T-Mobile, Subscriber Withdraw Request at FCC for TCPA Clarity

T-Mobile and subscriber Paul Armbruster told the FCC they resolved a fight over whether T-Mobile is exempt from liability under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act because it doesn’t charge for text messages. An arbitration order sided with the company and found Armbruster can't revoke consent to receive unwanted text messages from the carrier. In January, he asked for a declaratory ruling from the FCC resolving some of the issues raised by the arbitration order. Armbuster also filed a motion for reconsideration with the arbitrator. Lawyers for T-Mobile and Armbruster asked to withdraw the January petition. “Pending a decision on the motion for reconsideration, the parties resolved their dispute, rendering the requests set forth in the Petition moot,” said a filing in docket 02-278. “The Parties hereby respectfully request that Petitioner be granted leave to withdraw the Petition.” Armbruster is a T-Mobile customer, “and at a certain point in 2015 began to receive text messages from 1-Mobile advertising products like, T-Mobile's ‘gift finder’ for father's day, and ‘T-Mobile LG tablet offer,’” said the January petition. He called T-Mobile customer support “where he was told that he cannot opt-out because ‘the FCC requires T-Mobile to send the messages,’” the petition said.