MySpace Wins $234 Million Spam Judgment

Yesterday, AP news reported that MySpace “won a $234 million judgment in Los Angeles over junk messages sent to its member.” Just two weeks ago I wrote about Sanford Wallace, the defendant who failed to show up for court when the suit was first filed. He failed to show up again and now owes MySpace $234 million. That’s going to be hard for MySpace to collect though considering that nobody knows where Sanford Wallace or his accomplice Walter Rines is located.

I would bet that the dynamic duo is lounging on the beaches somewhere in the Caribbean, not concerned about a thing. Then again, considering that Sanford was the spam king back in the 90s, reportedly sending “as many as 30 million junk e-mails a day”, he’s probably trying to generate even more money. I wonder how much money MySpace invested in this suit.

However much money MySpace put on the table, it was too much because they’re never going to collect a penny. For large corporations though, such lawsuits are frequently symbolic. Additionally, if Wallace ever tries to make it through U.S. Customs, he will be arrested on the spot. Even more likely? Wallace probably has numerous fake passports and really isn’t concerned about suits as he has prevailed time and time again.

Why doesn’t MySpace invest more resources in making their system more efficient at filtering spam rather than fighting lawsuits? Facebook has done a good job at it so far, MySpace should be able to as well.

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