A US congressional committee yesterday voted in favour of a bill
that puts restrictions on the senders of spam. The Unsolicited
Commercial Electronic Mail Act, which gives ISPs a right to sue
spammers, was unanimously approved.
The bill (which, unlike in the UK, can be referred to as an
“Act” before being passed) would give consumers the option of
telling marketing companies to remove their e-mail addresses from
e-mailing lists – a so-called “opt-out” rule. Companies failing to
comply with such a request risk regulatory action by the Federal
Trade Commission. In addition, ISPs are given a right to sue the
spammers for the sum of $500 for each violation, up to a maximum of
$50,000. Consumers can sue the spammers who fail to comply with
their requests, but class actions are prohibited.
The US Senate House of Representatives, to which the bill must
pass for consideration, rejected a similar bill last year by 427
votes to 1. However, the prospects for the current bill are said to
be better because the Senate this year has less legislation to
consider. Last year, the spam bill was thought to be rejected
partly on grounds of perceived insignificance.
OUT-LAW.COM will soon provide an article on spam and the law,
covering the US and European positions. If you would like to
receive notification when the article appears, please e-mail
info@out-law.com.
