<p>The rapid development of Internet technologies has led to the emergence of new communication means. E-mail has become a new powerful tool used by millions with the main purpose of exchanging information. Considering its large scope, marketers have been using the e-mail as an important direct marketing force and it has become a popular choice for many companies. The e-mail has therefore constituted a new form of on-line marketing coined “E-mail marketing”. However, the increasing use of the e-mail marketing has been adversely affected by the appearance of non-traditional marketing communication media such as unsolicited commercial e-mails (UCEs). The main reasons behind the alarming growth of the UCEs are those explained by the low-cost structure of the e-mail and, thus, a small number of responses are required for generating a profit (Moustakas <em>et al.</em>, 2006; p.45; Shenoy, 2008; p.32). This unsolicited medium used for reaching consumers has evolved from mere nuisance to actual threat (Mendleson, 2010; p.38), which has brought a new complexity into consumers’ daily lives. This in its turn calls for examination of consumer’s perception about the unsolicited commercial e-mails.</p><p> </p><p>Hence, the aim of this thesis is to examine consumer’s perceptions about the mentioned unsolicited marketing communication medium. This will provide increased awareness of the profound implications that the UCEs have on e-commerce and the e-mail marketing on the whole and, particularly, on Internet user groups such as companies, e-mail service providers and policy makers. The study was conducted with a positivistic position and followed a deductive approach, taking known theories as point of departure. The theories presented are mainly concerned with: privacy, ethical and legislation issues; consumer’s reactions and motives behind the opening of the e-mail; the impact of the UCEs on the brand image and overall implications of the UCEs.</p><p> </p><p>A self-completion questionnaire was used as method of data collection. The results indicate that the UCEs are perceived as slightly unethical and neither intrusive nor nonintrusive by the respondents. There is also no clear perceived protection by the anti-spam law, which claims the need for improvement of the policy makers’ work. The results also reveal that the most common consumer’s reaction is to disregard and delete the UCEs, although a small but considerable percentage of the consumers respond. The findings show that the different contents of the UCEs are perceived with low levels of interest by the respondents. Also, the motives behind the opening of the UCEs by the respondents are distributed nearly equal: the credibility of the sender, simply the curiosity and the attractiveness of the subject line. This study reveals a fairly negative perceived image of the companies advertised by the UCEs, which proves the associated cost of sending the UCEs. Furthermore, it has been found that the respondents are concerned about sharing their e-mail addresses with e-companies because of the UCEs and that the latter hinder the accessibility to solicited commercial e-mails in the e-mail inboxes. The e-mail service providers have been also affected since a quarter of the respondents have changed them as a consequence of receiving the UCEs. Thus, the results of this thesis show the adverse implications of the UCEs on electronic commerce, e-mail marketing and on Internet user groups.</p>

The rapid development of Internet technologies has led to the emergence of new communication means. E-mail has become a new powerful tool used by millions with the main purpose of exchanging information. Considering its large scope, marketers have been using the e-mail as an important direct marketing force and it has become a popular choice for many companies. The e-mail has therefore constituted a new form of on-line marketing coined “E-mail marketing”. However, the increasing use of the e-mail marketing has been adversely affected by the appearance of non-traditional marketing communication media such as unsolicited commercial e-mails (UCEs). The main reasons behind the alarming growth of the UCEs are those explained by the low-cost structure of the e-mail and, thus, a small number of responses are required for generating a profit (Moustakas et al., 2006; p.45; Shenoy, 2008; p.32). This unsolicited medium used for reaching consumers has evolved from mere nuisance to actual threat (Mendleson, 2010; p.38), which has brought a new complexity into consumers’ daily lives. This in its turn calls for examination of consumer’s perception about the unsolicited commercial e-mails.   Hence, the aim of this thesis is to examine consumer’s perceptions about the mentioned unsolicited marketing communication medium. This will provide increased awareness of the profound implications that the UCEs have on e-commerce and the e-mail marketing on the whole and, particularly, on Internet user groups such as companies, e-mail service providers and policy makers. The study was conducted with a positivistic position and followed a deductive approach, taking known theories as point of departure. The theories presented are mainly concerned with: privacy, ethical and legislation issues; consumer’s reactions and motives behind the opening of the e-mail; the impact of the UCEs on the brand image and overall implications of the UCEs.   A self-completion questionnaire was used as method of data collection. The results indicate that the UCEs are perceived as slightly unethical and neither intrusive nor nonintrusive by the respondents. There is also no clear perceived protection by the anti-spam law, which claims the need for improvement of the policy makers’ work. The results also reveal that the most common consumer’s reaction is to disregard and delete the UCEs, although a small but considerable percentage of the consumers respond. The findings show that the different contents of the UCEs are perceived with low levels of interest by the respondents. Also, the motives behind the opening of the UCEs by the respondents are distributed nearly equal: the credibility of the sender, simply the curiosity and the attractiveness of the subject line. This study reveals a fairly negative perceived image of the companies advertised by the UCEs, which proves the associated cost of sending the UCEs. Furthermore, it has been found that the respondents are concerned about sharing their e-mail addresses with e-companies because of the UCEs and that the latter hinder the accessibility to solicited commercial e-mails in the e-mail inboxes. The e-mail service providers have been also affected since a quarter of the respondents have changed them as a consequence of receiving the UCEs. Thus, the results of this thesis show the adverse implications of the UCEs on electronic commerce, e-mail marketing and on Internet user groups.

