Portions of the following information are drawn from previous postings on the NPTalk discussion list. The following material is provided merely for background and reference information, and should not be considered or substituted for legal advice. Please consult with your organization's legal counsel for more information. Why would any nonprofit be confused about whether or not it can conduct online gaming to help raise funds, attract members, or for other purposes?

E-mail messages are important not only to the intended recipients, but also to a growing number of third-parties as well, especially marketers, solicitors, and distributors of "junk mail." Pixel Tags: Smart Cookies or Dumb Crumbs? If you think junk e-mail is worthless, you might want to think again. A Forrester Research estimate predicts that the e-mail marketing industry will generate some US$4.8 billion by 2003, and that by 2004, the average US household will get 9 pieces unwanted or unexpected e-mail solicitations a day. That's not the best part, though.

We have discussed, in past NPTalk postings, how search engines play a key role in the marketing of websites online. By using effective keywords, metatags, and understanding how search engines (especially the most popular) work, websites can boost their visibility to a wider audience, rather than relying upon the search engines and users to "find" a site through serendipity. The next step in increasing (or enhancing) the presence of an organization online is directly advertising to the online public. Web ads are a major source of support for online efforts, mostly for commercial sites.

"Congress Online: Assessing and Improving Capitol Hill Web Sites", released on 1/28/02 by the Congress Online Project, a two-year effort run by the Congressional Management Foundation to help address issues regarding the information and communications flow among Congress, citizens, public interest groups, and lobbyists.