[4ndr3w]

Well, the mods started this board at my request, so I kind of feel responsible for making sure it succeeds.

E-mail can be tough. E-mail advertising is a regulated industry. In 2003, the CAN SPAM Act became the law of the land, and it's important to know what minimum requirements the law enunciates, and what is expected of you as a sender beyond those requirements.

It's just not enough to comply with CAN SPAM. Even though the legislation makes certain kinds of spam legal, legal spam is still spam. If you have permission from your recipients, CAN SPAM never becomes an issue.

And this is the crux of the issue: permission. There must be prior, informed express consent from the intended recipient, no matter what else the law permits. Anything less is, in fact, spam - even if it is perfectly legal. Let's break it down:

1. Prior: You must have permission before you send. Please note that spamming for permission is still spam.

2. Informed: Your recipients must be told up front precisely what it is they are signing up for. You must not send them anything more or different from this.

3. Express consent: Granting permission is an affirmative act. You cannot assume you have permission, or equate silence with permission. You cannot transfer permission to another type of e-mail (see "Informed", above).

4. From the recipient: Permission is non-transferable. My friend cannot give you permission to send to me, nor can I to my friend. Only I can give you permission to send me mail.

Note that the law requires a working unsubscribe link, but having one does not magically turn spam into not-spam.

Remember, it's not about content, it's about consent. If you're sending without consent, you're a spammer, even if you are otherwise in compliance with applicable law.