Representatives and their legal counsel from the Association of Directory Publishers, Valley Yellow Pages, At&t, and the Local Search Association held a conference call to plan their continued opposition to San Francisco’s opt-in ordinance. If more articles like this from the San Diego Union-Tribune appear, then the industry will need an aggressive defensive strategy.

Pauline Martinson, head of the nonprofit waste-prevention group, I Love A Clean San Diego, told the Union-Tribune, “To most of us, they are no longer necessary.” The UT article also suggested major cities like San Diego and Chicago may jump on the bandwagon if the San Francisco ordinance survives court challenges from the industry.

Richard Anthony, who runs a San Diego zero-waste consulting firm, isn’t on board with the opt-in movement. Anthony said, “the free market should dictate the fate of phone books.”

Steven Osinski, an authority on phone book advertising and teacher at San Diego State’s business school, told the newspaper he doesn’t expect phone books to disappear but acknowledges that they “face major challenges staying relevant in the digital age.”

“As this generation grows up, they’re not interested in the print product,” Osinski said. “They want immediate access to updated information.”

BIA/Kelsey will release an advisory later this week on the history of opt-in/opt-legislation and the implications for the industry.