AMY KlOBUCHAR
~"·.·'ESOtA
COMMITTEES
AGRICULTURE rlUTAITION
AND FORESTRY
COMMERCE. SCIENCE.
AND TRANSPORTATION
EtNlRONMENT AND PUBlIC WORKS
JOINT ECONOMIC CO''''.IlTTEE
JUOICIARY
'IDnited eStates eScnate
WASHINGTON. DC 20510
November 10. 2010
The Honorable Julius Genachowski
Chaimlan
Fcderal Communications Commission
445 l2'h Strcet, SW
Washington, DC 20544
Dear Chainnan Genachowski:
I writc to you today about lhe praclicc ofcell phone "cramming." As you know, cell
phone cramming lakes place when a company adds a phony and often recurring charge to an
unsuspecting consumer's cell phone bill. Victims ofcramming may have inadvertently signcd
lip 10 receive a mcssage - such as a horoscope or ajoke - \\'ithout realizing lhey would bc billed
cach month. Or a victim may simply be an unlucky target ofa scam. After a consumcr from my
state opened an indecipherable text mcssage, the company that sent the message started charging
him for a service that he never asked for. much less used. Thcse charges. which may go
unnoticed for months, appear 10 be legitimate and CITe often hidden in a bill. Once detected.
cramming victims often find it difficuh to SlOp Ihe charges and get their money back.
As I have wrillcn to you before, wireless consumcrs arc increasingly raced willt
confusion over wireless charges and unccrtainty about their bills. Cell phonc cramming and
unauthorizcd third-party charges only add to this confusion. In light of this increasingly
prevalent and allti·conSlll11Cr practice, I urge the FCC to crackdown on cell phone cramming and
consider rules that \Vould add transparcncy and clarily to third party charges thm appear on
phone bills.
I look forward to working with you 011 this issuc.
Sincerely,
A~\~
Amy Klobuchar
United Statcs Senator
1782