A group of 15 companies announced yesterday they will form a coalition with the intent of designing e-mail standards to limit unsolicited e-mail, or spam.

Among the companies involved in the Responsible Electronic Communication Alliance (RECA) are online advertisers DoubleClick and 24/7 Media, both in New York.

"RECA was formed to promote professional standards for online communication and marketing," the RECA said in a statement.

The coalition is also working toward the adoption of industrywide messaging and e-commerce benchmarks designed to respect consumer privacy as well as the needs of Internet service providers.

According to information at its Web site, in a few weeks the RECA will issue detailed principles based on those endorsed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission this summer. The FTC pushed for companies to come up with self-regulatory measures also know as the Fair Information Practices.

Peter Arnold, spokesman for the RECA, was not immediately available for comment this afternoon.

The founding members of RECA include: 24/7 Media, @Once, Acxiom Corp., American List Council, Bigfoot Interactive, ClickAction(TM) Inc., Digital Impact, DoubleClick, e-Dialog, EmailChannel Inc., FloNetwork Inc., Netcentives Inc., Phase2Media, Responsys, yesmail.com, a CMGI company.

"There is legitimate concern among Internet users about the e-mail they're receiving," said RECA President Christopher Wolf in the statement. "RECA is a conscientious attempt by our members to address that concern in a positive way."

"Only consumers who consent to receive e-mail will be sent messages from our members. Thus, consumers will have better control over the e-mail they receive," Wolf said.