Direct Marketing Restrictions in the E.U.

New rules regarding privacy and the use of information for marketing purposes are creating difficulties for marketers in the E.U. as well as the U.S. (See article Direct Marketing Restrictions in the U.S., for a detailed description of recent developments in U.S. marketing law). This article provides an overview of recent changes in this area in the E.U., focusing on the position in the U.K.

The European legislation which addresses direct marketing is confusing, as there is no single Directive which sets out the whole position. Rather, there is a layering of various Directives, each of which is then implemented in different ways by the Member States.

Whilst the terms "opt-in" and "opt-out" are not used by the legislation, a big part of the debate around direct marketing has been around whether marketers should be required to obtain the consent of individuals before marketing directly to them (opt-in), or whether they should only be required to give the individuals the right to