Do Not Call Fines Slashed From $11M to $95,000 for Dish Network Telemarketers

28 Jul 2008

Two telemarketing companies that sell Dish Network satellite TV services have agreed to pay fines of $95,000 for ignoring the federal do-not-call list and making customers listen to recordings for too long, federal regulators said.

Planet Earth Satellite Inc., of Phoenix, Ariz., and its president have been charged with calling consumers whose phone numbers are on the National DNC Registry.

Star Satellite LLC, based in Provo, Utah, was accused of making telemarketing calls that failed to connect consumers to a live telemarketer within two seconds after consumers answer the call.

The FTC initially sought a $7 million settlement from Planet Earth and $4.37 million from Star Satellite.

Based on the companies' ability to pay, the amounts were reduced to $20,000 and $75,000 respectively. But the larger amounts will be due if the companies are found to have misled federal regulators about their financial condition.

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Rating: +4

bull - 28 Jul 2008

just goes to show that Congress is powerless, and complicit with anything corporate/telecom. manipulation breeds in circles, i'm afraid.
after their cowardly capitulation to mr. bush's precious immunity clause; we can only get after these slackers to make the wrongdoers allocute to the wicked things they did do, now that they have no fear of retribution regarding our right of privacy.

Rating: +6

J. - 28 Jul 2008

Damn straight.

Rating: +14

JDinFL - 10 Aug 2008

So, does this mean that if I can't "afford" to pay my satellite tv bill, that Dish Networks will accept less than 1% of my total bill instead?

Hmmm, Dish Network for less than $1 per month (also, about what they are worth!!!)....Where do I sign up?

Rating: +15

John Q Public - 14 Aug 2008

Since when are fines based on an ability to pay?

If a fine is substantial enough to put a business under, then it should be effective enough to deter unwanted/undesired behavior. Affordable fines do absolutely nothing to alter behavior. And precedents such as this only make other companies more bold.

A large pharma actually set aside $500 million of its $8.2 billion dollar profit "expecting" to be fined for the questionable behavior of its sales force. And its salesforce continues to engage in questionable activities.

Fines need to be company-killers to be effective. And we need to elect leaders who actually have the backbone to enforce our laws.

Rating: -7

John Q Employee - 23 Aug 2008

"Company killers," huh? I guess I don't like that idea. I have a family to feed and so do the 8,000+ other tech support agents that work in our call centers. I appreciate your concern for the thousands of lives that would be disrupted or destroyed because the actions of a few overambitious marketing execs, but there are more realistic ways of getting companies to comply other than shutting them down. Believe me, if our company ever did anything like that, they would be hearing more disapproval loud and clear from us for endangering our well-being than they will from anyone else.

"And we need to elect leaders who actually have the backbone to enforce our laws."

Thank God we have leaders who are required to intelligently interpret the law in a given situation rather than just blindly strong-arming it.

Rating: +2

bothered - 24 Aug 2008

Leaders? Where? I must have missed something.
Run for Congress (pronounced: "milquetoast") and pass more "laws" that protect the annoyers, rather than the annoyees.

Rating: 0

Fed up - 29 Aug 2008

I think prison time for the exec that orders the calls and fines for the operators that perform them.

Rating: 0

ThePhoneBear - 2 Sep 2008

How do they get away with perpetual unsolicited callings? Why doesn’t the government wire tap these harassing callers? Whether they're marketing and promotions or not, prosecute them to pay one thousand dollars to every phone number that didn’t request their calling.

Rating: +17

Larry - 28 Jul 2008

What a firm slap on the wrist. They get fined amounts far less than they probably paid their attorneys. They are most likely celebrating now at a tax deductible lunch. Who cares if they can afford to pay the fine? Take all the money they have, liquidate their assets and put them out of business. If you can't pay the fine, do not do the crime.

