Internet marketing company, Media Breakaway has been ordered to pay MySpace $6 million in damages and legal fees for spamming its users.

According to the Associated Press, an arbitrator ruled that Scott Richter and his company must pay MySpace $4.8 million in damages and $1.2 million in legal fees for spamming the social networking site’s users.

As of late, MySpace has taken an aggressive approach to dealing with spammers who constantly pester users with messages and comments that appear to be from friends or people they know trying to sell them something they probably don’t need. Last month the site was on the right side of a $230 million spamming verdict in a case against notorious spammers, Sanford Wallace and Walter Rines. While that verdict sent a pretty clear message, MySpace no doubt hopes it will keep other spammers on their toes and let them know their behaviour won’t be tolerated.

While $6 million isn’t exactly cheap, Media Breakaway is still feeling pretty upbeat about the whole situation. The company released a press statement boasting about the fact that the six million dollar figure is 95 percent less than what MySpace was originally demanding.

“The final award in favor of MySpace was 95% less than the amount demanded by MySpace, as the Arbitrator determined that ‘MySpace’s demands are so disproportionate to proven actual damages, or Media Breakaway profits.’”

At least they’re looking on the bright side, which is more than can be said for Wallace and Rines who were not only MIA for the verdict of their own case but no where to be seen afterward.

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Associated Press