Canadian Regulators Get Tough on Spam

In a drive to block spam, Canada has erected higher hurdles for e-mail and text-message marketing. The Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission has now released regulations on how marketers can comply with Canada’s new anti-spam act. Unlike the U.S. CAN-SPAM act, which allows electronic marketers to send unsolicited messages to consumers provided they include a way for recipients to opt-out, the Canadian regulations require a marketer to have received express written or verbal consent from a recipient before sending an e-mail or text message. The regulations also require commercial messages to include the name of the sender, a mailing address, either the e-mail/web address of the sender or a phone number that connects to an agent or voice mail system, and a “consumer-friendly” unsubscribe option. If you ignore the regulations, you risk a maximum monetary penalty per violation of $1 million for an individual and $10 million for business entities, like e-tailers. If U.S. anti-spam efforts emulate their northern neighbor's, it will definitely be a game-changer for electronic marketing. For more detail, see http://www.internetretailer.com/2012/03/30/canada-gets-serious-about-combating-spam