E-mail marketing at the crossroads

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to provide a conceptual overview of the process of unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE), propose a typology of UCE, and delineate key stakeholders of UCE, their roles and potential responses through a stakeholder analysis.Design methodology approach - Based on the extant literature, this paper provides a conceptualization of the UCE process, delineating specific types of UCE. It uses stakeholder analysis to identify key members in the UCE process and the potential roles to be played by them in combating UCE.Findings - This paper proposes a four-way typology of the UCE process, identifies key stakeholders, and also mechanisms for tackling UCE.Research limitations applications - Given the limited empirical research on this topic, this paper is exploratory in nature, integrating concepts from marketing and e-commerce research streams. It will provide a solid conceptual foundation for future empirical research on UCE.Practical implications - This paper will be a useful resource for customers, Internet merchants, policy makers, direct marketing associations, agencies and consumer awareness groups that are working on Internet security, privacy and anti-spam issues.Originality value - This paper addresses an important and timely issue, filling an important gap in current research on e-mail marketing. It provides conceptual foundations on UCE, and deploys stakeholder analysis to suggest useful guidelines for practice.