In 2003, Australia passed a law that is very similar to the Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation. It is based on prior consent and provides for unsubscribe mechanisms, mandatory identification and fairly harsh penalties. That legislation has been in force in Australia for nearly 15 years, and we have never heard it said that the country's economy was crumbling. On the contrary, that country has excellent results, as we have had since the Canadian legislation was implemented.
In Europe, the legislation was passed last year and will come into force next May. Up until now, every European country has had its own legislation on this issue. As of next May, the electronic communications of 300 million consumers from 27 European Union countries—there will be 26 countries once Brexit comes into force—will be governed by a piece of legislation similar to the Canadian one. That legislation will contain the same rules, including with regard to express consent. It will even impose additional requirements on people, and fines will be as high as 20 million euros, which is much higher then the penalties under the Canadian legislation.
Just like the Australian and Canadian pieces of legislation, the European statute is extraterritorial. Canadian businesses that will send messages to Europe—if they comply with the Canadian legislation in its current form—will be very well prepared compared with companies from the U.S. or other parts of the world.