OTTAWA – The permanent registration of telephone numbers on the national do-not-call list (DNCL) today ordered by the Canadian Radio-television Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) will strengthen the list and protect consumers said the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) and the Council of Senior Citizens’ Organizations of British Columbia (COSCO).
Prior to today’s decision, Canadians who wished to avoid receiving unsolicited telemarketing calls had to register their number on the DNCL, and then remind themselves to re-register every several years.
“Today’s decision is positive for consumers”, said Geoffrey White, Counsel to PIAC and COSCO, “as it ensures that ‘once registered, always registered’ unless the subscriber says otherwise, and eliminates the hassle of periodically having to renew registration, a hassle which the Commission recognized in today’s decision.”
PIAC and COSCO supported the CRTC’s proposal to make registration permanent, arguing that the industry’s inability to arrive at a solution to ensuring the DNCL most accurately captured the true intentions of all registrants was not the problem of Canadians who generally did not want to receive unsolicited telemarketing calls.
A copy of the CRTC’s decision can be found on the CRTC website.
For more information:
Geoffrey White
Counsel to PIAC and COSCO
Public Interest Advocacy Centre
(613) 562-4002×24
(613) 612-1190 (cell)
gwhite@piac.ca