At 04:37 PM 6/15/00, Keith Moore wrote:
>yeah, the bill contains language like
>
>"Unsolicited commercial electronic mail can be an important mechanism
>through which businesses advertise and attract customers in the online
>environment."
>
>this bill isn't designed to limit spam; it's designed to make it legal.
In the interest of providing both sides of the story, it should be
noted that the bill also contains language like:
"The receipt of unsolicited commercial electronic mail may result
in costs to recipients who cannot refuse to accept such mail and who incur
costs for the storage of such mail, or for the time spent accessing,
reviewing, and discarding such mail, or for both."
and
"Unsolicited commercial electronic mail may impose significant
monetary costs on interactive computer services, businesses, and
educational and nonprofit institutions that carry and receive such mail, as
there is a finite volume of mail that such providers, businesses, and
institutions can handle without further investment. The sending of such
mail is increasingly and negatively affecting the quality of service
provided to customers of interactive computer service, and shifting costs
from the sender of the advertisement to the interactive computer service."
I've yet to read the whole bill (H.R. 3113), but I suspect (or, at
least, hope) that the politicians behind this legislation are intending to
draft a federal law that, unlike at least two state attempts, will survive
a constitutional challenge.
=======================
Douglas M. Isenberg
Attorney @ Law
Editor & Publisher, GigaLaw.com
=======================
GigaLaw.com: "Legal Information for
Internet and Technology Professionals"
http://www.GigaLaw.com
=======================
