FTC Regulatory Updates

Michele Shuster, of MacMurray, Petersen & Shuster LLP, reminds call centers of two recent FTC developments:

On October 1, 2009 the subscription fees for the National Do Not Call Registry increased from $54 per area code to $55 per area code.  The maximum amount any company will be charged increased from $14,850 to $15,058 per year.

On September 1, 2009 the FTC’s prohibition against sending prerecorded solicitation messages without the express written consent of the call recipient became effective.  This new requirement, contained in the FTC’s amended Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), does not apply to purely informational messages, healthcare messages, or calls made by entities exempt from the TSR.