In the context of the Internet, spam generally refers to unsolicited and unwanted electronic messages, usually transmitted to a large number of recipients. The problem with spam is that almost all of the related costs are shifted onto the recipients, and many of the messages contain objectionable content. Spam has become a significant problem for network administrators, businesses and individual Internet users that threatens to undermine the usefulness of e-mail. Globally, spam spiralled to account for over 60% of all e-mail near the end of 2004. It is a problem that costs the global economy billions of dollars a year in lost productivity, anti-spam measures and computer resources. It has forced governments to enact legislation against the problem and it has prompted the development of numerous technical countermeasures. Spam can only be defeated by a combination of legal measures, informal measures (including self regulation and social norms), technical measures and consumer education. Because spam is a relatively recent and evolving problem, the application of various common law mechanisms are explored, including the law of privacy and the law of nuisance. Various constitutional concerns may also arise in the context of spam, and the right to freedom of expression must be balanced against other competing rights and values, including the right to privacy. Comparative legislation is examined, because it is important to recognise trends in spam legislation in other jurisdictions so as to ensure a measure of interoperability with those laws. The practical difficulties in identifying spammers, and the lack of jurisdiction over offshore offenders affect the practical implementation of the current protection offered by the ECT Act. In conclusion, this thesis identifies the need for direct anti-spam legislation in South Africa, and suggests various clauses that will need to be catered for in the legislation. It is submitted that "opt-in" legislation should be preferred over "opt-out" legislation. It is further submitted that a definition of spam should be based on the volume and indiscriminate nature of the e-mail, and not only on whether the communication was commercial. Therefore, a definition of bulk unsolicited e-mail is proposed. / Criminal & Procedural Law / LLD

In the context of the Internet, spam generally refers to unsolicited and unwanted electronic messages, usually transmitted to a large number of recipients. The problem with spam is that almost all of the related costs are shifted onto the recipients, and many of the messages contain objectionable content. Spam has become a significant problem for network administrators, businesses and individual Internet users that threatens to undermine the usefulness of e-mail. Globally, spam spiralled to account for over 60% of all e-mail near the end of 2004. It is a problem that costs the global economy billions of dollars a year in lost productivity, anti-spam measures and computer resources. It has forced governments to enact legislation against the problem and it has prompted the development of numerous technical countermeasures. Spam can only be defeated by a combination of legal measures, informal measures (including self regulation and social norms), technical measures and consumer education. Because spam is a relatively recent and evolving problem, the application of various common law mechanisms are explored, including the law of privacy and the law of nuisance. Various constitutional concerns may also arise in the context of spam, and the right to freedom of expression must be balanced against other competing rights and values, including the right to privacy. Comparative legislation is examined, because it is important to recognise trends in spam legislation in other jurisdictions so as to ensure a measure of interoperability with those laws. The practical difficulties in identifying spammers, and the lack of jurisdiction over offshore offenders affect the practical implementation of the current protection offered by the ECT Act. In conclusion, this thesis identifies the need for direct anti-spam legislation in South Africa, and suggests various clauses that will need to be catered for in the legislation. It is submitted that "opt-in" legislation should be preferred over "opt-out" legislation. It is further submitted that a definition of spam should be based on the volume and indiscriminate nature of the e-mail, and not only on whether the communication was commercial. Therefore, a definition of bulk unsolicited e-mail is proposed. / Criminal and Procedural Law / LLD