| Comment Number: | OL-101788 |
| Received: | 11/27/2004 7:34:37 PM |
| Organization: | |
| Commenter: | Nicholas Bishop |
| State: | SC |
| Subject: | Trade Regulation Rule on Telemarketing Sales |
| Title: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Request for Comment |
| CFR Citation: | 16 CFR Part 310 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
As a satisfied user of the Do-Not-Call list, I can point out a key flaw of the proposed change -- it benefits the corporation, not the individual. For too many years, any household with a telephone has been bombarded with an intolerable level of unwanted advertisement. The purpose of the telephone is communication. Communication is bidirectional. The Do-Not-Call list protects communication from being replaced by the one-sided soliloquy of the direct advertisement. Clearly, this does not benefit the companies which must now redirect their marketing efforts along other channels; the benefits are instead enjoyed by the public in general. It is the individual who must be protected, and it is the FTC's responsibility to do so. And the FTC has done so -- a strong defense has been given to the public. But a defense is only as strong as its weakest point. The danger of the proposed change is in its admission that it is perfectly acceptable for a company to violate the Do-Not-Call list barrier, by making a trivial modification to the method of transmission. The additional "requirement" of an established business relationship is completely irrelevent; such a proviso is mere fluff, as no possible method of enforcement is available. The Do-Not-Call list is a powerful tool to rebalance the uses of the telephone. I strongly urge that it be allowed to remain strong, not gutted to serve the interests of corporations. Sincerely, Nicholas Bishop