How to detect disconnected numbers?

Lets see, I respond to you using _my_ time, for free, and your company gets to _charge_ someone. Nice business model, your "raw materials" are essentially free. If you want to _pay_ for my opinions, then we'll talk, otherwise I just hang up on idiots in your business.

Um, no. I can call, email, or mail my representatives, I certainly don't need you in the middle. Also I've noted that surveys very often tend to give the results that the people paying for them want to hear, especially if they're going to publicize the results.

Because people are tired of being interrupted by phone calls from people taking surveys.

Jerry

I do not need some biased leftist pollster in the middle.

My you sure are one tolerant person. Seems you do not allow views, except for the ones you hold. Your polls are probably very biased and would not reflect the true view of the population at large.

Trust me, people on Oz aren't any more pleased with random-dailing wankers than the average USian.

I'm guessing exempt from DNC but not random calling. A fine line, but a line just the same.

"Gordon Jarret" wrote in news:46153e90$0$9774$ snipped-for-privacy@news.optusnet.com.au:

We (tinw) ARE adult telecom professionals -- that is why we do not play with crank yankers.

You might infer that telephone soliciting is a major hot-button topic in the USA. Several years ago; the Federal Trade Commission establised a Do Not Call list that consumers could join, to block the sales calls. The response was staggering even to those anticipating it.

But DNC does not cover several kinds of calls, including surveys that don't try and sell you anything.

Yeah, I did get that loud and clear.

I only maintain a landline because I need it to support my DSL connection. Telemarketers piss me off as much as anyone.

I know, and in a few weeks the same rules will apply in Australia, and I regard that as a good thing. Our existing DNC register will be exchanged with every other research company, and merged with the government DNC register.

I could go on, but that would only invite more flame.

Best wishes Gordon

the phone system uses signalling to tell the rest of the network what is going on.

A good system designed to do what you are doing with it should have an API to let you understand the target number state.

anyone who solves a difficult problem in an elegant way often wants to chrge others to use it - free enterprise in action.

If they offer it for charges, then others then choose to pay that going rate, or do it themselves, (and have to avoid infringing any patents etc they took out to protect their investment.

On the flame war you managed to trigger - Australia seems to have an explicit "opt out" for unsolicied phone calls - and it doesnt sound like you are using that database to avoid a subset of your targets.

The other risk you run is that this kind of high volume unsolicited calling is what drives the "do not call" statistics in the 1st place.

And once a high enough %age of the AU number base is in that database, arent the "random" principles of your research invalidated?

Finally - how can your research claim randon sampling?

Your answer rate is biased by:

1. anyone screening your calls (probably not a problem until you manage to upset someone who publishes your source numbers).
2. anyone who doesnt have a phone.
3. anyone who doesnt answer during your work hours.

and thats before you factor in people who discover it is an unsolicited call as part of the process and slam the phone down....

>

Then you should either quit and find a moral job or suicide. You're choice.

This is typical arrogant attitude of the telemarketing industry. I'm sorry to see it exists outside the U.S. as well. But I'm pretty sure the vast majority of Austrailians aren't like this person.

As to "unpleasant experiences", it was people like you incessantly calling our house when my mother was seriously ill that made our life a living hell. It interfered with received critical calls from the doctor and pharmacy.

As to your claim of valuable public purpose, people have and have had numerous ways to express their opinions to legislators than some bogus randomly selected survey.