No More Annoying Pre-recorded Calls to Your Cell Phone?

Thanks to the new rule recently passed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Americans are finally free from pre-recorded calls from telemarketers, as these annoying "robocalls" are now proclaimed illegal.

Automated telemarketing solicitations, known as robocalls, are calls made by businesses to cell phone users for touting products and services. As the rule has become effective from September 1, businesses are now forbidden to push products on consumers via these robocalls. According to the FTC, companies have to obtain written permission from a customer to make such calls, or they will face penalties of up to $16,000 per call.

Still, this does not mean that pre-recorded solicitations will disappear completely, because the rule comes with a list of exceptions. Charities, politicians, public service announcements, banks, insurers, telephone carriers, surveys and debt collectors are excluded from the ban. In addition, purely informational pre-recorded calls that are not trying to sell goods and services do not fall under the jurisdiction as well. For instance, automated calls about flight changes from airlines to travelers, or appointment reminder calls from dentists to patients are both acceptable.

Consumers who still receive unauthorized calls can file complaints by visiting the FTC’s official web site or by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP. "If consumers think they're being harassed by robocallers, they need to let us know, and we will go after them," said FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz. He also said the ban should cover most pre-recorded commercial calls, but live calls made by representatives are still permitted, unless the consumer has signed up for the National Do Not Call Registry.

Following the enactment of the rule, telemarketers now have to find other ways to reach their customers. Other than robocalls and live calls, mobile marketing through SMS messages presents substantial potential, as it can reach a large number of users at the same time and can add advertising revenue to the telephone companies. Besides, text messaging has become pervasive as a wide range of messaging-centric handsets are available in the market, including new models like HTC Touch Pro 2, LG Rumor 2, Samsung A887 Solstice and Nokia Surge. Thus, text messages will probably replace voice calls as the major medium of mobile marketing in the future.

Tags: HTC Touch Pro2 Accessories, LG Rumor2 LX265 Accessories, Samsung Solstice (SGH-a887) Accessories, Nokia Surge Accessories, BlackBerry Accessories, Motorola Karma QA1