"International rates" aren't a thing anymore since the advent of VOIP. It doesn't matter whether you're connecting from France or Fiji, with VOIP you pay the same rate.
What's the status of discounts granted in exchange for marketing consent? Because that's how they bait many older consumers into receiving these calls.
There is a grey area here of calls from businesses which the customer is signed up to, or has had previous dealings with. Many will be unsolicited but not all will be.
Many of these calls are coming out of the Third World countries which are barely regulated in this regard, so good luck with enforcing it.
> There is a grey area here of calls from businesses which the customer is signed up to
Pretty much exactly how it is in Switzerland. I once had a rather unpleasant experience with my old internet provider (Sunrise) where I asked the telemarketer who called me not to do so again, and was told they "had a right to do so, because I was a customer". I immediately cancelled, quoting this as the reason why (Sunrise would later try to tell me this never happened, but that's another story).
With that said, I think it does make a difference: if some random company calls, they can't lose my business because they don't have it; if a company I am a customer with calls and refuses to stop when I ask them to, they risk losing my business. I don't know if this is the reason why, but I barely get any telemarketing calls (never heard of anyone else here who has either).
Another moment of potential irritation: companies being bought out or losing their network supplier giving that third company a business relationship with you.
Which is why nowadays I never take calls if the prefix is from a country I don't have connections with, it is private, or doesn't map to any of my contacts.
If it is someone that I actually know, they will be aware how to actually reach me.
Australia banned telemarketing a while ago, it worked pretty well. The only spam phone calls left are 100% illegal scammers.
https://www.acma.gov.au/telemarketing-and-e-marketing they give out million+ dollar fines which sort things out. Just being a customer doesn't allow them to send marketing, you have to opt in.
It's the year 2026, I refuse to believe that phone companies cannot figure out who is a scammer and who is not.
It happened in Spain months ago. Then the "marketers" start calling from international phone numbers.
Let them pay international rates. One dollar a minute, eh?
If they're calling from within the EU then a cross-country judgement is still enforceable, so I assume they aren't doing that.
"International rates" aren't a thing anymore since the advent of VOIP. It doesn't matter whether you're connecting from France or Fiji, with VOIP you pay the same rate.
International rates are just a consumer thing.
Is it though in practice?
Then most people can just block all international numbers. Hope to see phone number whitelisting soon.
What's the status of discounts granted in exchange for marketing consent? Because that's how they bait many older consumers into receiving these calls.
Marketing consent is granted via sweepstakes.
There is a grey area here of calls from businesses which the customer is signed up to, or has had previous dealings with. Many will be unsolicited but not all will be.
Many of these calls are coming out of the Third World countries which are barely regulated in this regard, so good luck with enforcing it.
> There is a grey area here of calls from businesses which the customer is signed up to
Pretty much exactly how it is in Switzerland. I once had a rather unpleasant experience with my old internet provider (Sunrise) where I asked the telemarketer who called me not to do so again, and was told they "had a right to do so, because I was a customer". I immediately cancelled, quoting this as the reason why (Sunrise would later try to tell me this never happened, but that's another story).
With that said, I think it does make a difference: if some random company calls, they can't lose my business because they don't have it; if a company I am a customer with calls and refuses to stop when I ask them to, they risk losing my business. I don't know if this is the reason why, but I barely get any telemarketing calls (never heard of anyone else here who has either).
Another moment of potential irritation: companies being bought out or losing their network supplier giving that third company a business relationship with you.
Which is why nowadays I never take calls if the prefix is from a country I don't have connections with, it is private, or doesn't map to any of my contacts.
If it is someone that I actually know, they will be aware how to actually reach me.
Companies aren't allowed to do cold calling in my country. Wiped out an entire industry and nobody wept.
Scams are not what I would define as "telemarketing" though.
It would be helpful to know your country in this thread.