Here’s a different take on the spam wars: the granny spammer. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution tells the story of Flo Fox, a graying grandmother in a “What Would Jesus Do?” T-shirt who uses a couple of shopworn computers to out millions of junk e-mails for merchandise ranging from land in Belize to blessed coins. What I … Read more
Alan Reiter, the camera phone guy, has some interesting stuff to say about how phone companies are shooting themselves in the foot with dumb commercials that only reinforcing perceptions that camera+phone=public menace. He points to a TV commercial of a girl snapping a guy eating pasta like a slob, and then sending it to the … Read more
There’s another campaign on the road: This time it’s telling you not to buy anything advertised on spam. I don’t know anyone who would do this kind of thing, but there you are. According to Mike Adams (“President & CEO, Arial Software, LLC, Permission Email Pioneer and founder of the “Spam. Don’t Buy It.” public … Read more
As I’ve suspected, there’s more money made in protecting us from spam than from spam itself. According to a report by Ferris Research quoted by TechWeb news, revenue for vendors selling anti-spam products will be approximately $130 million in 2003 and soar 200% in 2004 to a whopping $360 million. Revenue generated by spammers … Read more
The old ‘uns are getting online. Nielsen//NetRatings reports (PDF file) that senior citizens age 65 and older were the fastest growing age group online, surging 25 percent year over year in October 2003. Nielsen//NetRatings also found that in addition to outpacing senior males in audience growth, the rise in usage by female seniors was … Read more