Rating: +14

bull - 29 Jul 2008

I would hope anyone I owe money to, takes into consideration my ability to pay. It's so ludicrous, it's laffable; that of the above companies (the one with the most liability), gets fined less (as less than 1/3 penny per dollar that it is).
I guess I shouldn't have placed all the blame on our impotent congress; as the corporate-appointed judges involved, think the robe covers their shame in this sham.

Rating: -20

ML - 14 Aug 2008

There is a big difference between "ability to pay" a FINE and "ability to pay" for services you PURCHASED (i.e. the satellite TV bill mentioned a few posts up)

These are not bad companies -- in fact I know Planet Earth personally -- they are guys trying to make a living and he made a mistake that was an honest error. It's a tough economy out there. Ironic that the guys getting fined are the ones out there hustling to make a good living.

Rating: +26

Mike - 18 Aug 2008

It's not an 'honest mistake' to use the DNC list as a harvesting place for the numbers you WANT to call. There is no 'honest mistake' in NOT READING the DNC list so you know who not to call.

Rating: +5

Jim - 19 Aug 2008

Honest living??? HA! Salesmen are the scum of the Earth. I know because I worked in sales for 2 years after college and I hated it. Now I am a software engineer and love it. Satellite tv salesmen are about as bad as used car dealers. There is no way they "accidentally" used the DNC list. Too bad these guys didn't have to pay the millions of dollars, lose their business and become homeless.

Rating: +7

BiSh - 19 Aug 2008

Screw you and your satellite butt buddy. It's weasles like you and your pal who will not accept "No Thanks" as in, DO NOT CALL ME BACK.

Mistake? Mistake was calling over and over again and there is nothing honest about that.

To the economy, get a real job buttwipe, like we all have because of the tough economy out there. Funny how you won't give us your home phone number to return your stupid "messages"! The last thing we want to do is come home after our legitimate job(s) and have to deal with losers like you who keep calling... WITHOUT MERCY. Even after our very polite No Thank You.

Ability to pay is ability to pay. If you cannot afford to stay in your business, find another business where you do not harass honest, hard working, not wanting to be disturbed by sales jerks jobs.

Until then, you suck.

Rating: +4

bull - 20 Aug 2008

Sorry if the hyperbole gets lost upon you, ML.

I wish we all (private citizens, not the telecrims & slammorists) had the luxury of making financial errors of ability and judgement in dealing with monetary issues. At least our dependence upon the mighty banking/corporate usurers and their credit system is legal. (Tho, the manner in which those companies do business should get a thorough spanking,too...another subject for another blog.)

The issue at hand (read subject story) is the CRIMINAL activity and NON-conformity of the law-breakers and the system that allows it. Suffice it to say that our elected and (unfortunately) appointed officials aren't doing their job in protecting the citizen.

Most people do their best to pay the price of existence. These flim-flam-fly-by-night criminals somehow getting judicial support for their egregious acts; and, getting away with it in the broad daylight of our jaded courtrooms; is painfully exemplified by the subject matter this blog addresses.

Rating: -13

bull - 29 Jul 2008

All Others that took the Time here;

We'd hope more thinking persons would be involved in this particular discourse. Thank you for your mindful thoughts.
Hope to see you both, elsewhere, where Truth might be spoken.
I can't quite comprehend the languor these past 7+ years has infected this country with; yet, let's all go nuts over the bird flu, right?

Peace, Fairness, and in Hope our "reprehensibles"(did i "just" spell "representative, executive & judicial" rong?) find the Courage to respond.

In Sincerity;
bull

Rating: 0

bull - 20 Aug 2008

My apologies if this statement was taken out of the original time-frame it was submitted. As of the original posting time, of the above message, only 2 other people had submitted an opinion.
I in no way meant to insult anyone (except the fools that defend the slammorista) that has since posted here.
Prost!

Rating: 0

x - 29 Jul 2008

Amen!

Rating: +11

nickm65 - 30 Jul 2008

Dish TV's latest trick - your own number and name appears on your caller id and rings your phone - since you can't figure out what is going on - and answer what looks like a phone call to yourself, their robo-caller kicks in with the Dish TV pitch - wonder what other clever things they can do?

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