Spamless e-mail will cost some coins

Date: February 13, 2006
Source: seattletimes.nwsource.com


This is the season for new spam-fighting and security systems to emerge, perhaps the result of mass New Year's resolutions by techno-merchants that have decided to apply some original angles. The latest: America Online and Yahoo! just established a way for certain "legitimate" businesses to pay them a penny for messages that bypass the spam filters that may cause the message to stray or be lost or stolen.

According to GoodMail, which developed the system, the service identifies e-mail from accredited senders and assures delivery to the inboxes of AOL and Yahoo! customers, where the e-mails will be labeled with a symbol indicating their safety. The idea is to create a "safe class" of e-mail that users feel comfortable in opening. No spam, no viruses. No problem.

I support everything that prevents spam. I've also seen "The Godfather" a few times, and developed a thick, cynical skin. So I can imagine this as a back-alley conversation: "You want your mail to get through? Then you will have to pay us a penny a message. If you don't pay up, your mail will sleep with the fishes."
Original article

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