FITUG e.V. Förderverein Informationstechnik und Gesellschaft

FC: Groups ask FTC to can spam; opponents say it goes too far

------- Forwarded message follows ------- Date sent: Wed, 4 Sep 2002 12:30:39 -0400 From: Declan McCullagh <declan@well.com> To: politech@politechbot.com Subject: FC: Groups ask FTC to can spam; opponents say it goes too far Send reply to: declan@well.com

http://news.com.com/2100-1029-956502.html?tag=politech

FTC asked to can spam By Declan McCullagh September 4, 2002, 8:26 AM PT

Spam has become such a menace to the Internet that the Federal Trade Commission should take swift steps to staunch the flow of bulk e-mail, three consumer groups said Wednesday.

In a 14-page set of proposed rules that already has drawn fire as overly regulatory, the groups suggest that the FTC outlaw commercial e-mail that misrepresents the content of the message or fails to provide a way to unsubscribe from the mailing list.

"Spam is threatening the value of the Internet," said Samuel Simon, chairman of the ">Telecommunications Research and Action Center (TRAC). "We believe there is regulatory authority for the Federal Trade Commission to act and do something. It's not perfect, but if the rule we ask for is enacted, spam will be reduced significantly."

Wednesday's proposal, also backed by the National Consumers League and Consumer Action, comes as concerns about spam grow more and more acute. Corporate networks are becoming so clogged by e-mail pitches for pornography, moneymaking schemes and health products that spam could make up the majority of message traffic on the Internet by the end of this year.

Some legal experts, however, caution that because the proposed rules regulate online communications more severely than offline advertisements, the courts would toss the regulations out as unacceptable. The Direct Marketing Association opposes the suggested rules as overly intrusive, and the American Civil Liberties Union says the rules would be unconstitutional if adopted by the FTC.

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