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From: baldur!dcm@dell.dell.com (Dave McCracken)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Texas Space-Travel Entrepreneurs Guilty
Message-ID: <16754@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 7 Feb 91 15:40:10 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 11, Issue 99, Message 2 of 13


murray@sun13.scri.fsu.edu (John Murray) writes:

>The US shortwave station WWCR 7520 KHz just reported at about 5:00 UTC
>2-7-90 that two gentlemen have been convicted of violation of Texas
>sweepstakes laws due to their 1-900 marketing of a sweepstakes to win
>a crewmember position on a russian space mission.

>No other details were reported at the time.

>I'd like to see email from anyone that caught the details of the
>conviction.

There was an article in the Austin paper about it this morning.  They
have not been convicted, merely indicted.  The Houston DA's office
claims they are running an illegal lottery because of the 1-900 phone
charges.  The people running the sweepstakes maintain they were told
by the DA's office in December that since they also allowed free
mail-in entries that it was legal.

The impression I get from sci.space is that the organizers are space
enthusiasts honestly interested in putting an American on Mir, and
used the 900 number to help defray the $10 million charged by
Glavcosmos.  It sounds like they are getting jerked around by yet
another publicity-seeking prosecutor out to advance his political
career.


Dave McCracken   dcm@dell.dell.com   (512) 343-3720 
Dell Computer    9505 Arboretum Blvd  Austin, TX 78759-7299