FCC Rules in Favor of SMS Platforms

Recent months have reinforced the fact that TCPA regulations continue to evolve in order to keep pace with technological advances. On June 25, 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ruled that “peer-to-peer” texting systems are not automatic telephone dialing systems as that term is defined in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). This ruling gives SMS platforms even more protection from compliance regulations.

 

FCC’s Response

…we clarify that the fact that a calling platform or other equipment is used to make calls or send texts to a large volume of telephone numbers is not probative of whether that equipment constitutes an autodialer under the TCPA. Instead, we make clear that if a calling platform is not capable of originating a call or sending a text without a person actively and affirmatively manually dialing each one, that platform is not an autodialer and calls or texts made using it are not subject to the TCPA’s restrictions on calls and texts to wireless phones…

If a human must initiate each text, then the system is not an ATDS. This is a very important ruling for similar “click to call” telephone dialing systems which should enjoy the same protection.

 

Link to FCC’s ruling: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-20-670A1.pdf

 

To learn more about Sonar’s business texting platform, visit our website and request a demo!

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