Recent Publications
June 2, 2008
ALP: AHHHH . . . I Can’t Believe He Posted That On Our Website!
Nilesh (Neal)
Patel
It’s the new thing. Let consumers generate buzz about your product by contributing website content. Let them comment on articles, provide feedback, post pictures, videos, how-to information, ratings, and more. The options are endless. It’s fun. It’s cutting edge. Everyone will love it.
That’s until you talk to “the Lawyer.” “What if someone uploads obscene or other bad stuff, or pictures infringing someone’s copyrights. . . or, worse yet, a child shares private information and something bad happens. You want to be responsible for all that?” You respond that everyone is doing it, so why can’t we. Quick to retort, the Lawyer says: “Well if everyone else is jumping off a bridge . . . .” You suddenly envision throwing the Lawyer off a bridge.
In reality, getting mired in the “what if” conundrum is not productive; rather, the focus should be whether the risks in the world of consumer generated content are manageable. A good advertising lawyer (not to be confused with “the Lawyer” above) can provide you valuable guidance in this area. Here are some tips to keep in mind:
Helpful laws. Laws like the Communication Decency Act and the Digital Millennium Copyright Act protect website operators from defamation, copyright infringement, and other violations based on content posted by others. Follow the rules and you can significantly reduce risk.
Establish ground rules. Your website should set forth the rules for posters (e.g., don’t post copyrights of others, no obscene or vulgar content, etc.). Comprehensive website Terms of Use and Privacy Policy terms are a must. And, make sure each consumer agrees to them.
Minors. The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act restricts collecting personal information from children under 13 years. It can also be difficult to enforce website terms against children. You will need to develop processes and procedures to address these areas.
Screen restricted content. Restrictions on posting content only work if you enforce them. Screen content to weed out the bad stuff that will inevitably be uploaded. Filtering software to block profanity is helpful, but a human check is also needed.
By planning ahead and smartly, and with a good advertising lawyer, you can do just about anything your creative mind can think of with consumer generated content . . . without a lot of legal risk.