Roy Mark

The U.S. House of Representatives approved an anti-spam bill early Saturday morning that mandates commercial e-mailers provide consumers with an opt-out mechanism. The bill, which pre-empts 37 existing state anti-spam bills, calls for a national Do-Not-Spam registry, and contains provisions to limit wireless unsolicited commercial e-mail. The new legislation would go into effect when signed […]

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has conducted its annual holiday surf of Internet retailers and sent letters to 37 e-tailers warning them about potential violations of consumer protection rules regarding warranties, shipping claims and rebates. This year’s surf involved 51 retail sites on the Web. The FTC review found that 14 of the 16 sites […]

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has filed a suit charging Mercury Marketing of Delaware and its principal owner, Neal D. Saferstein, with contempt of court for continuing to bill consumers for Internet-related services without consumers’ authorization. The FTC has asked the court for a hearing and for a temporary order to halt the illegal billing […]

Legislation to permanently extend the existing temporary moratorium on Internet access taxes hit the fast track in Congress Wednesday with the House Judiciary Committee sending a bill to the floor and the Senate Commerce Committee holding a hearing on the issue and predicting a vote on the measure by next week. The current moratorium on […]

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has charged the operators of an Internet “shopping mall” network with operating an illegal pyramid scam. In a complaint filed Monday in an Arizona U.S. District Court, the FTC alleges that Tucson, Arizona-based NexGen3000.com and its principals marketed Web-based malls that they claimed would enable investors to earn substantial income […]

A U.S. District Court judge has issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) to halt what the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asserts are deceptive claims by an operation that promised a one fee, turn-key get-rich-quick Internet home-business opportunity. At the request of the FTC, Judge David C. Godbey of the U.S. District Court for the Northern […]

A House Judiciary subcommittee approved a bill to permanently extend the existing moratorium on new and discriminatory Internet taxes. The measure now goes to the full Judiciary Committee for a vote. The current temporary moratorium on Internet taxes — including taxes on Internet access, multiple-state taxation of a single item bought online, and discriminatory taxes […]

E-commerce sales by wholesalers grew at a healthy 13 percent clip between 2000-2001 while their overall sales were relatively flat, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s newly published 2001 E-Stats Report, which tracks e-commerce sales by wholesalers and other areas of the economy. The new report showed wholesalers accounted for approximately 25 percent of all […]

U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Conrad Burns (R-Mont.) joined Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Calif.) Monday to underscore their efforts to support legislation to indefinitely extend the existing moratorium on new and discriminatory Internet taxes. The current moratorium on Internet taxes — including taxes on Internet access, multiple-state taxation of a single item bought online, and […]

Bills to extend the moratorium on Internet sales taxes were among some of the first to hit the legislative hopper this week as the 108th Congress opened for business. The ban on Internet sales taxes, often referred to as the e-tax, is set to expire in November. The original three-year e-tax moratorium, established by the […]

By Roy Mark The U.S. Census Bureau will for the first time offer businesses the option of completing their reporting requirements online effective Dec. 31. The Bureau’s economic census is taken every five years and businesses will be required to submit answers via mail or Internet by Feb. 12. Firms in more than 1,000 industries […]