| Comment Number: | OL-104720 |
| Received: | 11/29/2004 5:05:45 PM |
| Organization: | |
| Commenter: | James Susko |
| State: | OH |
| Subject: | Trade Regulation Rule on Telemarketing Sales |
| Title: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Request for Comment |
| CFR Citation: | 16 CFR Part 310 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
I OBJECT STRENUOUSLY for the FTC to allow ANY type of intrusion to my phone privacy--whether it be via fax or voice OR ANY OTHER TECHNOLOGY YET TO BE ESTABLISHED-- by allowing ANY type of commercial call WITH THE SOLE EXCLUSION OF PERMITTING A CURRENT AND PREESTABLISED BUSINESS TRANSACTION INITIATED BY THE CONSUMER TO BE COMPLETED OR AFFIRMED, and then I would prohibit any information to be transmitted in that call THAT SEEKS TO SOLICIT NEW BUSINESS. I do not wish ANY TYPE OF SALES CALL REGARDING NEW BUSINESS whether it be PRERECORDED OR LIVE. I also DO NOT WISH TO RECEIVE ANY LIVE OR PRERECORDED CAMPAIGN MESSAGES. There are simply enough avenues for commercial or campaign messages to be conveyed via current TV or newspapers or United States Postal Service mail without creating new loopholes to invade my privacy. I can cancel my newspaper, or just read those advertisements that interest me. I can also turn the channel or turn off the TV if I do not wish to listen to certain items while choosing to watch others. I can throw away mail I do not wish to read it. Each of these avenues of communication also permits me the option of not participating at all at the times of my choosing without severing an important line of personal communication. However, the phone is different, because it is the only device among all of the communications above which permits me to remain actively in communication with family and friends and conduct business of my choice at the time of my choice. In order for me to have this personal line of communication I must therefore leave it on at all times. Because of this I wish to preserve my phone rights to be free of uninvited commercial or campaign messages. The act of receiving a commercial message by phone causes me to interrupt what I am currently doing in order to determine the nature of the call and creates an invasion of privacy if non-personal, mass calls are allowed. By the time I decide it is an unwanted call and hang up the invasion of privacy is already complete. I AM ASTONISHED THE FTC CANNOT FATHOM THIS CONCEPT and would even entertain eroding the rights I fought for by writing my congressman and seeing the do-not-call list enacted. This tells me there are some who still “don’t get it,” despite the strong message sent to the agency with this legislation.