Text Messaging Featured Article

Many laws have been put in place to give consumers recourse if a company causes them harm—such as a product or service they offer being defective or not carried out properly. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act 1991 (TCPA) is one such law, which was signed by President George H. W. Bush to restrict telephone solicitations and automated systems, and has since been amended to include text messages.

Today, Twitter (News - Alert) is responsible for sending more than 500 million Tweets per day to a customer base consisting of 78 percent active mobile users. This has led the company to send text messages to its customers on their mobile phones, but apparently it has being doing so to recycled phone numbers assigned to new customers without their consent. Not being aware of the status of the numbers in its database has resulted in a suit launched by Beverly Nunes because Twitter was sending her texts to the recycled numbered she was given.

According to Nunes, she was receiving text messages prodding her to sign up for "Swag Bucks," an online regards program, even though she never used Twitter. She was getting the texts through Twitter's 40404, a short code technology which lets companies send automated SMS messages, a violation of one of the bylaws of the TCPA, allowing Nunes to claim damages.

The suit is now part of a $5 million class action complaint claiming Twitter ignored the TCPA rules restricting robo-calling – texting in this case – to recycled phone numbers with marketing messages. In her claim, Nunes says Twitter didn't follow the rules regarding disconnected phone numbers, which mandates short code users to monitor a database of disconnected and ported numbers.

Nunes requested the company to stop sending the messages, which were ignored as more texts continued to be delivered to her phone day and night - before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m. This practice involved other customers who have made the same allegations and are now part of the suit.

The class action states, "Indeed, Twitter has received numerous consumer complaints alerting it to this very fact and requesting that the messages stop. Ultimately, Twitter is responsible for verifying cellular telephone number ownership and obtaining consent before sending automated text messages to cellular telephone subscribers. Even with prior cellular subscriber consent, Twitter is liable under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act for sending text messages to cellular numbers reassigned to new subscribers without the new subscriber's consent."

In its defense Twitter said, "We believe these claims are without merit and will vigorously defend ourselves against them," as reported by GigaOm.