Are telemarketers allowed to call cell phones? I know pollsters aren’t because the recipient has too pay for the call. Are telemarketers subject to the same rules? If not, then why aren’t they?
I would imagine that they aren’t. I remember the anti-spam debate of a few years back and it seems to be the deciding factor of what is illegal and what isn’t. For instance, it doesn’t cost extra to recieve email, snail mail, or landline telephone calls, so you get spam, junk mail, and telemarketers calling you on the landline. But it costs money on almost all plans (even if you get “free” incoming calls). And it could be really expensive if you were roaming too .
Here’s a quick article (one of many) indicating that telemarketers can call you on a cellular or wireless (which is it?) phone. The National Do-Not-Call list is cited as prevention.
The relevant federal law is 47 USC 227. It says:
It seems like a telemarketer could call you by directly dialing your number and not violate this.