No More Mobile Spam in Israel

The Israeli government has no patience for spammers who’ve chosen the cell phone as their next target.

Cellular-news reports that Israel’s Knesset has greenlit a bill that bans the sending of unsolicited text messages, commercial phone calls and e-mail to mobile phones. The ban, which goes into effect in six months, carries a fine up to $61,000 per infraction.

The ban includes so-called “opt-out” campaigns that spam first and ask permission later. Exemptions include opt-in campaigns where the recipient gives pre-approval for the messages, messages from charities and, unfortunately, those from politicians.

Join Baratunde Thurston (left), The Onion’s Director of Digital and author of How to Be Black, for an entertaining look at creative social media campaigns in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. Other speakers include Morin Oluwole (Facebook), Tim Devane (bitly), and SocialTimes' writer Devon Glenn.   Register now.