GATINEAU – The CRTC announced today that Comwave Telenetworks Inc. has paid a penalty of $100,000 as part of a settlement over telemarketing practices pertaining to calls made by its independent dealers.
Comwave Telenetworks Inc. is affiliated with Comwave Telecommunications Inc., a provider of telecommunications services, such as home telephone, VOIP telephone and long-distance services.
The CRTC issued a notice of violation after its investigation and found that while Comwave did subscribe to the National Do Not Call List (DNCL), there were months where they erroneously did not download the list as required. As a result, calls were made by Comwave’s independent dealers to consumers’ numbers that were registered on the National DNCL.
“We appreciate that Comwave fully cooperated with our investigation and committed to changing its telemarketing practices,” said Andrea Rosen, the CRTC’s chief compliance and enforcement officer. “This investigation should serve as a reminder to all telemarketers that they must ensure they are not only registered with the National Do Not Call List, but also that their subscriptions are current. Furthermore, they must make certain that calls made on their behalf by third parties are in compliance with the telemarketing rules.”
In addition to paying monetary penalties, Comwave has decided, on its own volition, to cease telemarketing. Should it choose to continue telemarketing in the future, it has agreed to:
- review its compliance programs and appoint a compliance officer to ensure ongoing adherence with the CRTC’s telemarketing rules
- implement training and education programs for staff, and
- provide an annual report to the CRTC, which must document consumer complaints and the steps taken to resolve them.
To date, the CRTC, which enforces the Unsolicited Telecommunications Rules (UTRs) to reduce unwanted calls to Canadians, has taken corrective action with telemarketers, issuing more than $2.5 million in penalties.
