(AP) Federal regulators
approved a record $5.4 million fine against a company for faxing unsolicited
advertisements to consumers.
The Federal Communications Commission said the fine given to Fax.com, Inc. was
the largest for violating do-not-fax rules that went into effect in 1992. The
company sends faxes on behalf of clients that pay a fee.
The FCC said Fax.com violated the rules 489 separate times, incurring an
$11,000 fine for each instance. The five-member commission unanimously approved
the penalty but did not announce its decision until Monday January 5.
“Consumers hate to go to their fax machine only to find their resources
have been wasted on spam and junk,” FCC Chairman Michael Powell said.
“We're sending relief in the form of a simple message to junk faxers:
Violate our rules and you will pay the consequences.”
Company officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The commission said it rejected arguments from Fax.com that the ban on
unsolicited faxes was unconstitutional and that the fine was excessive.
Fax.com's Web site, http://.www.fax.com, says the company offers “the
industry's largest fax number database” of more than 30 million numbers.
The company says its clients can “send a high volume of fax information
to hundreds, thousands or even millions of recipients.”
The FCC also ordered the company to report within 30 days whether it has
started to follow the rules. Depending on the company's response and consumer
complaints, additional penalties could be imposed against Fax.com or the firms
that have hired the company to send the faxes, the FCC said.
“Fax.com's primary business activity itself constitutes a massive ongoing
violation” of the do-not-fax rules, the commission said.
Congress first authorized the FCC to enact do-not-fax rules in 1991 when it
passed the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. That law also gave the FCC the
power to issue rules to curb telemarketing calls. The FCC and Federal Trade
Commission eventually set up a do-not-call registry that took effect Oct. 1.
Jen --
|
_______________________________________________
Sndbox mailing list
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
http://a8.mewebdns-a8.com/mailman/listinfo/sndbox_sandboxmail.net
