Doug Gansler: Maryland businesses under threat

On a daily basis, thousands of customers call Maryland businesses to order food, refill medications, or request services. These calls are often motivated by the advertising done by businesses through promotional materials, such as direct mailings and television advertisements. Customers know what they want and from whom, so they call the business, and money and products are exchanged. But under a dangerous ruling recently made by the Maryland Supreme Court, this longstanding and widely understood way of conducting business would disappear.