CEM

Commercial Electronic Message

A message that is sent electronically to encourage participation in a commercial activity. This includes any electronic message promoting or advertising a product, service, or business, or seeking to engage in any commercial transaction or activity.

CEMs include promotional emails, newsletters, text messages, social media messages, and instant messages that promote a product or service, or seek to engage the recipient in a commercial activity. However, CEMs do not include messages that are purely informational, such as those that provide customer service information, warranty information, or updates on an existing transaction or relationship.

In Canada, the sending of CEMs is regulated under Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL), which requires organizations to obtain the consent of recipients before sending CEMs and to include certain information in the message, such as identification information about the sender, an unsubscribe mechanism, and a statement indicating that the message is an advertisement or promotional.