Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, CONSUMER PROTECTION NEWS: FTC obtains order, files complaint against fraudulent “Yellow Pages” operations, (Mar 27, 2015)

By Edward L. Puzzo, J.D.

The FTC has obtained a stipulated order and $3 million judgment against one Canadian-based business directory operation and has filed a complaint in federal court against another, based on their practice of issuing fraudulent invoices to American churches, nonprofits, local governments, medical practices, and retirement homes for “Yellow Pages” listings that had never been ordered, the Commission announced yesterday (FTC v. OnlineYellowPagesToday.Com, Inc., Civil Action No. C14-838 RAJ; FTC v. American Yellow Browser, Inc., Civil Action No. 15CV2047).

OnlineYellowPagesToday.com The stipulated order obtained against Oni Nathifa Julien, OnlineYellowPagesToday.Com, Inc., and affiliated businesses was based on charges that the Montreal-based operation fraudulently issued unsolicited invoices to churches, nonprofits, and local governments. Under the guise of confirming contact information in directories, the defendants were charged with billing the organizations for never-ordered listings, followed by deceptive collection tactics, such as playing altered or incomplete audio recordings to give the false impression that an employee of the organization had authorized a directory listing.

Under the settlement order, Julien is prohibited from misrepresenting any good or service, including that organizations have a preexisting business relationship with her or anyone else, that they have agreed to buy something, or that they owe money. She is also barred from continuing to collect money from past customers or profiting from or keeping their personal information. The order imposes a $3,081,969 judgment that will be suspended due to Julien’s inability to pay. The full judgment will become due immediately if she is found to have misrepresented her financial condition.

Medical Yellow Directories. In its complaint filed in the federal district court in Chicago, the FTC alleges that Quebec-based American Yellow Browser and affiliated companies—doing business under a number of names that often including the words “American,” “Yellow,” or the familiar “walking hands” logo—fraudulently issued unsolicited invoices to medical practices, churches, and retirement homes requesting payment for one-year directory listings that had not actually been ordered. Those recipients that ignored the invoices were sent additional invoices with “collection” and “credit score” warnings, implying adverse consequences if the recipient did not pay for the never-ordered listings, frequently followed by dunning notices from an affiliated company posing as a third-party debt collector. The FTC complaint seeks to permanently enjoin these practices.

Companies: OnlineYellowPagesToday.Com, Inc.; American Yellow Browser Inc.

News: ConsumerProtection FederalTradeCommissionNews