Legal Question in Technology Law in Texas
What is the legal definition of SPAM and what are the laws governing SPAM.
My wife has a new small business doing custom birth announcements and contacted a number of pregnant women/couples who posted their e-mail address on an internet site. In her e-mails to them she sent congratulations and a mention of her business. She had numerous positive responses a negative one who accused her of Spamming. She's been told she was turned me into the site's legal department and though she has requested to correspond with that department she has received no reply. Has she spammed and, if so, is it illegal and, if so, what are the specific laws governing this subject?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: What is the legal definition of SPAM and what are the laws governing SPAM.
SPAM is essentially just unsolicited, advertisement-related email. It is NOT illegal. It IS, however, against the regulations of many internet service providers. For example, if a member of AOL spams continuously, AOL may ask that person to stop spamming. If he/she doesn't stop spamming, AOL can disconnect the person. The best thing to do if your wife wishes to send unsolicited advertisement-related email regarding her business, is to not send bulk emails. It may be tedious, but the safest method is to send an email to each individual email address she wishes to target. This way, the internet service provider will not detect mass emails which always look suspect.
Re: What is the legal definition of SPAM and what are the laws governing SPAM.
The definition and laws regulating spam vary by state.
While Texas does not have a statute regulating spam, a Texas citizen may be subject to the laws of states where messages are sent.
For information about the California law regulating spam, see http://www.netatty.com/spam.html.
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