Advisories

Spam Not Canned, But Marketers Must Comply With New Federal Law, Beginning New Year’s Day

December 2003

Signed into law by President Bush on December 16, 2003, the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 ("CAN-SPAM") has been much hailed and hyped by its supporters as a means of damming the deluge of unsolicited commercial electronic mail, or "spam," which comprises the majority of e-mail traffic. Yet, instead of "canning" spam, the aptly named federal law confirms that marketers can spam, so long as they follow a few ground rules.