Have you ever gotten up off the couch after a long day at work to answer the phone, only to discover that the caller is simply a recorded message trying to sell you something? Apparently, this annoyance has become significant enough for the Federal Trade Commission to flat-out bank these automated telemarketing phone calls, much to everyone’s relief.
 
The ban will become effective on Tuesday; however, this action by the FTC does not mean that automated telephone calls are a thing of the past. Automated phone calls from telephone companies, utility companies, many charitable organizations, politicians, banks, surveys, and pharmacies, as …read more

The Federal Trade Commission announced today that both DirecTV and Comcast are being fined today for making phone calls to people who has asked them not to call back. This violates the do-not-call law, called the Telemarketing Sales Rule.
DirecTV has faces such fines in the past. In 2005, DirecTV paid a $5.3 million settlement for violating FTC’s rules regarding the Do Not Call registry. This time, both DirecTV and Comcast are facing fines for calling people who specifically requested to be put on the companies’ internal do not call lists. DirecTV has agreed to pay a $2.3 million settlement, while …read more