The 13th Senate of the Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) issued a decision on June 25, 2008, regarding the prohibition of unsolicited telemarketing calls.
The applicant – a telecommunications company – provides forwarding services to companies offering fee-based value-added services. Using automated dialers, the company called telephone subscribers and informed them via an automated message that they had won a prize. For further information, a specific key on the telephone was to be pressed. In this case, a connection to a fee-based value-added service under a 0900 number was established. Numerous consumers complained to the Federal Network Agency because they were affected by unwanted advertising and even the blocking of 0900 numbers was being circumvented. Consequently, the Federal Network Agency, by decision dated February 22, 2008, prohibited the company from making advertising calls and from forwarding calls to 0900 numbers via key press. The company lodged an objection against this decision with the Federal Network Agency. Its urgent application was rejected by the Cologne Administrative Court in a decision dated April 18, 2008. The Higher Administrative Court has now dismissed the company's appeal against this decision with the aforementioned ruling.
In its reasoning, it essentially stated: The unsolicited advertising calls violated the Act Against Unfair Competition. It was to be assumed that advertising using automated calling machines constituted an unreasonable nuisance if the recipients' consent was not obtained. The forwarding by key press violated the Telecommunications Act, as the company had initiated impermissible reverse-charge calls. The company was also the correct addressee for the Federal Network Agency's measures.
The decision of the Higher Administrative Court is final and not subject to appeal.
Decision of the Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) of June 25, 2008, file no.: 13 B 668/08
Source: Press Release of the Higher Administrative Court of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) of June 25, 2008,
Goldberg Attorneys at Law, Wuppertal-Solingen 2008
Attorney at Law Michael Ullrich, LL.M.(Information Law)
E-Mail: m.ullrich@goldberg.de
