Dish Telemarketing Violations May Cost Them Billions in Fines

[sparc]

Court Grants Partial Summary Judgment in FTC Case against Dish Network, Finding the Company Liable for Tens of Millions of Telemarketing Violations
http://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2015/01/court-grants-partial-summary-judgment-ftc-case-against-dish

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois has found Dish Network liable for tens of millions of calls that violated the Federal Trade Commission’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR), including Do Not Call, entity-specific, and abandoned-call violations. The opinion, which was issued on December 12, 2014, represents a partial summary judgment win in the case the Department of Justice filed on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission against Dish in March 2009.

The FTC’s complaint alleges that Dish initiated, or caused a telemarketer to initiate, outbound telephone calls to phone numbers on the National Do Not Call (DNC) Registry, in violation of the TSR. Dish markets its programming directly, through telemarketing vendors it contracts with to engage in telemarketing, and through authorized dealers or retailers.

In the current ruling, the court found Dish liable for 4,094,099 calls it or its vendors made to numbers on the Registry and for 2,730,842 calls its retailers made to numbers on the Registry. The court found that the government met its burden to hold Dish liable for the retailers’ calls since: 1) Dish retained the retailers, 2) Dish authorized the retailers to market Dish products and services, and 3) the retailers violated the TSR by initiating Dish telemarketing calls to numbers on the Registry.

The complaint also alleges that Dish initiated, or caused other telemarketers to initiate, an outbound call to a person who had previously said that they do not wish to receive such a call, in violation of the “entity-specific” provision of the TSR. On this count, the court ruled that Dish is liable for 1,043,595 calls to consumers whose telephone numbers were on Dish’s internal do-not-call list or were marked “DNC” by Dish’s telemarketing vendor. The court left the issue of whether Dish is liable for any entity-specific violations relating to its retailers to be determined at trial.

In addition, the complaint alleges that Dish abandoned or caused telemarketers to abandon outbound telephone calls, in violation of the “abandoned-call” provision of TSR. On this count the court ruled that Dish is liable for 49,738,073 abandoned calls that Dish and three of its retailers made. The court found that Dish is liable for both its own calls, and for causing these retailers’ abandoned calls.

Finally, the court issued several findings in favor of the four state co-plaintiffs in the case against Dish. For example, the court found that the company made outbound telephone calls to residents of the states whose numbers were on the DNC Registry.

The Department of Justice filed the complaint at the FTC’s request in March 2009. DOJ, on behalf of the FTC, is jointly litigating the case with four state co-plaintiffs -- California, Illinois, Ohio, and North Carolina. The states allege that Dish violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and state law by calling numbers on the Do Not Call Registry and by making telemarketing robocalls to consumers.

Several issues in the case remain and will be resolved at trial, which the court has scheduled to begin in July 2015. (Docket No. 3:12-cv-03221-RM-BGC; the staff contact is Russell S. Deitch, 202-326-2585 or Gary Ivens 202-326-2330)

The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC’s online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.

 

[dewzan]

DNC list is a joke, been on it since it came out and still get calls constantly. someone at the FTC must be a disgruntled dish customer or else he owns stock in a competitor cause these clowns haven't done a damn thing to anybody since the list started so it must be personal.

 

[old corps]

DNC list is a joke, been on it since it came out and still get calls constantly. someone at the FTC must be a disgruntled dish customer or else he owns stock in a competitor cause these clowns haven't done a damn thing to anybody since the list started so it must be personal.

Same here, Also been on it from the beginning & get 'em all the time.

Ed

 

[Claude Greiner]

As a retailer, dish told us to violate the do not call list to get more sales and then instructed us how to cover our tracks if we got caught.

They are guilty. I should testify

 

[tomcrown1]

Most telemarketing calls are from outside the USA does dish hire telemarketers out side of the country?

If so then dish is not in violation of any USA laws. Since the laws are only enforceable within the country proper.

 

[papachops]

Most telemarketing calls are from outside the USA does dish hire telemarketers out side of the country?

If so then dish is not in violation of any USA laws. Since the laws are only enforceable within the country proper.

Almost all of the robo calls I get are from within the United States and just a few are from the Caribbean Islands. I block over 30 robo calls a month. Hell I even call myself a few times.

 

[Bobby]

Just because your caller ID says they are in the US doesn't mean they are. All of them are spoofed. Lately just about all of my telemarketing calls are from my own area code...

 

[Stargazer]

Heck some of the calls are showing up as my own phone number lately. Is that what you meant papachops by calling yourself?

