16 CFR 308.2 – Definitions
(a) Bona fide educational service means any pay-per-call service dedicated to providing information or instruction relating to education, subjects of academic study, or other related areas of school study.
Terms Used In 16 CFR 308.2
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
- Truth in Lending Act: The Truth in Lending Act is a federal law that requires lenders to provide standardized information so that borrowers can compare loan terms. In general, lenders must provide information on Source: OCC
(b) Commission means the Federal Trade Commission.
(c) Pay-per-call service has the meaning provided in section 228 of the Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. § 228.
(1) The term pay-per-call services means any service—
(A) In which any person provides or purports to provide—
(i) Audio information or audio entertainment produced or packaged by such person;
(ii) Access to simultaneous voice conversation services; or
(iii) Any service, including the provision of a product, the charges for which are assessed on the basis of the completion of the call;
(B) For which the caller pays a per-call or per-time-interval charge that is greater than, or in addition to, the charge for transmission of the call; and
(C) Which is accessed through use of a 900 telephone number or other prefix or area code designated by the (Federal Communications) Commission in accordance with subsection (b)(5) (47 U.S.C. § 228(b)(5)).
(2) Such term does not include directory services provided by a common carrier or its affiliate or by a local exchange carrier or its affiliate, or any service the charge for which is tariffed, or any service for which users are assessed charges only after entering into a presubcription or comparable arrangement with the provider of such service.
(d) Person means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, government or governmental subdivision or agency, or other entity.
(e)(1) Presubscription or comparable arrangement means a contractual agreement in which
(i) The service provider clearly and conspicuously discloses to the consumer all material terms and conditions associated with the use of the service, including the service provider’s name and address, a business telephone number which the consumer may use to obtain additional information or to register a complaint, and the rates for the service;
(ii) The service provider agrees to notify the consumer of any future rate changes;
(iii) The consumer agrees to utilize the service on the terms and conditions disclosed by the service provider; and
(iv) The service provider requires the use of an identification number or other means to prevent unauthorized access to the service by nonsubscribers.
(2) Disclosure of a credit card or charge card number, along with authorization to bill that number, made during the course of a call to a pay-per-call service shall constitute a presubscription or comparable arrangement if the credit or charge card is subject to the dispute resolution requirements of the Fair Credit Billing Act and the Truth in Lending Act, as amended. No other action taken by the consumer during the course of a call to a pay-per-call service can be construed as creating a presubscription or comparable arrangement.
(f) Program-length commercial means any commercial or other advertisement fifteen (15) minutes in length or longer or intended to fill a television or radio broadcasting or cablecasting time slot of fifteen (15) minutes in length or longer.
(g) Provider of pay-per-call services means any person who sells or offers to sell a pay-per-call service. A person who provides only transmission services or billing and collection services shall not be considered a provider of pay-per-call services.
(h) Reasonably understandable volume means at an audible level that renders the message intelligible to the receiving audience, and, in any event, at least the same audible level as that principally used in the advertisement or the pay-per-call service.
(i) Service bureau means any person, other than a common carrier, who provides, among other things, access to telephone service and voice storage to pay-per-call service providers.
(j) Slow and deliberate manner means at a rate that renders the message intelligible to the receiving audience, and, in any event, at a cadence or rate no faster than that principally used in the advertisement or the pay-per-call service.
(k) Sweepstakes, including games of chance, means a game or promotional mechanism that involves the elements of a prize and chance and does not require consideration.