On May 12, 2008, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC” or “Commission”) announced its approval of new rule provisions under the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (“CAN SPAM Act” or “Act”). The long-awaited announcement came three years to the date of the Commission’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. The provisions will take effect on July 7, 2008. In addition to the new rule provisions, the Commission, in its Statement of Basis and Purpose (“SBP”) accompanying the final rule, described its opinion of the Act’s application to how the Act applies to refer-a-friend emails and employer-to-employee emails.

Kelley Drye’s Advertising Law Practice Group has prepared a Client Advisory which introduces the newly approved rule provisions and the Commission’s SBP, and offers a detailed explanation of each provision that provides helpful clarification about how these recently sanctioned conditions will affect email marketing.

FTC Approves New Rules for Email Marketing: Important Developments for Multiple Sender and Refer-a-Friend Emails