Telecommunications and Mobile Marketing Law

Hinch Newman possesses extensive experience in substantive areas of telecommunications law, call center program compliance, data management and marketing, and the overall operation of digital-related businesses.  The firm works with clients to evaluate SMS/text message compliance protocols and ensure adherence to the Federal Trade Commission’s Telemarketing Sales Rule and Telephone Consumer Protection Act.

The TCPA requires any entity that calls or texts consumers for commercial marketing purposes to obtain unambiguous, prior express written consent.  Marketers may obtain this consent via numerous methods, such as electronic “signature” via email, a website form, a text message, call centers, a telephone key press or a voice recording.

Specific guidelines must be adhered to in order for consent to be deemed acceptable.  Marketers have the burden to prove that lawful prior express written consent was obtained.   All those in the data brokerage stream must be extremely vigilant with respect to third-party lists and should carefully inspect authorizations and scope of consent.  The implementation of strict recordkeeping and maintenance protocols is vital.  Click here to listen to a complimentary webinar, "Complying with the FCC's New TCPA Declaratory Ruling," hosted by Hinch Newman.

The TSR includes the Federal Trade Commission’s version of Do Not Call rules and restrictions on the use of prerecorded message calls.  However, unlike the TCPA, the TSR imposes various requirements for inbound and outbound calls, including disclosure and upsell requirements.  Various aspects of the TSR apply to those that provide “substantial assistance” or support to telemarketers.  Thus, marketers must understand that possessing actual knowledge or consciously avoiding such knowledge is risky proposition.

We also provide advice on changes in laws, regulations and policies and on how those changes may affect our clients' business interests.  The firm advises call centers, advertisers, agencies, lead generators, aggregators and platform providers with respect to all facets of the telecommunications and media industries.  We frequently counsel clients that are engaged in contract negotiations, including pay-per-call, call center, call transfer, lead generation and customer acquisition agreements.  Data use obligations and restrictions, as well as risk-shifting provisions contained within third-party vendor contracts should be reviewed by experienced telemarketing compliance counsel as they are often requested in conjunction with a regulatory investigation.

Regulatory investigations and enforcement actions can potentially come from any number of agencies.  The firm also possesses hands-on experience representing companies that may be subject to a regulatory investigation or civil litigation concerning matters involving their marketing or telecommunications services.

Hinch Newman will assist your business to successfully conduct comprehensive due diligence and navigate the legal landmines that could otherwise lead to costly litigation or a regulatory investigation.  We regularly assist our clients to develop compliant telemarketing scripts, as well as internal and external written policies and training procedures that ensure operational compliance, taking into account land lines, cell numbers, faxes and SMS/text messages.

If your company currently uses inbound or outbound telephone calls to market your goods or services, or is considering doing so, Hinch Newman can enhance your ability to communicate with your target audience via Do Not Call exemptions.

Please contact us for a free consultation to discuss your telecommunications or call center lead generation compliance legal issue.  You may also submit your matter using our Free Online Case Submission Form or sending us an e-mail to info@hinchnewman.com.