A committee of the European Parliament voted on Monday night to
give Member States discretion on regulating unsolicited e-mail for
marketing purposes, often referred to as spam. This reverses a
previous “opt-in” proposal, which would have required prior consent
from recipients of such e-mail. Instead, if the latest amendment
becomes law, States would decide whether to take an opt-in or
opt-out approach.
The proposal is contained in a report on a proposed Directive
“on the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy
in the electronic communications sector.” The report was approved
by the Parliament’s Committee on Citizens’ Freedoms and Rights,
Justice and Home Affairs.
The UK Government and the Direct Marketing Association have
expressed a preference for an opt-out approach. With opt-out,
individuals can be sent unsolicited e-mail for marketing purposes
unless and until they indicate that they do not want to receive
further e-mail.
Other amendments in the report would also forbid the sending of
spam which disguises or conceals the identity of the sender. There
must also be a valid address to which the recipient may send a
request that he no longer wishes to receive these
communications.
Direct marketing by automated calling systems, fax or SMS for
the purpose of direct marketing is only permitted in respect of
subscribers to a service who have given their prior consent.
