THE managing director of a company that makes call centre software has backed our Stop Silent Calls campaign.

Danny Singer has warned that if telemarketing companies continue to make more calls than they can physically handle the industry will die.

"There is very little the industry will do unless there is legislation in place to get rid of the rogue operators," he said.

Together the Daily Echo and Radio Solent are calling for a new law which will make it illegal for direct telephone companies using computerised predictive dialling software to over-dial.

Call centre staff use the method to increase productivity but it has resulted in thousands of anonymous abandoned, or silent calls, to Hampshire homes.

Mr Singer's company, Noetica, has patented new technology that can help reduce the number of silent or abandoned calls. It works by predicting the time when a call centre agent will finish a call and be free to take another one.

The information is used so the correct number of calls are automatically made based on how many operators are available to take them.

Another important feature of the new software called Synthesys is that no caller numbers are withheld and a recorded message is played back with a list of options if 1471 is dialled.

Mr Singer said: "I am trying to do something to eliminate the nuisance of silent calls. There are solutions."