Coalition Urges FTC to Resolve Privacy Complaint Against AT&T, Comcast, Cablevision

Five consumer and privacy organizations are urging acting FTC Chairman Maureen Ohlhausen to resolve a year-old complaint that cable and satellite providers "continue to deceive consumers about their privacy practices" (see 1606090054). In a Monday letter, the coalition -- including Center for Digital Democracy, Consumer Action, Consumer Federation of America, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse and Public Knowledge -- said "the time is ripe" for the commission to act since the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided to rehear FTC v. AT&T Mobility, which restored the commission's authority to oversee non-common carrier activities of ISPs (see 1705100063). In the June 9, 2016, complaint, several members of the coalition plus other groups alleged AT&T, Cablevision and Comcast didn't disclose how much consumer information they were collecting through their TV subscription services, how they shared the data and how they created consumer profiles with it. "Now that the AT&T Mobility decision has been vacated, it is time for the FTC to do some policing," the groups said. "We ask that you now publicly and expeditiously resolve the pending complaint." An FTC spokeswoman emailed that the agency has received the letter but doesn't comment on investigations or even if they exist.