Consumers are already dissatisfied with the volume of unsolicited marketing directed to them by mail, telephone, and email. Consumers' dissatisfaction is likely to be heightened when the advertisements arrive from third parties with whom the consumer has not established any relationship. Without awareness of how their location information is being used and who has access to it, consumers will feel as though there is omnipresent surveillance of their activities by companies they do not know. The invasiveness of such advertising increases when the volume and frequency of messages is also outside of their control. Since location information may simultaneously be collected by a number of companies, such as the wireless carrier and the information service provider, consumers will be confused about who has access to their information.
Consumers are likely to find wireless solicitors tracking and targeting particularly invasive.
As distinct from existing forms of CPNI, wireless location information data can be collected everywhere and at any time. While individuals must actively place a telephone call, the seamless integration of wireless services can operate without the need for an individual to actively trigger the disclosure of location information. Rules that require location information service providers to adhere to strong privacy rules are necessary to counterbalance the invisible nature of such data collection. The availability of location information presents unique risks to individuals. Without the ability to control the collection of location information, consumers may lose the privacy safeguards currently afforded by other federal and state privacy laws.