The Federal Trade Commission has reached a court settlement with Canadian telemarketing companies it accused of making misleading statements and calling consumers whose numbers are on the Do-Not-Call (DNC) list registry.
Telemarketers from JPE Holdings Inc., Fusion Telekon and a company that goes by the name 9131-4740 Quebec Inc. allegedly posed as bank or credit card company representatives to sell telephone calling card services.
Consumers were billed monthly fees charged to credit cards or debited from bank accounts, although in many instances they never received any calling card, according to the FTC complaint.
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, issued an injunction that bars the companies and their principals from engaging in similar telemarketing activities.
The court imposed a $3.4 million judgment, but suspended all but $10,000, which can be re-imposed if the court finds there was any misrepresentation of an inability to pay.
It found that that these telemarketing firms failed to pay for access the DNC list registry, as required by law.
The companies and officers of the companies Jean-Pierre Brault and Eli Foner have been prohibited from selling, leasing, renting or transferring consumer lists or other consumer information.
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