Verizon Wireless reported Friday that it has won court injunctions permanently barring two high-volume telemarketing operations from dialing up any more of its customers.
The Bedminster, N.J.-based company, which is the nations second largest wireless company service provider, said that it has been granted decisions against Intelligent Alternatives of San Diego, Calif., and Resort Marketing Trends of Coral Springs, Fla., that will prevent the telemarketing firms from soliciting its subscribers again.
Specifically, the companies were ordered to stop using autodialing technologies and recorded messages to reach out to Verizons customers.
Existing regulations administered by the Federal Communications Committee forbids telemarketing companies from employing auto-dialers or pre-recorded messages in placing calls to mobile devices.
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In addition, Intelligent Alternatives was ordered to pay Verizon $20,000 in damages, which the wireless company has promised to donate to domestic abuse prevention charities.
The injunctions were granted as the result of court-approved settlements between Verizon and Resort Marketing Trends in a New Jersey State Superior Court, while the agreement with Intelligent Alternatives was entered in a California State Superior Court.
Verizon said the lawsuits were filed in those states because that was where many of the calls made by the firms to its customers had originated.
The lawsuits were filed in August, alleging that the telemarketers placed hundreds of thousands of the illegal calls to Verizons subscribers throughout the summer months of 2005.
Verizon claims that the legal victories represent the first examples of a wireless carrier winning such agreements from telemarketers based on the auto-dialing laws.
For its part, Verizon has aggressively sought to discourage companies from assailing its customers with unwanted solicitations, including telemarketing calls and mobile text messages.
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In addition, Verizon is battling operations accused of attempting to buy and sell its subscribers phone records. Last month, the carrier filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction against a Florida company that purportedly sent tens of thousands of unsolicited text messages to its customers.
“These actions demonstrate once again our commitment to protecting our customers against invasions of their privacy,” Steven Zipperstein, general counsel at Verizon Wireless, said in a statement.
“We will vigorously defend the strong wall of customer privacy weve built over the years through our aggressive pro-consumer policies and actions.”
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