Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: Should Spamming be Allowed?

Spam can be defined generically as unwanted mail, in this case digitally, that is useless, bothersome, or offensive in some way to the majority of its receivers. It comes in the form of chain letters, monetary requests, and porno ads. Spam, however, may mean something to the person who created it, for it is their property. The first amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees its citizens the right to free speech. Most people don’t want spam, however, which is where this right produces conflict. Essentially, people want to be heard, but do not want to listen to others.

John Stuart Mill is probably the most well known proponent of utilitarianism ever in history. “Who can compute what the world loses in the multitude of promising intellects…who dare not follow out any bold, vigorous, independent train of thought…” (On Liberty and Utilitarianism, 39). What he is saying is that society is at a loss when free speech is restricted. Most people would agree that spam involves “independent train[s] of thought,” so what right anyone has to stifle such creativity is the real question to be answered. According to utilitarianism, though, the rest of society has this right, given that, collectively, their utility afterward will be much greater than that lost by the spammers. I feel that nobody truly benefits from spam, people only think they benefit from spam sometimes until they realize they are participating in a scam.

Microsoft CEO Bill Gates joins us tonight to lament on his own problems with spam: “Spam is worse than irritating. It is a drain on business productivity, an increasingly costly waste of time and resources that clogs corporate networks and distracts workers” (“Why I Hate Spam”). Gates also infers that “spam threatens to undo much of the good that e-mail has achieved.” Clearly, spam is a detriment to those people whose e-mail accounts fall victim to its cumbersome grasp. The number of people, it is safe to say, that benefit from spam is relatively low. Usually, individuals only benefit from spam for a time until they realize the illegitimacy of what they’re dealing with. Thus, humans should not engage in sending spam e-mail messages because it benefits society much more when they are not sent, than when they are.

Other posts on Utilitarianism and online activites:
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: Should Spamming be Allowed?
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: Introduction
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: The Ethical Implications of File Sharing
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: The Openness of Windows Source Code
Utilitarianism Applied to E-Property: Reporting Assault and Theft of E-Property in Government Databases

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