Marketing Law Blog

FCC Issues $2.88 Million Fine to Illegal Robocall Platform

On July 13, the FCC issued a fine against New Mexico based company Dialing Services for allegedly facilitating millions of robocalls to consumers' cell phones without the proper consent of the call recipients (What is prior express written consent?). The FCC formally warned Dialing Services in 2013. After continued investigation, the FCC determined that Dialing Services had not only continued the illegal robocalls, but also allegedly made calls using caller ID spoofing.

FTC Announces Bureau of Consumer Protection Process Reforms

FTC acting chairman Maureen K. Ohlhausen has announced several internal process reforms in the Bureau of Consumer Protection that are aimed at improving information requests and transparency in commission investigations. The process reforms include:

• Providing plain language descriptions of the CID process and developing business education materials to help small businesses understand how to comply;
• Adding more detailed descriptions of the scope and purpose of investigations to give companies a better understanding of the information the agency seeks;
• Where appropriate, limiting the relevant time periods to minimize undue burden on companies;
• Where appropriate, significantly reducing the length and complexity of CID instructions for providing electronically stored data; and
• Where appropriate, increasing response times for CIDs (for example, often 21 days to 30 days for targets, and 14 days to 21 days for third parties) to improve the quality and timeliness of compliance by recipients.

Both the FTC and the FCC regulate the telemarketing industry. Learn about new FCC rules and FCC telemarketing regulations.

FTC Returns Money to Victims of Vacation Prize Scheme

The FTC has mailed out nearly 55,000 checks totaling over $500,000 to consumers who paid travel company VGC Corp of America for vacation packages that were never fulfilled. In May 2011, VGC allegedly advertised a luxurious vacation package to consumers who called a toll-free number and answered a trivia question. The callers were told that they had won the vacation, but that they would be responsible for paying $400 in taxes and fees. The FTC complaint also alleged that the vacation packages were never delivered, even for consumers who ended up paying the $400. Under settlements with the FTC and the State of Florida, VGC has been banned from selling vacation packages and was required to pay out refunds. Click here for more information. Learn how to respond to an Attorney General if your company finds itself in a similar situation.