| Comment Number: | OL-112542 |
| Received: | 12/31/2004 12:31:40 AM |
| Organization: | |
| Commenter: | Gerth |
| State: | IL |
| Subject: | Trade Regulation Rule on Telemarketing Sales |
| Title: | Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, Request for Comment |
| CFR Citation: | 16 CFR Part 310 |
| No Attachments |
Comments:
To whom it may concern: On behalf of my family I would like to voice my concern about the proposed changes to the Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”) which will weaken the rules telemarketers must follow regarding companies with which I have an “Existing Business Relationship” (ERB). I hope the FTC will have the wisdom and political strength to resist the lobbing efforts of individual telemarketers, their associations and the technology firms which server them. It is clear to my family that the National Do Not Call Registry and other rules which protect privacy need to be strengthened not weakened. It has been my experience that telemarketers are ignoring the spirit of the National Do Not Call Registry. In the case of my family, one long distance phone carrier abused our “business relationship” by calling us 3 or 4 times a week with pre-recorded messages. In some instances the callers never answered after repeated “Hello’s”. After politely and repeatedly asking them to stop calling us and despite assurance that they would take us off their internal calling list, the calls and message continued to interrupt meals, family time and our children’s homework time. Unfortunately this company and many more like them are no longer constrained by simple social courtesies. As a result, my family kindly asks that the Commission consider strengthening the rules regarding “TSR” and “call abandonment” not weakening them. I hope my family can we count on the FTC to provide us with a “Safe Harbor” form the telemarketing industry’s intrusive practices and technology. Thank you.