations of Mikhail Bublik to the soul-touching chants of Stas Mikhailov. How many subscribers need such pleasure? Not sure. But connect it to every newcomer for a long time.

The cost of the service is 7900 rubles per month. The first month is free. Not bad, especially for budget tariffs with a low monthly fee like "In touch" (13,900 rubles). It turns out more than 50 percent increase in the subscription fee!

How to get rid of Stas Mikhailov? Through the Internet with the help of CCIS it will not work - in the "Personal Account" in the list of services "Melofon" is not. You will either have to register on the service website and disconnect there, or, which is easier, send an SMS with the text rbtoff to number 424. Even better, dial the USSD request *424*5*1#call.

"What's new"

With "Melofon" figured out, but that's not all. The operator's arsenal also includes the "What's New" service. Here is what velcom says about it: “For your convenience, the service starts working automatically after you insert a SIM card into your phone. Periodically after ending a voice call or sending an SMS on the screen mobile phone messages appear on various topics. If you are interested in the announcement, just press OK and read, listen, view detailed information and enjoy entertainment services.

The service itself does not provide for a monthly fee, but by accidentally or inadvertently clicking OK, you can easily, as they say, "get on the money." The service is especially dangerous for the elderly and children, who, without reading it carefully, can click OK to close the window, and in the end they will give more than a thousand rubles for the news about how Taiwanese people take “selfies” in packages. In this case, you may also have to pay for Internet traffic.

Getting rid of the service is not easy. Again, "Personal Account" will not help. But still, we advise you to look there and activate the services “Cancellation of IVR|USSD newsletters” and “Cancellation of SMS mailings”. This will save you some promotional messages, but judging by the descriptions of the services, it will not affect the character of What's New in any way. There is no universal SMS or USSD request to disconnect either.

You can try to enter the operator's SIM menu and select "What's new", "Settings", "Service enabled", "Disable" and "Confirm" in sequence. However, for some reason, this particular menu item was not on my phone. So the only sure and trouble-free way is to call the call center at 410 or 411 and ask to get rid of the service.

Finally, another pitfall, whose name is "Voice Mail". For five years now, it has been “automatically” connected to all new and existing customers, having managed to get bored with some people. Someone resigned himself and got used to listening to voice box invitations over and over again, someone was not too lazy and got rid of the service he did not need a long time ago.

Danger " Voicemail' is hidden first for the caller. By default, voicemail forwarding is enabled if the called party is not available or does not answer within 30 seconds. As a result, the person making the call pays for the call according to their tariff, although they have not spoken to you.

Abroad, the problem with payment is easily solved. A person is given a few non-chargeable seconds to decide whether to leave a message or not.

Let's be honest, almost all subscribers, having heard the offer to leave a message using voice mail, just hang up. In this case, money, as a rule, still manages to be debited. It turns out actually a payment for "air". And even if you decide to leave a message, the chances that the called subscriber will listen to it are minimal - they will call you back rather than deal with the voice box.

The service is especially dangerous abroad, when the forwarded call is charged as an incoming and outgoing call at roaming rates.

There are several ways to get rid of voice mail. The simplest is with a USSD request. Dial on the phone *441*1#call. Next, select the first item and cancel all conditions for call forwarding. SMS notification of missed calls should remain.

More fine tuning services are available through CCIS. We go to " Personal assistant” and go to the “Call Forwarding” tab. Here you can choose under what conditions it is allowed to work "Voicemail".

Part two, practical

The Onliner.by journalist went to the camera shops. The task is as follows: to connect to an inexpensive tariff and see if they will offer us to disable third-party services and whether they will say anything at all about them. Or is it still better for a future subscriber to arm himself with knowledge before going on a trip?

It is worth noting that before that I sent only three simple questions to the operators, slightly different in wording depending on the addressee. For example, velcom wanted to get answers to the following questions:

1. What kind Additional services outside the tariff plan does the subscriber receive when connecting to velcom?
2. For what purpose are new users automatically connected paid service"Melophone"?
3. Does the operator inform the subscriber making the call that money will be debited from his account for the message left using Voice Mail?

Almost a week was not enough for velcom to satisfy our curiosity. In MTS, by the way, questions addressed to them were also ignored.

I visited the operators' salons on the same day, approximately at the same time (I found a place where service centers of velcom, MTS, and life :) are located next to each other. We didn't have to wait at all at velcom - three consultants quickly do their job and practically do not allow the formation of queues.

So, I clearly formulate the goal: I want to connect to the “Summer Calling” tariff, they say, I chose it especially for my mother and it suits everyone. Attempts to offer something more "talkative" or "Internet" were not successful - I want a cheap tariff, and that's it!

We must pay tribute to the consultant: he immediately warned that for terminating the contract before three months of service, he would have to pay a "forfeit" something in the region of 60,000 rubles.

A few minutes - and the contract is completed! Surprisingly, the young man immediately offered to turn off Melofon and did it in a couple of clicks at the computer. But the consultant did not remember about “What's New”. After I asked about the service, a velcom employee carefully wrote on a piece of paper step by step instructions to disable the service.

- Can't you turn it off right now?

- Unfortunately no. You need to activate the SIM card and disable "What's New" by yourself.

In general, the service pleased. They connected and advised quickly, clearly, to the point and as politely as possible. I was pleasantly surprised that they got rid of Melofon immediately, without questions or reminders.

An interesting moment is connected with a call to the velcom call center when I tried to disable the What's New service. The girl on the other end of the “wire” was surprised to note that for some reason this automatically connected service was deactivated for me. How did it happen? After all, in the cabin I was told that it would be possible to turn it off only on my own. I recently installed a SIM-card in the phone and have not had time to do anything yet!

