Good News from the FTC! National DNC Rates will Stay the Same for FY 2016

It seems like almost every week businesses are faced with growing costs in keeping their telemarketing campaigns compliant. Fortunately, the FTC has decided not to increase the price for subscribing to the national do not call registry for the FY 2016.  The price for subscribing will remain at $60 per area code, up to a… Continue reading Good News from the FTC! National DNC Rates will Stay the Same for FY 2016

FTC announces anti-robocall prize winners

As part of their annual competition, the FCC has announced the winners of its “Robocalls: Humanity Strikes Back” and “DetectaRobo analytic challenge” contests. Ethan Garr and Bryan Moyles created a solution called RoboKill, and received the first place prize of $25,000. Hemant Sengar came up with a similar solution and received $10,500. The non-monetary prize winners of the… Continue reading FTC announces anti-robocall prize winners

Don’t forget about the TSR! FTC attorney reminds businesses about TSR Robocall compliance

In a recent post to the FTC’s Business Blog, FTC attorney Bikram Bandy answered some basic questions about complying with the robocall provisions of the Telemarketing Sales Rules (“TSR”). Similar to the FCC’s rules issued pursuant to the TCPA, the FTC prohibits certain robocalls. According to Bandy:   “If you’re trying to sell something, you… Continue reading Don’t forget about the TSR! FTC attorney reminds businesses about TSR Robocall compliance

FTC announces two new robocall contests to be held this summer

Building on their success from previous years, the FTC will once again hold several contests to encourage the public to help them combat unwanted robocalls. The two contests are called Humanity Strikes Back, and DetectaRobo. The first contest asks contestants to create a technical solution for consumers that will identify unwanted robocalls and forward them to a so called… Continue reading FTC announces two new robocall contests to be held this summer

New FTC settlement reaffirms the fact that merely incorporating political surveys is not enough

The FTC announced today that it, along with 10 state attorneys general, have settled most of the charges in a lawsuit they previously brought against Caribbean Cruise Line, Inc. and several affiliates for illegally selling cruise vacations using a political survey robocalls component. Apparently, the defendants thought they could get away with combining  their sales pitches with a political survey (which… Continue reading New FTC settlement reaffirms the fact that merely incorporating political surveys is not enough

FCC Goes After the Little Guys Too!

We are used to seeing the FCC and the FTC go after the big fish–larger companies who have generated numerous complaints and usually thousands of  alleged violations. However, on occasion, we do see the FCC or FTC take enforcement action against much smaller companies or when far fewer violations are involved.  The FCC’s January  Forfeiture… Continue reading FCC Goes After the Little Guys Too!

Happy New year from the TCPA!

2014 saw an increase in TCPA litigation, especially class action litigation, as well as significant FTC and FCC enforcement.  In 2014, we grappled with what the new “written consent” standard meant, and dozens of TCPA-related petitions were filed with the FCC.  New risks related to VoIP and wireless lines emerged.  What does 2015 have in… Continue reading Happy New year from the TCPA!

FTC to Tap Hackers to Ring in Robocall Do Not Call Bandits

The Federal Trade Commission is looking to expand the technological arsenal that can be used in the battle against illegal phone spammers and do not call (DNC) violations by challenging DEF CON 22 attendees to build the ultimate “honeypot” to lure in and identify perpetrators of illegal robocalls. A robocall honeypot is an information system… Continue reading FTC to Tap Hackers to Ring in Robocall Do Not Call Bandits