Larry Lessig: Right to "document" phone calls

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

Date: Sat, 21 Jun 2003 09:51:18 -0400
From: Bob Schmidt <schmidt () PROVIDER COM>


In the June issue of CIO Insight magazine (hip supplement to the oversize,
slick, etherial and largely useless CIO magazine), Larry Lessig relays a
customer service experience his wife had with a surly airline agent and
observes, "Every email exchange I have is documented -- why don't I have
the right to document phone calls?"

He points the finger at "states such as California, Illinois, Michigan and
Pennsylvania that require the consent of all parties" before a call can be
taped. This raises lots of questions.

Did Larry leave out any states with such requirements? Where do the Feds
stand on this issue, and should phone technology be equalized with email
when it comes to documentation?

Oh, and what about global phone calls across national borders, and what
about VOIP calls - are they treated differently today than POTS calls and
should they be?

Are/should commercial phone calls be treated differently than personal
phone calls so that they have to meet a lesser privacy burden when a
consumer unilaterally records a call with a company vs. with another
individual or vs. a company unilaterally recording a call with the
consumer? Is notice enough and if so, can a consumer give notice to a
customer service agent before recording?

And speaking of recording, if you don't use a tape recorder, but instead
use a computer to make the recording, is this treated any differently under
the law?

And are phone calls made by employees on company owned telephone equipment
subject to the same standard as company provided email (or is it vice versa)?



Bob Schmidt

Author of The Geek's Guide to Internet Business Success
Published by John Wiley & Sons   ISBN 0471288381
The First Book to Address the Business Side of the Web Design Business
http://www.provider.com/geeksguide


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