Begin forwarded message:
From: Esther Dyson <edyson@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: March 20, 2006 11:03:37 AM EST
To: dave@xxxxxxxxxx
Cc: Christina Koukkos <christina@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: anti-Goodmail coalition resorts to misquotes
For the record, I said that *sending* most mail will cost money,
and that much of that money will end up being paid to the
recipients. Read below and then follow the link to the NYT to see
what I *really* said.
I find it ironic that many of the very people who want to teach
evolution in the schools (a position I agree with it), want to stop
it on the Internet.
Esther Dyson
From: "Trevor FitzGibbon" <tfitzgibbon@xxxxxxxxxx>
To: <edyson@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Dyson Blows AOL's Cover on E-Tax
Sender: "Trevor FitzGibbon" <tfitzgibbon@xxxxxxxxxx>
DearAOL.com Coalition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Trevor Fitzgibbon, 202-246-5303
Monday, March 20, 2006 Alex Howe, Fenton Communications, 202.822.5200
In New York Times, AOL email tax supporter says
it’s “only right” that in future “most e-mail will cost money”
AOL’s claim that consumers will ultimately pay “Nothing. Zero.
Nada.”
is debunked by prominent fan of AOL plan
DearAOL.com Coalition’s “two-tiered Internet” warning is
vindicated by Esther Dyson
On Friday’s New York Times op-ed page, AOL email tax supporter
Esther Dyson revealed the truth: AOL’s proposed email tax will
lead to a world where sending email is no longer free -- and she
likes it that way.
“Today, AOL’s own supporter let the cat out of the bag,” said
Timothy Karr, campaign director of Free Press, a national,
nonpartisan organization working on media reform and Internet
policy issues. “AOL’s email tax undermines the foundation of a
free and open Internet – ushering in a new era of pay-to-send
communications online. Many who are rooting for AOL’s pay-to-send
proposal to succeed are those who believe in a two-tiered Internet
of haves and have-nots, with huge barriers of entry for the little
guy.”
Dyson is an industry insider, an investor in technology start-ups,
and a former board member of the Electronic Frontier Foundation (a
DearAOL.com coalition member). Her New York Times column Friday
was called “You’ve Got Goodmail.” Goodmail is the vendor that
would implement AOL’s pay-to-send proposal, and would share
hundreds of millions in profits with AOL from the email tax.
Dyson wrote:
“Goodmail has been met with a barrage of criticism and calls for a
de facto boycott from several nonprofit and public interest
groups. These organizations seem to think that all Internet mail
must always be free, just because it was free before. …Of course,
the critics say, this is the first step. Pretty soon all mail will
cost money, and then the free, open world of the Internet will be
closed to poor people, nonprofits and other good guys, while
multinational conglomerates fill their ever-growing pockets. I
agree that pretty soon sending most e-mail will cost money, but I
think that's only right.” (<http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/17/
opinion/17dyson.html>http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/17/opinion/
17dyson.html )
Dyson’s acknowledgement undermines AOL’s PR scheme for its pay-to-
send proposal, which centers on convincing the public that their
email tax is “voluntary” and “nothing will change” for everyday
emailers.
AOL recently emailed customers who were concerned about their
email tax proposal, saying Goodmail is “a purely voluntary” option
for “large commercial companies and other organizations” and “in
no way means that mailers need to pay to send messages.”
Additionally, AOL went so far as to say that after their email tax
is implemented, ultimately “Consumers pay nothing. Zero.
Nada.” (Source: <http://www.nysun.com/article/28345?
page_no=2>http://www.nysun.com/article/28345?page_no=2)
The Silicon Valley-based San Jose Mercury News initially dealt a
blow to this claim with a March 5 editorial saying “separate,
unequal systems” would develop from AOL’s email tax. It explained,
“The temptation would be to neglect the free e-mail system, whose
reliability would decline. Eventually, everyone would migrate to
the fee-based system. There would be no way around the AOL
tollbooth.” (<http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/
opinion/14023726.htm>http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/
news/opinion/14023726.htm )
On Friday, AOL’s assurances were again called into question – this
time by AOL’s own supporter, Dyson, who said that AOL’s pay-to-
send scheme is a significant step toward a world where “most e-
mail will cost money” – which she calls “only right.”
"Esther Dyson apparently believes that email being free is a
problem, but the DearAOL.com Coalition believes free email has
been a critical part of the digital revolution -- the ability to
take a good idea and spread it from 5 to 5 million people without
a big bankroll has expanded democratic
participation, increased economic innovation, and bolstered free
speech," said Cindy Cohn, Legal Director of the Electronic
Frontier Foundation.
The DearAOL.com Coalition represents over 15 million people
combined – and has grown from 50 member organizations to 600 in
less than three weeks. It’s “Open Letter To AOL” opposing AOL’s
email tax has been signed by over 35,000 everyday Internet users
online. Coalition members include Craigslist founder Craig
Newmark, the Association of Cancer Online Resources, MoveOn.org
Civic Action, Gun Owners of America, the Electronic Frontier
Foundation, Free Press, and others.
More information about the DearAOL.com Coalition and a list of all
coalition members are located at <http://www.dearaol.com/
>www.dearaol.com.
###
Esther Dyson Always make new mistakes!
Editor, Release 1.0
CNET Networks
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