Daily Digest – November 9. Autodialer Rhetoric Ramping Up; Idaho Gets in on Operation Collection Protection

Some quick links to start your Monday. The video analytics market is expected to grow tenfold in the next six years … A look inside the home of presidential candidate Ben Carson … A long feature on the “menacing” problem of zombie debt … Santander is starting a tech competition to fund digital currency innovation … A North Carolina mall is reversing its decision and will have a Christmas tree after all … Brands that will disappear next year … Nine out of 10 websites leak your data to third parties … Americans over 30 are more miserable than ever … Amazon’s $160 billion business you’ve never heard of … Photos from an aircraft carrier … The secrets of irresistible people … The question that can save any conversation … How to make sure your best employees don’t burn out.

NEWS 

• Delaware-based Hospital Billing & Collection Services has signed a contract with a California county hospital to try and collect on unpaid medical bills. The collection agency will handle unpaid accounts where the bill is less than $5,000. According to the contract, the total amount of unpaid debt is $185 million.

• The rhetoric in the battle to allow the use of autodialers to collect on delinquent student loans is ramping up on both sides of the debate. Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) is behind proposed legislation that would un-do the allowance, which was included in the federal budget bill that was signed into law last week. He conducted an interview where he said if his legislation fails, he has already started working with the Federal Communications Commission to establish rules about how autodialers can be used. On the other side, is a group of lenders and servicers claiming that regulations that are too restrictive are harmful to borrowers.

• The Idaho Department of Finance is getting in on Operation Collection Protection. The state regulator recently announced the results of a crackdown on illegal collection activities in the state, which included four consent orders and one cease-and-desist order.

• Bankruptcy filings declined 11% in October compared with the same month last year, according to data supplied by the American Bankruptcy Institute.

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Will Friday’s jobs report lead the Fed to start raising interest rates?

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