Seeker of Truth
05-22-2003, 12:02 PM
Will Taxing E-Mail Stop Spam?
Thu May 22, 4:00 AM ET
Grant Gross, IDG News Service
WASHINGTON-- Lawmakers, antispam activists, and even a self-professed spammer are mulling several methods for canning spam, from imposing a small charge for sending e-mail to an international spam treaty.
Congress should impose a small charge for each piece of e-mail sent, one senator told the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee at a hearing Wednesday.
"I think it's worth looking at some very, very small charge for every e-mail sent, so small that it would not be onerous for an individual or business that has regular (e-mail) use, but it would be a deterrent for those who are sending millions and even billions of these e-mails," said Senator Mark Dayton (D-Minnesota).
In early March, Dayton introduced the "Computer Owners' Bill of Rights," which proposes creating a national antispam registry but does not include a charge for sending e-mail. But at the hearing, Dayton promoted an e-mail tax as well as a federal antispam SWAT team to combat growing amounts of unsolicited commercial e-mail in Internet users' in-boxes.
Dayton's ideas were several advanced at the hearing, where the consensus seemed that something should be done about spam before it cripples the Internet. But few senators and witnesses could agree on a solution.
"What was a simple annoyance last year has become a major concern this year and could cripple one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century next year if nothing is done," said Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat who proposed an international spam treaty.
A Spammer Comments
E-mail marketers trying to do the right thing by providing contact information and opt-out links are being driven underground by ISPs that kill their service, said Ronald Scelson, operator of Scelson Online Marketing.
More @ Yahoo.com (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/pcworld/20030522/tc_pcworld/110837)
Thu May 22, 4:00 AM ET
Grant Gross, IDG News Service
WASHINGTON-- Lawmakers, antispam activists, and even a self-professed spammer are mulling several methods for canning spam, from imposing a small charge for sending e-mail to an international spam treaty.
Congress should impose a small charge for each piece of e-mail sent, one senator told the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee at a hearing Wednesday.
"I think it's worth looking at some very, very small charge for every e-mail sent, so small that it would not be onerous for an individual or business that has regular (e-mail) use, but it would be a deterrent for those who are sending millions and even billions of these e-mails," said Senator Mark Dayton (D-Minnesota).
In early March, Dayton introduced the "Computer Owners' Bill of Rights," which proposes creating a national antispam registry but does not include a charge for sending e-mail. But at the hearing, Dayton promoted an e-mail tax as well as a federal antispam SWAT team to combat growing amounts of unsolicited commercial e-mail in Internet users' in-boxes.
Dayton's ideas were several advanced at the hearing, where the consensus seemed that something should be done about spam before it cripples the Internet. But few senators and witnesses could agree on a solution.
"What was a simple annoyance last year has become a major concern this year and could cripple one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century next year if nothing is done," said Senator Charles Schumer, a New York Democrat who proposed an international spam treaty.
A Spammer Comments
E-mail marketers trying to do the right thing by providing contact information and opt-out links are being driven underground by ISPs that kill their service, said Ronald Scelson, operator of Scelson Online Marketing.
More @ Yahoo.com (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/pcworld/20030522/tc_pcworld/110837)