The Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) has been upheld by the Cologne Administrative Court (VG Köln) in three proceedings concerning telephone number misuse. The Bonn-based authority had imposed stringent measures against Austrian companies that, operating under the brand "Friedrich Müller®", harassed consumers nationwide with thousands of unsolicited prize-notification calls. The court declared lawful both the disconnection of a total of 51 telephone numbers ordered in February and May of this year, and the prohibition of invoicing and debt collection for all related telephone connections. Five further legal proceedings are still pending.
In its reasoning, the court particularly emphasized that all alleged declarations of consent submitted for the advertising measures were invalid.
The companies had consistently required their customers to provide a pre-formulated declaration of consent as part of product orders and written sweepstakes. Under this extensive clause, referred to as a "privacy policy," customers, among other things, declared their "readiness to receive promotional calls." Furthermore, this was intended to authorize the companies to share customer data with other entities operating under the "Friedrich Müller®" brand.
According to the Administrative Court, these pre-formulated declarations of consent do not constitute effective consent for promotional calls, as it would be practically impossible for the customer to ascertain who could ultimately invoke such a declaration. The possibility of revoking the declaration does not alter this, as it would shift the onus of restoring undisturbed privacy onto the consumer.
The President of the Federal Network Agency, Matthias Kurth, expressed satisfaction with the court decisions: "The Federal Network Agency has once again been fully vindicated in its actions against telephone number spam. This decision strengthens our resolve to continue taking vigorous action against these types of legal infringements for the benefit of consumers."
The individual telephone numbers that were subject to a disconnection order and an invoicing and debt collection prohibition can be found on the Federal Network Agency's website.
Consumers affected by unwanted automated calls can contact the Federal Network Agency by telephone at +49 291 9955-206, by email at rufnummernmissbrauch@bnetza.de, or by mail at the following addresses:
Federal Network Agency
Nördeltstr. 5
59872 Meschede
or
Federal Network Agency
Schütt 13
67433 Neustadt.
Source: Press release from the Federal Network Agency dated 13.08.2008, Federal Network Agency for Electricity, Gas, Telecommunications, Post and Railways Press Office, Tulpenfeld 4, 53113 Bonn, http://www.bundesnetzagentur.de/enid/2.html
Goldberg Attorneys at Law, Wuppertal-Solingen 2008
Attorney at Law Michael Ullrich, LL.M.(Information Law)
m.ullrich@goldberg.de
