EU and USA to introduce laws to curb spamming (unsolicited e-mail)

Nancy Victory, who heads the USA National Telecommunications and Information Administration, said that the administration would probably favor a light touch, encouraging the high-tech industry to develop voluntary guidelines, rather than imposing regulations or pushing for new laws.

While the EU Parliament is still considering a draft bill, some European countries, including Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy and Germany have already introduced the opt-in system and say it is the best way to protect citizens from unwanted e-advertising and chain mails, some containing offensive and sexually explicit messages.