THE DMA ISSUES GUIDELINES ON HOW TO COMPLY WITH FAX BAN ONLINE AND OFFLINE: Shows Industry's Resolve to Do the Right Thing
NEW YORK, September 18, 2002 – The Direct Marketing Association (The DMA) today issued a first-of-its-kind fact sheet to aid marketers in determining how to abide by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) when sending faxes – both off and online. Entitled "A Matter of Fax: What Direct Marketers Need to Know about Sending Faxes," the simple, easy-to-ready question and answer format guides marketers through the complexity of TCPA, helping to increase the industry's compliance with the law.
The fact sheets answers such questions as:
- Can I send an unsolicited ad by fax to prospects or consumers that I've never contacted before?
- Does the TCPA fax ban apply to faxes sent from computers to fax machines?
- Does the TCPA fax ban apply to faxes sent to computers or e-fax services?
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules, governed by TCPA, prohibit sending unsolicited ads by fax to both businesses and residences. This ban applies whether the sender is using a computer, a fax machine or any other device.
"In clear and simple language, this fact sheet represents a one-stop-shopping guide regarding what direct marketers need to know about sending unsolicited commercial faxes both off and, increasing importantly, online," said Patricia Faley, vice president, ethics & consumer affairs, The DMA.
"This kind of effort shows the resolve the direct marketing industry to do the right thing and abide by the law," said Faley. "It is imperative that marketers know the law and, equally as important, know how to apply the law. This fact sheet does just that in a simple and straightforward way."
Copies of A Matter of Fax: What Direct Marketers Need to Know about Sending Faxes can be obtained by going to http://www.the-dma.org/cgi/dispissue?article=47.
The DMA is the leading trade association for businesses interested in interactive and database marketing, with nearly 4,700 member companies from the United States and 53 other nations. Founded in 1917, its members include direct marketers from every business segment as well as the nonprofit and electronic marketing sectors. Included are catalogers, Internet retailers and service providers, financial services providers, book and magazine publishers, book and music clubs, retail stores, industrial manufacturers and a host of other vertical segments, including the service industries that support them. According to a DMA-commissioned study, direct and interactive marketing sales in the United States exceeded $1.86 trillion in 2001, including $118 billion in catalog sales and $30 billion in sales generated by the Internet. The DMA's Web site is
www.the-dma.org, and its consumer Web site is www.shopthenet.org.###