The operator, surprised no less than me, suggested that perhaps the service was still closed during the connection. At the same time, the girl confirmed that it was impossible to deactivate "What's New" using SMS or USSD, but it was possible through CCIS (although I did not have such an item in my "My Account") or a call to the call center.

Well, let this little mystery remain unsolved. Be that as it may, you need to keep your ears open, and in order not to burden your account with unnecessary expenses, it is enough to adopt a few simple recommendations given in the article:

1. *424*5*1#call - USSD request to disable the Melofon service.
2. *441*1*1#call - USSD request to disable call forwarding to Voicemail.
3. 410 or 411 - call the call center and ask them to turn off the What's New service. Or you can search for the corresponding item in the operator's SIM menu.

In the following articles of the cycle, we will talk about how MTS and life :) use the forgetfulness and inattention of subscribers, and also write how to disconnect from operator services that you do not need.

1. "Melofon" is a service that allows you to set an audio accompaniment (melody, sound message) against the background of the sounding ring back tone (CPB):

when a subscriber of the Unitary Enterprise "A1" (hereinafter - the company), who has activated the "Melofon" service, makes an outgoing call to a certain subscriber number of the A1 network;

when other subscribers of the company make a call to the number of the subscriber who connected Melofon.

2. Audio is played if the called party is available and the line is free.

3. The service "Melofon" is provided to all subscribers of the company at the conclusion of the contract, except for tariff plans for the Internet and special tariff plans.

4. Subscribers - individuals and legal entities have the opportunity to disable / connect the Melofon service on their own in one of the ways specified in clause 9 of this procedure.

5. New users of the Melofon service and subscribers who re-activate the service 30 or more days after disconnection are given the opportunity to:

use the Melofon service without charging a subscription fee for 30 days, including the day the service is activated. The validity of the period without charging a monthly fee is not extended in case of disconnection and reactivation of the service before the expiration of 30 days. Starting from the 31st day, the Melofon service is provided with a subscription fee in accordance with clause 7 of this order;

upload one of your own audio files to your personal list free of charge.

6. For A1 subscribers (except for PRIVET subscribers) disconnected from outgoing and incoming communications due to debt, as well as in the case of using the Pause service, the Melofon service is not provided. For PRIVET subscribers, the “Melofon” service is provided in the “Active” status, as well as in the “Prohibition of outgoing communication” status, if there is an amount on the balance equal to or greater than the cost of the service.

7. For the use of the Melofon service, a subscription fee is charged in accordance with the tariffs approved by the company.
7.1. For A1 subscribers (except for PRIVET subscribers) the monthly subscription fee is charged daily in equal installments depending on the number of days in a month.
7.2. For PRIVET subscribers, the subscription fee is charged daily in a fixed amount.

8. Ordering a melody, recording / downloading your own audio file, setting a melody for an outgoing call are paid separately according to the tariffs approved by the company.

9. Management of the "Melofon" service (connection/disconnection, ordering/deleting melodies, operations with the "Jukebox", setting a melody for an outgoing or incoming call) is carried out using:

USSD menu *424# call

SMS to 424

10. Clients of the company - legal entities, if necessary, may prohibit the subscribers from independently connecting the Melofon service. The prohibition is set upon a written application made by the client at the A1 sales and service center or sales and service points of attorneys or through the Personal Account for legal entities (Administrator access level).

11. The ordered melodies are stored in the subscriber's personal list until the subscriber deletes them. After deactivating the Melofon service, melodies are stored in the profile for 30 days.

12. The subscriber has the opportunity to order several melodies at the same time at a special price - a package. The package may include melodies of one or different price categories. Removal of such melodies from the personal list is also carried out separately.

13. The subscriber has the opportunity to record an audio message (his own audio file) using the voice portal at number 424, as well as upload his own melody to the personal list through the web portal of the Melofon service. For downloading your own audio content, a one-time fee is debited according to the company's tariffs, regardless
on the quality of the audio file/melody.
13.1. When downloading a melody or recording its own audio file, the subscriber is responsible for their content in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Belarus. Unitary Enterprise "A1" provides the technical possibility of using its own audio files in the "Melofon" service, and is not responsible for the quality of the files downloaded and recorded by the subscriber. The subscriber can get acquainted with the technical requirements for the downloaded audio file before downloading it on the site www.melofon.by.
13.2. Own audio files are included in the subscriber's personal list (without the possibility to present them to another subscriber).

14. Ordering a melody for a friend / Ordering a melody for two.
14.1. You can order a melody for a friend / for two, provided that both subscribers are A1 subscribers and users of the Melofon service.
14.2. The order of a melody for a friend / for two is paid by the subscriber who placed the order. At the same time, the melody (in the case of ordering a melody for two) will be added to his personal list after placing the order and debiting the funds.

15. Disabling the "Melofon" service is carried out by the subscriber independently. After deactivating the service, the subscriber's profile (subscriber's settings and melodies/own audio files from the personal list) is saved for 30 days. In case of reactivation of the Melofon service within 30 days after disconnection, the subscriber's profile is restored with all settings.

16. Tariffs, features of the provision of the Melofon service, incl. restrictions and technical requirements for your own audio file are contained in the description of the service on the site.

17. Correct operation of the "Melofon" service is guaranteed when making calls from/to the numbers of the company's subscribers in the A1 network.

18. The Company has the right to unilaterally change this Procedure without additional notice by publishing the changes on the official website.

19. In everything else not regulated by this Procedure, the client and the company are guided by the provisions of the contract for the provision of telecommunication services concluded between the client and the company.