THE DMA COMMITS TO RESOLVE CONSTITUTIONAL AND STATUTORY ISSUES RAISED BY FEDERAL COURTS
NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 26, 2003 – The Direct Marketing Association (The DMA) today stated its commitment to vigorously pursue and resolve with Congress, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Administration, and the courts the serious constitutional and statutory issues raised by this past week's two separate federal court rulings that have shown the FTC's do-not-call list lacks statutory authority and is unconstitutional.
"The fundamental issues raised by the federal courts this week are of no small consequence and must be resolved to clear up the mass consumer and industry confusion created by the FTC's efforts to implement a national do-not-call list," said H. Robert Wientzen, president & CEO, The DMA.
"It has been The DMA’s long-held belief that the creation and implementation of a national or state do-not-call list is not the proper role of government, but rather should be left to the private sector," said Wientzen. "The two recent court rulings validate our belief that a private-sector alternative strikes a better balance between the rights of constitutionally protected commercial speech and consumers' desires for privacy."
"While at this time, it is uncertain what will happen on October 1 when the FTC’s no-call system is supposed to take effect, The DMA remains committed to respecting consumer trust and the wishes of all consumers no matter how those wishes have been expressed. Consumers must come first. We will listen to consumers."
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 are projected to have surpassed $2 trillion in 2002, including $126 billion in catalog sales and $34 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.###