autodialer

or au·to-di·al·er

[ aw-toh-dahy-uh-ler, -dahy-ler ]

noun

1. a telephone device that makes possible a service feature autodial whereby a call is automatically made in response to a brief input signal from the user, as the pressing of a button:

   I programmed my number into the first memory slot of the autodialer on Grandma’s phone.

2. a computer program that dials phone numbers from a predetermined or algorithmically derived list, connecting a phone operator with one call after another, as in a telemarketing call center:

   The autodialer maximizes operators’ efficiency by connecting them only to the calls that are answered.

3. robocall.

Word History and Origins

Origin of autodialer¹

First recorded in 1960–65; auto- ³( def ) + dialer ( def )

Example Sentences

Robotext scammers “are increasingly using equipment that does not satisfy the definition of an autodialer under the law,” FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel told a House oversight subcommittee in a letter that December.

From Los Angeles Times

The judges were concerned that, under this expanded definition, any smartphone could be classified as an autodialer since there are apps you can download to make robocalls.

From Slate

The rule expanded the definition of an “autodialer” to include any devices that could had the capacity to make robocalls, even if they hadn’t been modified to do so.

From Slate

Although robocalls are a huge problem on American phone networks, it says “expanding the definition of an autodialer to encompass any equipment that merely stores and dials telephone numbers would take a chainsaw to these nuanced problems.”

From The Verge

“Duguid’s interpretation of an autodialer would capture virtually all modern cell phones,” the opinion says.

From The Verge