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Introduction
E-mail has become an important part of companies' marketing mix and is considered as the most successful form of communication technology, carrying the potential to boost marketing success and to improve the brand image ([45] Tezinde et al. , 2002). It is also emerged as a major means of personal and corporate communication ([33] Moustakas et al. , 2006). With its interactivity, speed, and measurability, e-mail drives traffic to the web sites ([44] Strauss et al. , 2006). However, as with the radio and television revolutions, the internet is gradually becoming saturated. The ubiquity of internet technology has somewhat diminished its captivating capability. Consumers have grown accustomed to, and are likely to have more expectations of, the internet's technology and do not only view it as a source of entertainment ([7] Cho and Cheon, 2004; [32] Morimoto and Chang, 2006). More importantly, the manner in which the internet can continue to be utilized as an effective medium for advertisement (e.g. e-mail advertising) poses a new challenge for marketers. Measuring the success of advertising in the e-marketplace, therefore requires a fresh perspective ([38] Rowley, 2001).
Generally, e-mail advertising is growing exponentially however, but there has also been little empirical research that examines the differences between permission-based e-mail and spamming. This is intriguing given the fact that these differences are of great interest to advertisers. For example, whereas permission-based e-mail is considered instrumental in providing better results for both marketers and users ([12] Dufrene et al. , 2005), the unsolicited e-mail - despite diminishing the effectiveness of e-mail advertising because of cluttered electronic messages - is still widely used to deploy advertising messages ([36] Pew Research Centre, 2005; [33] Moustakas et al. , 2006). As shown by a recent survey, out of the 31 billion e-mail messages that are sent daily, 40 per cent are considered to be spam ([42] Spam Filter Review, 2003).
The aim of this study is to explore and investigate the determinants of consumer behavior toward e-mail advertising, with two research objectives. First, we intend to develop a theoretical model to examine the relationships among advertising values, perceived intrusiveness and attitudinal-behavioral dispositions in the context of e-mail advertising. Second, we hope to investigate this theoretical model and conduct a comparison between permission-based...