Pizza firm counts cost of sending spam emails

One of Ireland's largest pizza take-out chains has been spared a criminal conviction for sending unsolicited spam emails.

Four Star Pizza (Ireland) Ltd, which has about 30 outlets nationwide, had been prosecuted for sending unsolicited emails and had pleaded guilty at Dublin District Court to breaking data protection regulations.

The case was brought following a probe by the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner.

The pizza takeaway company had initially faced 30 summons but 24 of them had them had been withdrawn and a guilty plea to the remaining counts had been entered last month.

The company admitted sending unsolicited emails to six people from October 19, 2011 until August last year.

Judge John O'Neill had ordered that Four Star Pizza would be spared criminal convictions if it donated €4,000 to Temple Street children's Hospital in Dublin.

Today, the case resumed and Judge O'Neill was furnished with a receipt showing that the money had been paid by the company, which has a business address at Fitzwilliam Square in Dublin 2.

“I note that the sum of €4,000 has been paid to Temple Street hospital by Four Star Pizza, this will benefit the hospital and the young people there ,” said Judge O'Neill, as he struck out the case.