 

[Beavis]

Hello me, it's me again!

 

[wa6rht]

I keep getting one from the famous 800-555-1212 number.

 

[brad1138]

As a retailer, dish told us to violate the do not call list to get more sales and then instructed us how to cover our tracks if we got caught.

They are guilty. I should testify

I believe as a retailer, you were canned by Dish for breaking rules/laws and being unethical. I don't take your assertion of Dish's guilt with much weight.

Been to any Team Summits lately...?

The majority of the culprits were telemarketers (the scourge of Satellite retailers). It is next to impossible for Dish to control that outside of getting rid of all retailers, which would be bad. If they did make any of the calls themselves, then they should pay for those.

 

[bellevuecoug]

As a retailer, dish told us to violate the do not call list to get more sales and then instructed us how to cover our tracks if we got caught.

They are guilty. I should testify

If this is true, I hope Dish gets absolutely hammered for his crap. And it should come from Charlie's McDuck-like money bin.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Claude Greiner]

I believe as a retailer, you were canned by Dish for breaking rules/laws and being unethical. I don't take your assertion of Dish's guilt with much weight.

Been to any Team Summits lately...?

The majority of the culprits were telemarketers (the scourge of Satellite retailers). It is next to impossible for Dish to control that outside of getting rid of all retailers, which would be bad. If they did make any of the calls themselves, then they should pay for those.

First of all you unless you work for dish, you don't know half the story. It had nothing to do with ethics, but rather dish trying to get out of paying me what was due to me in my contract. I'm owed over 4 million dollars.

The last team summit I was at was 2012, last I heard I didn't miss anything special not going to 13 and 14. Besides launching the hopper, and gotten into dozens of programming disputes, what has Dish really done lately besides raise your rates?

Dish has no issues controlling their retailers. With the threat of termination hanging over your head every day, you pretty much do what they tell you.

Directv doesn't seem to have this problem.... Why is that? Your not allowed to telemarket if your a Directv retailer.

So why can't Dish have the same policy? Because if they put this policy in place they would loose thousands of sales every month, and based on their crappy new customer net additions the past 6 years, it would actually make big enough difference where they would loose customers every quarter.

So they go ahead and continue to tell their retailers to bring them the big numbers and look the other way when there is a DNC violation.

Just as Dish told me I am responsible for the actions of my employees and affiliates. Dish is responcible for the actions of their retailers.

The last few times Dish was fined a few million dollars. Just a small speed bump or slap on the wrists compared to the revenue they generated on the number of sales it produced.

 

[Bob Haller]

dish went downhill once charlie turned over management to the idiots in suits. sure they increased profits, but hurt everything else......

I hope dish looses thousands per illegal call, that bite will largely end ignoring DNC.

All DNC violations should extract the fines from any connection to us operations........

 

[KAB]

dish went downhill once charlie turned over management to the idiots in suits. sure they increased profits, but hurt everything else......

The Oracle of Pittsburgh has spoken!

 

[BBCInc]

Sounds to me like Dish had DNC figured out. I too get 1 or 2 calls a day with spoofed caller ID. If they call multiple times they get blocked when I get around to adding them to my Ooma blacklist. Claude -- when do you figure you'll have made up those millions that Dish screwed you out of? You sure don't miss many chances to slam them on here, that's gotta be costing them some. Talk about an ax to grind... I do see some good info from you on occasion and know I would be mad too if someone owed me that kind of money.

 

[Voyager6]

As a retailer, dish told us to violate the do not call list to get more sales and then instructed us how to cover our tracks if we got caught.

They are guilty. I should testify

You are going to self-incriminate and become liable for judgement for the calls you placed?

 

[Tampa8]

DISH is guilty as so many other companies are, and I'm glad when companies get fined for this.
Take what Claude says about DISH with a grain of salt, but just to be clear I have never thought he was unethical.
Also take with a grain of salt when Claude compares DIRECT to DISH. I don't know Direct TV's present policy, but.....

(2009)
http://www.ftc.gov/news-events/pres...total-321-million-entity-specific-do-not-call
(2005)
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/10451291/ns/business-us_business/t/directv-fined-do-not-call-violations/

 

[rklimaszewski]

Hello me, it's me again!

Anyone who knows that album read those words in Dave's voice. Such an awesome album.

"Kill a man, and you're a murderer. Kill many, and you're a conqueror. Kill them all...and you're a god!"

 

[papachops]

Heck some of the calls are showing up as my own phone number lately. Is that what you meant papachops by calling yourself?

Yes it's happened twice so far