As part of it's ongoing efforts to eliminate unsolicited Email, Microsoft
announced a settlement of a suit against alleged "spam-king"
Scott Richter and his email-marketing firm, OptInReallyBig LLC.
As part of the settlement, Mr. Richter agreed to pay Microsoft
$7million and has pledged to reform his business practices to prevent
unsolicited email from reaching those who say they don't want it.
"The goal remains for us to separate spammers from their money,"
Microsoft general counsel Brad Smith told Reuters, "This is
simply not going to be a profitable activity for people who engage
in it."
Statements like that may sound more than welcome to the millions
of Internet users who's boxes are over-filled with spam emails however
Microsoft itself has been responsible for a fair share of spam over
the years and folks like Mr. Richter represent the tip of a much
larger iceberg.
Microsoft currently brought over 135 cases against spammers before
the courts in the past two years. It says it plans to reinvest monies
claimed from spammers in enforcement and monitoring programs.
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