Comment Number: OL-102721
Received: 4/14/2004 10:41:27 AM
Organization: West-Gate Press
Commenter: Gerard LeBlond
State: NY
Agency: Federal Trade Commission
Rule: CAN-SPAM ANPR
Docket ID: [3084-AA96]
No Attachments

Comments:

Re: CAN-SPAM Act Rulemaking, Project No. R411008 To the Commissioners, I applaud your work to curb the problem of unsolicited bulk email. But, I'm concerned about the proposed requirement for merchants to maintain suppression lists. There are so many problems and costs associated with this idea, and so much damage done to consumers and businesses alike, that I urge you to please consider this matter in more debt to prevent unintentional negative consequences. Requirement that suppression lists be used will seriously damage many of the legitimate publications available on the net. My concern is the harm that will arise to publishers who require permission from the consumer prior to adding them to any list. The legitimate businesses are not the ones against whom CAN-SPAM was designed to put out of business, but this requirement will very likely have that effect. There's also the potential for significant harm to consumers, because of the problem of properly knowing their intent when they unsubscribe from a list. On top of that, these suppression lists could easily fall into the hands of spammers, leading to more spam instead of less. I was quite surprised at the potential problems this ruling could involve, and urge you in the strongest possible terms to reconsider its implementation in light of these problems, Respectfully, Gerard LeBlond Jamesville, NY U.S.A.