Two years after it was implemented, the national do-not-call registry is a huge success, according to a report issued by the Federal Trade Commission earlier this week.
The registry topped 100 million telephone numbers in August, according to the FTC.
"[T]he National Do-Not-Call Registry is, by virtually every available measure, an effective consumer protection measure…consumers are receiving fewer unwanted telemarketing calls," said the report issued under the requirements of the Do Not Call Implementation Act.
"As of September 30, 2004 the FTC had received 579,856 complaints, which is less than 1% of the total number of telephone numbers in the registry at the time. This is indicative of both a high degree of compliance by telemarketers and a meaningful reduction in unwanted calls for consumers who have registered their telephone numbers."
The FTC's report follows a similar report by the Federal Communications Commission in September. The Do Not Call Implementation Act—signed into law in March 2003—requires the FTC and the FCC to issue yearly reports until 2007 on the effectiveness of the registry. This year's reports cover 2004.
According to the FTC, 7,734 telemarketing organizations paid a total of $14 million in fees to access the national do-not-call registry in 2004, up from 1,968 organizations paying $5.2 million in 2003.
In 2004 the fee per area code was raised form $25 to $40, with the first five area codes provided free. The FTC reported that 64,168 companies accessed five or fewer area codes in 2004 at no charge.
As of the end of 2004, 17 of 25 states that operated their own do-not-call registries had contributed over 12.6 million names and numbers to the national registry.
In 2004, the FTC took action against seven companies that it alleged violated the do-not-call registry, the report said.
