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Monday, February 28, 2005
Spam Could Cost Businesses Worldwide $50 Billion
Spam will cost the world $50 billion in lost productivity and other expenses this year, according to a new report issued by Ferris Research.
More than a third of that, or $17 billion, will be wasted by U.S. companies. “We haven’t seen as much of a spike in costs as in spam volume because more organizations are putting in better anti-spam technology,” Richi Jenningssays.
Since 2003, spam volume hitting U.S. companies has jumped fivefold, but costs haven’t even doubled, Jennings says. Still, revenue for anti-spam software and hosted services will reach $1.7 billion by 2008, research firm IDC predicted last week.
In the United States, spam’s annual per-mailbox cost to businesses is $170. In Germany, it jumps to $241 based on Germany’s higher labor costs, fewer workdays, and high health-care and pension costs borne by companies.