Calling card fraud alleged

On behalf of the Federal Trade Commission, the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey ordered a temporary halt to the allegedly deceptive advertising claims made by Millennium Telecard Inc. The FTC said the prepaid phone card marketer misrepresented the number of calling minutes that the prepaid cards delivered and charged hidden fees that could drain the value on the cards. According to the FTC complaint, Millennium Telecard markets prepaid calling cards under names like "Africa Magic," "Hola Amigo" and "Viva Ecuador" to U.S. immigrants who call to such countries as Argentina, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Pakistan, Poland, Vietnam, Ghana, Nigeria and El Salvador.

In an FTC operation conducted between August 2010 and March 2011, the agency reportedly found the cards delivered an average of only 45 percent of the minutes advertised. Of 141 cards tested, 139 failed to deliver the number of minutes claimed on posters found in merchant locations, the FTC said.

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