Getting even: The Jolly Roger Telephone Company

[GarlicGuy]

From the Miami Herald:

Snippet


And then there is the Jolly Roger Telephone Co., which turns the tables on telemarketers. This program allows a customer to put the phone on mute and patch telemarketing calls to a robot, which understands speech patterns and inflections and works to keep the caller engaged.

Subscribers can choose robot personalities, such as Whiskey Jack, who is frequently distracted by a game he is watching on television, or Salty Sally, a frazzled mother.

The robots string the callers along with vocal fillers like “Uh-huh” and “OK, OK.” After several minutes, some will ask the callers to repeat their sales pitch from the beginning, prompting the telemarketers to have angry meltdowns, according to sample recordings posted on the company’s website.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nati...#storylink=cpy

[Azadina]

Telemarketing needs to go away forever. I'd be thrilled about trying this, but I've never had "robocalls". I need to answer the phone, and when I do to find out who it is, it's too late to use against human callers. They'd figure it out right away.

[Dextroden]

Maybe it's just me, but antagonizing telemarketers to get back at telemarketing companies has never seemed like a productive use of my time.

That's why you get the robot to do it for you.

[GarlicGuy]

Telemarketing needs to go away forever. I'd be thrilled about trying this, but I've never had "robocalls". I need to answer the phone, and when I do to find out who it is, it's too late to use against human callers. They'd figure it out right away.

No lie.... I get close to 100 robo / scam calls per month..... I did the math based on the article, and the average American got 97.6 robocalls in 2016.

Americans got 29.3 BILLION robocalls in 2016 ( according to the very bottom of the page )

[Freighter]

No lie.... I get close to 100 robo / scam calls per month..... I did the math based on the article, and the average American got 97.6 robocalls in 2016.

Americans got 29.3 BILLION robocalls in 2016 ( according to the very bottom of the page )

How do you even get the calls? Have you put your phone number out there somewhere for those companies to find it or something? I've never had anyone calling me to try to sell me anything.

[sheggaro]

I don't think I've ever gotten such a call. Then again I don't pick up unless I know the number.

[Azadina]

How do you even get the calls? Have you put your phone number out there somewhere for those companies to find it or something? I've never had anyone calling me to try to sell me anything.

Freedomland corporations sell their customers info forward. Repeating as many times as there's buyers.

[GarlicGuy]

This is an actual example of what the company does:

EDIT.... it does a great job, and it is pretty funny, especially near the end of the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88PmIm3CbCc

- - - Updated - - -

I don't think I've ever gotten such a call. Then again I don't pick up unless I know the number.

Your numbers get sold, stolen, or traded away by unscrupulous companies and people.

[Dextroden]

I don't think I've ever gotten such a call. Then again I don't pick up unless I know the number.

More common with landlines. But I've gotten some on my cell.

[Kaganfindel]

It's all fun and games until some telecom or credit company produces a recording of Whiskey Jack responding "uh huh" to a request for confirmation of new services.

[Aeula]

Maybe it's just me, but antagonizing telemarketers to get back at telemarketing companies has never seemed like a productive use of my time.

Well this makes it so you don't have to spend any time doing it. The bot does it on your behalf.

Telemarketers chose to work for scummy companies, they deserve to waste their time.

[Freighter]

It's all fun and games until some telecom or credit company produces a recording of Whiskey Jack responding "uh huh" to a request for confirmation of new services.

I'm fairly sure they wouldn't be able to pin that on you due to difference in voice.

[Tradewind]

haha this is great.



"hang on, there's a bee on me" lmfao.

[A dot Ham]

From the Miami Herald:

Snippet


And then there is the Jolly Roger Telephone Co., which turns the tables on telemarketers. This program allows a customer to put the phone on mute and patch telemarketing calls to a robot, which understands speech patterns and inflections and works to keep the caller engaged.

Subscribers can choose robot personalities, such as Whiskey Jack, who is frequently distracted by a game he is watching on television, or Salty Sally, a frazzled mother.

The robots string the callers along with vocal fillers like “Uh-huh” and “OK, OK.” After several minutes, some will ask the callers to repeat their sales pitch from the beginning, prompting the telemarketers to have angry meltdowns, according to sample recordings posted on the company’s website.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nati...#storylink=cpy

Reminds me of this guy:

[Aeula]

But if they didn't take that job and had to take welfare instead, we would be screaming at them for sitting on their asses instead of earning their way.

Being on wallfare is less of a stigma than being one of the Telemarketers.

[Kaganfindel]

That seems like a problem.

I agree, to an extent. I don't think "work or starve" is an acceptable mandate in a first world country. If someone is faced with the unpleasant choice between getting a paycheck to do nothing at all and getting a paycheck to spend eight hours a day harassing people from a call center, I'd rather they got the paycheck free and clear.

[Tinykong]

How to avoid telemarketers in one easy step:

Don't answer calls from numbers you don't recognize.

I should sell this idea.

[GarlicGuy]

How to avoid telemarketers in one easy step:

Don't answer calls from numbers you don't recognize.

I should sell this idea.

That doesn't stop the calls.

[Tinykong]

You can't receive a call if you don't pick up the phone

[Silver Forte]

But if they didn't take that job and had to take welfare instead, we would be screaming at them for sitting on their asses instead of earning their way.

There are other jobs.