INTERNET CONTROL ?

Anti-Spam Domain Could Be Suspended

October 10, 2006 9:50 p.m. EST


Josephine Roque - All Headline News Staff Writer
London, England (AHN) - A U.S. court has filed an order to possibly suspend the Web site of UK-based anti-spam organization Spamhaus.
The firm was charged to be in contempt of court by refusing to pay $11.7 million as compensation to an email marketing company and omitting the company's name from its blacklist.
District judge Charles P Kocoras proposed that Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) suspend the domain name spamhaus.org, "until such time as [the] defendant [Spamhaus] demonstrates to this Court why [it] should not be held in contempt for its failure to comply".
Spamhaus is a company that maintains a blacklist of spammers' IP addresses.
e360 Insight LLC, an opt-in mass-mailing firm, was awarded $11.7 million compensation after winning a court battle against Spamhaus when it was included in its blacklist.
Spamhaus says the Internet could be deluged with spam if its domain is suspended.
There has been legal speculation whether the district court can order ICANN, as it is an independent regulator.
"It's a tricky question," said IT law expert David Woods, associate at Pinsent Masons solicitors. "In theory ICANN is an independent body to regulate the use of domain names - but it's subject to US law. If it is ordered to, it is likely to take the safer option [and comply]."