Centmail: Fighting Spam With E-Mail Postage Stamps

Who wants to pay for email? You just might. Many people have suggested that adding a nominal cost to e-mail would serve to fight spam by rendering it largely unprofitable. With Centmail, some Yahoo researchers propose adding a penny postage stamp to each e-mail, representing a penny donation to charity. Since most people already donate to charity, it is not believed that this idea will actually cost anything.

In an effort to make Centmail a reality, a formal protocol and API has already been developed. While I am somewhat worried that a large-scale adoption of the protocol will incentivize significant non-profit and charitable fraud, the economic burden due to spam should be greatly reduced. It’s a cool idea by good people and I urge you to check it out.

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  • acebailey

    I remember in about 1972 when my grandmother was visiting from England that we got a telemarketing call and she commented “Well at home you pay for every call so this sort of thing wouldn’t happen” Maybe she was onto something!

  • DennisP

    Seems to me a better way is to pay the recipient. If he finds your email worthless, at least you’ve paid him a bit for his time. On the other hand, if he replies to you, your net cost (and his) really is zero.

  • danielhorowitz

    Yes, if we look at attention as the commodity then paying the recipient model has merit.

  • Daniel Carrera

    Paying the recipient leaves no incentive for senders to join, therefore, it is unlikely to reach a critical mass. Furthermore, paying the recipient invites spammers to steal your money by making your computer send emails to them.

  • danielhorowitz

    Hi Daniel -

    Good points. There is no incentive for senders to join the pay-the-recipient model. (I needed to read the paper again)

    Thanks.

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