[12336] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
re: suit
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Brock N. Meeks)
Mon May 16 10:22:01 1994
Date: Mon, 16 May 1994 03:57:10 -0000
From: "Brock N. Meeks" <brock@well.sf.ca.us>
To: brock@well.sf.ca.us, bstring@heidelberg-emh17.army.mil
Resent-From: bstring@heidelberg-emh17.army.mil
Resent-To: com-priv@psi.com
Here's the summary:
The recent Internet posting launching a fund raising drive in order
to help Brock Meeks, defray the legal expenses of a lawsuit brought
against his newswire, CyberWire Dispatch, has drawn several
inquiries for a summary of the issues involved in this case.
Although the case was featured in the April 22 (Fri.) issue of the
Wall St. Journal (page B1), we recognize that members of the
Internet don't always have the time or resources to look up back
issues a newspaper. Out of deference to those asking for more
information, the following summary of the case is provided.
Sometime during February of this year, an electronic solicitation
began appearing on the Internet from a company identified only as
the "Electronic Postal Service" (EPS).
The solicitation from EPS said the service, "will pay you money to
receive commercial e-mail. EPS estimates you will be paid an
average of 6.5 cents per commercial e-mail message. It is
estimated that the average commercial e-mail receiver can make
$200.00 to $500.00 a year and likely more. There is absolutely no
charge, periodic charge, hourly charge or phone charge to receive
or review EPS commercial e-mail. The sender bears all of the cost.
You are provided with a free EPS mailbox and you may access this
EPS mailbox through a toll free phone number so there are no phone
line charges... In addition... EPS offers you... full Internet
access including network Internet e-mail remote log-in, file
transfer capability and much more."
To sign up you were required to call an 800 number or send for
information to the EPS Internet account (eps@world.std.com). You
had to include your name and address.
Brock called and asked for the EPS information. It never came.
Instead, he received an unwanted and unsolicited direct mailing
from a company called Suarez Corporation Industries (SCI). The
mailing came in the form of a 6 page letter signed by Benjamin
Suarez. That mailing claimed that for a price of $159, Suarez
would send you a book and software that could help you create a
"net profit generation system" capable of earning anywhere from
$30,000 to $1 million per year.
Brock began investigating why he received the SCI mailing and soon
found out that Suarez had obtained his name from the request for
EPS information. More investigation found that the EPS account was
registered to Suarez Corporation Industries. Brock then looked
into the background of this company.
During his investigation into SCI, Brock discovered that state and
federal enforcement agencies had brought actions against SCI result
of their direct mailing practices.
In his article, Brock expressed his personal disapproval of the SCI
business activities.
SCI objected to the article and has filed a defamation lawsuit
claiming Brock made defamatory remarks and sought to disparage his
products "and otherwise tortiously (sic) interfere with the
plaintiff's ability to develop" EPS. Suarez claims the Dispatch
article lost him business and he is seeking compensatory and
punitive damages and demanding an injunction to block Brock from
writing further about SCI or its founder, Benjamin Suarez.
Brock denies that he libeled Benjamin Suarez or his company.
The April 22 (page B1) issue of the Wall St. Journal says lawsuit
"is one of the first U.S. libel cases to arise out of the free-for-
all on the Internet... If it succeeds, some legal experts say it
could spawn other complaints."
.
