Rogers Media Inc. agrees to pay $200,000 for allegedly violating Canada's anti-spam law

OTTAWA-GATINEAU, QC, Nov. 20, 2015 /CNW/ - The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) today announced that Rogers Media Inc. has paid $200,000 as part of an undertaking to resolve alleged violations of Canada's anti-spam legislation (CASL).

An investigation launched by the CRTC's Chief Compliance and Enforcement Officer alleged that Rogers Media failed  to comply with various requirements of the law between July 2014 and July 2015. During this period, the company allegedly sent commercial emails containing an unsubscribe mechanism that did not function properly or which could not be readily performed by the recipient.

In addition, in some instances, the electronic address used to unsubscribe was allegedly not valid for the required minimum of 60 days following the sent message. Rogers Media also allegedly failed to honour, within 10 business days, requests from some recipients to unsubscribe from receiving future commercial emails.

As part of the undertaking, Rogers Media will improve its existing compliance program to ensure that its activities are fully compliant with CASL. Since CASL came into force on July 1, 2014, enforcement efforts have resulted in payments of close to $400,000 further to undertakings and issued monetary penalties totalling $1.1 million. These amounts are payable to the Receiver General of Canada.

About the CRTC's enforcement activities

The CRTC assesses complaints submitted to the Spam Reporting Centre that are under its mandate and a number of investigations are currently underway. Canadians are encouraged to report spam to the Spam Reporting Centre. To ensure the CRTC has enough information to conduct an investigation, the report should include the full commercial electronic message (CEM) (including the message's header) and a description of why the CEM is considered to be spam. Information sent to the Centre is used by the CRTC, the Competition Bureau, and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner to enforce Canada's anti-spam legislation.

Quick Facts

• Rogers Media has voluntarily entered into an undertaking with the CRTC's Chief Compliance and Enforcement Officer to resolve alleged non-compliance with Canada's anti-spam legislation.
• As part of the undertaking, Rogers Media has made a $200,000 payment, and agreed to comply with Canada' anti-spam legislation and improve its existing compliance program.
• Rogers Media cooperated fully with the CRTC during its investigation.
• During the CRTC's investigation, Rogers Media took steps to better comply with the legislation.
• To help businesses comply with the law, the CRTC has provided numerous information sessions across the country and made guidance materials available on its website.
• Canada's anti-spam legislation protects Canadians while ensuring that businesses can continue to compete in the global marketplace.
• Canada's anti-spam legislation was adopted by Parliament in December 2010 and came into force on July 1, 2014.

Quote

"Companies must respect the choices of Canadians who do not wish to receive commercial emails, and must make it easy for them to unsubscribe from their mailing lists. We are satisfied that Rogers Media Inc. made the necessary changes to comply with Canada's anti-spam law. Today's announcement is a direct result of the information provided by Canadians and we continue to encourage them to report suspected violations to the Spam Reporting Centre."

Manon Bombardier, CRTC Chief Compliance and Enforcement Officer

Associated Links

Undertaking 2015 – Compliance and Enforcement of CASL

• Spam Reporting Centre 
• How do I know if Canada's Anti-spam legislation applies to my business or organization? 
• Information session on Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation 
• Guidelines to help businesses develop corporate compliance programs: Information Bulletin CRTC 2014-326 
• Guidelines on the use of toggling as a means of obtaining express consent under Canada's anti-spam legislation: Information Bulletin CRTC 2012-549
• Guidelines on the interpretation of the Electronic Commerce Protection Regulations: Information Bulletin CRTC 2012-548

Stay Connected
Follow us on Twitter @CRTCeng
Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/crtceng

Ask a question or make a complaint

SOURCE Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission

Media Relations, [phone]; General Inquiries, [phone], Toll-free 1 (877) 249-CRTC (2782), TTY [phone]