NEWS
Federal Communications Commission
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This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action.  Release of the full text of a Commission order constitutes official action.
See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Circ 1974).
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:
June 20, 2011 Neil Grace, 202-418-0506
Email: neil.grace@fcc.gov
FCC CHAIRMAN GENACHOWSKI UNVEILS NEW ACTIONS TO HELP 
CONSUMERS PREVENT & IDENTIFY “MYSTERY FEES” ON PHONE 
BILLS, KNOWN AS “CRAMMING”
Twenty Million Americans unaware of illegal and unauthorized mystery fees – called “cramming” –
ranging from $1.99 to $19.99 on monthly phone bills; 
FCC proposes $11.7 million in penalties against four companies & releases Consumer Tip Sheet
Builds on FCC’s Consumer Empowerment Agenda
(Washington, D.C) – Building on his Consumer Empowerment Agenda, FCC Chairman Julius 
Genachowski today announced plans to propose new rules to increase transparency and disclosure on 
phone bills, aiming to protect Americans from “mystery fees” and “cramming,” which is the illegal 
placement of an unauthorized fee onto a consumer’s monthly phone bill.  The charges are for services 
like long-distance services, voicemail, or even diet plans or yoga classes that the consumer neither 
requested nor used.  
Speaking at the Center for American Progress, Chairman Genachowski also unveiled an FCC Cramming 
Tip Sheet to help consumers identify and resolve this type of mystery fee if they’ve been affected.  A 
recent expert survey showed that only five percent (5%) of consumers who were impacted by a particular 
cramming company were aware of the monthly charges.   Based on the same survey and state data, the 
FCC believes an estimated 15 to 20 million American households a year potentially have these mystery 
fees on their monthly landline phone bills.  
Chairman Genachowski said, “Our Consumer Empowerment Agenda is focused on harnessing 
technology and transparency to empower consumers with the information they need to make smart 
decisions and to make the market work.  When abusive practices require action, we will act.  We are 
focused on empowerment, education, and enforcement.”  He continued, “Today, I'm also announcing 
that I will be circulating a proposal tomorrow to my colleagues to explore new ways to empower 
consumers and protect Americans against cramming and mystery fees.”
One example of cramming involves a St. Louis, Missouri woman who was charged for 25 months of 
long-distance service she never authorized or used.  When she protested the charges, the company sent 
her a copy of the form that she had supposedly used to authorize the service. It had a different name, 
address, email and birth date than she did.  Even so, the long-distance company offered to credit back 
only a fraction of the cost.
In addition, Chairman Genachowski discussed the FCC’s recent enforcement action against four 
companies, resulting in proposed penalties of $11.7 million.  He said, “Cramming is not only illegal, it 
erodes consumer trust in communications services.  The FCC will not tolerate cramming, and we are 
turning up the heat on companies that rip off consumers with unauthorized fees. We want to send a clear 
message: if you charge consumers unauthorized fees, you will be discovered and you will be punished.”
The FCC Enforcement Bureau issued Notices of Apparent Liability last week to four companies for 
allegedly charging thousands of consumers for long distance service that they had not ordered.  The 
companies targeted in the FCC Notices of Apparent Liability are: Main Street Telephone ($4,200,000); 
VoiceNet Telephone, LLC ($3,000,000); Cheap2Digital Telephone, LLC ($3,000,000); and Norristown 
Telephone, LLC ($1,500,000).  
The unlawful billing appears to have continued for months.  According to the Enforcement Bureau, only 
one-tenth of one percent (0.1%) of consumers in two of the cases reviewed actually used the additional 
services for which they were being charged.  
Chairman Genachowski concluded by saying, “Today, we are saying loud and clear to consumers 
trying to navigate the complex and constantly changing communications landscape: the FCC is on your 
side. We are focused on helping all Americans seize the tremendous opportunities of communications 
technology.”
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FCC CONSUMER TIP SHEET
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FCC INFOGRAPHIC ON CRAMMING
CLICK HERE TO VIEW A ONE-PAGE BACKGROUND SHEET
-- FCC --