[LINK] Desktop Marketing Systems closed!

[Robin Whittle]

I was very happy to read in today's Australian IT section that Desktop
Marketing Systems (DtMS) will be liquidated, due to the costs of losing
its battle over copyright with Telstra.

For years, Telstra has argued that it has copyright over the contents of
the White Pages - and has been battling with DtMS and its like in the
courts.  DtMS competitor "Brylar's Australia on Disc" closed last year
after losing out to Telstra.  My research indicates that these two
companies were the primary sources of numbers for most telemarketing
calls I received.  Now they are both gone, but their CDs will be
floating around for a few years yet.

  http://www.dtms.com.au/

     Due to legal action with Telstra, Desktop Marketing Systems Pty
     Ltd, has now ceased trading.  We apologise for the inconvenience
     as this is a situation out of our control.

It is their own fault entirely.  They were data copying and repurposing
parasites selling their wares primarily to telemarketers, who are
intrusive parasites.

The article is interesting in that it says that Telstra's Sensis will
now be the sole source of reverse directory information in Australia -
and they only do it for law enforcement agencies, for $1 a query - and
then only by phone.

I think this is a *far* better outcome than in the past, where CD-ROMs
could be used for any purpose at all.

Also, I think this means the demise of the most commonly used source of
telemarketing lists - CD-ROM copies of the White Pages.  So hopefully
this will reduce the general incidence of telemarketing.

  - Robin     http://www.firstpr.com.au/issues/tm/