Legal Issues

Legal Issues

by Mike Masnick




Bill To Force Making Promotional CDs Returnable Gets Returned

from the so-much-for-that-plan dept

A bill in the state of California to force companies sending out promotional CD or DVDs to include postage-paid return envelopes has been returned itself after a committee voted to dismiss the proposal. No reason is given in the article, though AOL was happy that they wouldn't have been "taxed" for filling up landfills with useless CDs.

3 Comments | Leave a Comment..

 
 

Reader Comments

(Flattened / Threaded)

    Apr 28th, 2004 @ 10:38pm
  • New idea

    by Anonymous Coward

    This give me an idea for a new method of waste disposal: Just mail it to someone else. Maybe include a note that says "Tag, you're it!"

    (reply to this comment) (link to this comment)

  • Apr 29th, 2004 @ 5:28am
  • Rewritable not returnable

    by John Lyons

    Instead of trying to force AOL to make the CDs returnable, the bill should have focused on making them rewritable. At least them we could get some use out of the damned things.

    (reply to this comment) (link to this comment)

    • Apr 29th, 2004 @ 7:27am
    • Lets get creative !

      by AMetamorphosis


      As John points out:
      I too miss the old days of Aol 2.5 when the data came on a floppy. My Dad and I always blanked them and never bought new floppy disks as we had a steady supply compliments of Aohell. If the disks they were sending out today were CD-RW's @ LEAST we could blank them and use them again. Aol would also benefit from millions of adverts on the front of peoples critical data back up disks.

      As to junk mail:
      For years I have been taking junk mail ( including Aohell CD's ) and stuffing it back in ANY postage paid envelope that has been sent to me. I don't care what the junk is and I don't care what company receives it.
      I also took the back sheets of some 8.5 x 11 paper and recycled them through the printer. On each sheet I printed approximately 25 messages per page that state: " I am required to pay to dispose of trash in my township based on the amount of volume I create. Since you have chosen to send me unsolicited advertisements with a postage paid envelope I am giving you the opportunity to pay to dispose of your own waste within your community. " Get creative ... send credit card offers ( with critical data blanked out ) to charities. Send requests to refinance your home to magazine subscription services. Mail Sprint an offer from ATT or Verizon. Stuff left over salt & ketchup packs into the envelope. Hell, tape them to a nice red brick and place them in an outgoing mail drop. Let the advertisers pay for their pollution !

      Not only does it get me removed from the mailing lists, but it cuts down on waste in landfills, keeps the postal people busy & keeps my home clutter free.

      On a side note, I've considered signing up for every piece of junk mail I can get on and use the raw materials sent to me as fuel for an incinerator heated home ... I figure that I could cut my heating bill by about 40% ...

      (reply to this comment) (link to this comment)

Add Your Comment

Have a Techdirt Account? Sign in now.
Get Techdirt’s Daily Email
Plain Text HTML
Save me a cookie
  • Plain Text: A CRLF will be replaced by break <br> tag, all other allowable HTML is intact
  • HTML: No formatting of any kind is done without explicitly being written in
  • Allowed HTML Tags: <b> <i> <p> <a> <em> <br> <strong> <blockquote> <hr> <tt>
Close
Have a Techdirt Account? Sign in now.
Get Techdirt’s Daily Email
Plain Text HTML Save me a cookie

Search Techdirt
And now, a word from our Sponsors..



Subscribe to Techdirt's Daily Email Newsletter

Techdirt's Daily Email Newsletter

Related Stories
Close
E-mail It