IP: Virtual Magistrate -- Its First Decision

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

                      THE VIRTUAL MAGISTRATE PROJECT
                      <http://vmag.law.vill.edu:8080>


                               PRESS RELEASE                             =20


                           Tuesday, May 21, 1996
                           For Immediate Release


               Virtual Magistrate Issues Its First Decision


              Recommends that AOL Remove a Subscriber Message
               Offering Millions of Email Addresses For Sale


      The Virtual Magistrate Project today released its first
decision.  The case involved a disputed message posted on America
Online (AOL) by Email America.  The decision recommended that the
message offering the sale of email addresses be removed by AOL
because it violated the AOL service agreement as well as Internet
customs.


      The Virtual Magistrate Project is an Internet-based
arbitration service that assists in the rapid, initial resolution
of computer network disputes.  The Project opened for business in
March 1996.  The basic decision offered by the Virtual Magistrate
is whether a network message, file, or posting and should be
taken down or left in view.


      The case name is "Tierney and Email America", VM Docket No.
96-0001 (08 May 1996).  The date of the decision is May 20, 1996.=20
The full text and related materials and correspondence are
available for public inspection through the Virtual Magistrate
Home Page at <http://vmag.law.vill.edu:8080>.


      The complainant in the case is James Tierney who is a member
of America Online and is affiliated with the Virtual Magistrate
Project as a advisor on consumer fraud issues.  Tierney is also a
former Attorney General for the State of Maine.  His complaint
was directed against Email America, which had posted a message on
AOL offering to sell lists of as many as twenty million email
addresses.  The complaint alleged that Email America's message
was an invasion of privacy, against sound public policy, and
deceptive.  Tierney characterized Email America's offering as
promoting spamming or junk e-mail.  These terms describe
indiscriminate, bulk, direct mail marketing via email.


      America Online voluntarily participated in the case.  The
AOL submission pointed out that its terms of service agreement
permits the removal of messages that are harmful or offensive or
otherwise in violation of AOL rules.  AOL also stated that it
does not encourage indiscriminate, unsolicited bulk mail on its
system.  AOL considers such mailings
inconsistent with Internet custom and practice, an impediment to
service, and potentially deleterious to its system.  Unsolicited
bulk mail has also been the subject of numerous complaints from
AOL subscribers.


      The Virtual Magistrate ruled that the determination of what
constitute harmful or offensive activity can take into account
the limitations of the AOL system, Internet custom and practice,
and customer complaints.  The Magistrate determined that removal
or blocking of the message in question would be permissible under
the AOL Terms of Service Agreement and that AOL should remove the
message from its system.


      The case was decided by N. M. Norton, Jr., a partner with
the law firm of Wright, Lindsey & Jennings in Little Rock,
Arkansas.  Mr. Norton was recently a member of the U.S. National
Information Infrastructure Advisory Council.  He is one of eight
individuals selected so far to serve as Virtual Magistrates.


      The Virtual Magistrate Project is an experimental service
developed by the Cyberspace Law Institute, and funded by the
National Center for Automated Information Research.  Operational
elements of the Project are provided by the American Arbitration
Association and the Villanova Center for Information Law and
Policy.  Documents explaining the rules, procedures, and purpose
of the Project are available on the Virtual Magistrate Home Page.


      Virtual Magistrate Executive Director Robert Gellman said
"The Virtual Magistrate Project is off to a good start with this
decision.  We expect the Project to demonstrate how computer
networks can police themselves.  The decision supports the right
of system operators to establish appropriate rules governing
their services.  We were disappointed that Email America did not
respond to repeated requests to participate in this case.  But
since there was an active complaint and a participating system
operator, we proceeded with the case." =20


      For additional information, contact:


      =FE James Tierney <jtierney () counsel com>, 207-353-1600


      =FE Virtual Magistrate N.M. Norton, Jr. <mnorton () wlj com>,
501-371-0808 =20


      =FE Pam McGraw, Director, Corporate Communications, America
Online, 703-9181948


      =FE Cyberspace Law Institute Co-Director David Johnson
<david.johnson () counsel com>, 202-496-9523


      =FE Virtual Magistrate Project Executive Director Robert
Gellman <rgellman () cais com>, 202-543-7923         =20


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