>The current US "do not call" and "do not mail" list is impotent as well. The problem spammers and telemarketers certainly aren't going to use them!

I can say I'm quite satisfied with the "do not call" list. Ever since my entry there became eligible (i.e. october 1st), I have received only one phone call from some beggar cops (fake cops?), and one from my phone company. In the first case, just mentioning the list finished the talk in a second, and in the other, well, I just told them I like the service as is - just local calls and DSL, and none of their mumbo-jumbo options :).

>All they do is prevent legitimate businesses from contacting you about products that might actually interest you. <g>

My message for those is "don't call me, I'll call you" :).

Instead of making everything so much more expensive by including the enormous advertising cost, they should rather make sure that

- I can find their product on the web easily
- the product description is straightforward and clear, without the commercialese buzzwords
- the technical data about the product are available
- the optional additions are available separately, not in packages
- the price is plainly visible and simple - whenever there's a complicated pricing scheme, they've lost me already
- there's no small print
- if I decide to call them, I get to press less than 50 digits and get to talk to a live person within three minutes or else I'll hang up

Additionally, if their advertising on TV (if they really must resort to that) is overtly moronic, tasteless or just generally annoying, I won't buy from them even if they're the best (Domino's, MSN are just fresh examples off the top of my head, specially MSN with "we'll censor the web for you").