quite a while back, some telemarketer from the buffalo news called me up and tried to get me to buy a subscription to their newspaper. i was slightly annoyed because i am on the new york do-not-call list, but they were trying to get around the law by asking me to do a survey (which is legal). basically they were just asking me if i had a subscription and, if not, if i wanted to subscribe. since i had already known about the web site, after i got rid of them, i wrote up a complaint and sent it off.
today, i got a letter from the state consumer protection board with the result of my complaint. they apparently fined the buffalo news $9500, and newspaper agreed not to do it again. it was one of those settlements to avoid a lengthy court battle. anyways, i am satisfied with the result (assuming they really don’t do it again) as i was not expecting anything to happen. woohoo. power to the people and all that.