In our May 30, 2012 post on the Socially Aware blog—“Should We All Be Getting the Twitter “Jitters”? Be Careful What You Say Online (Particularly in the United Kingdom)”—we considered a variety of UK laws being used to regulate the content of tweets and other online messages. Since that post, there has been a series… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: social media
Use of Social Media for Issuers, Broker-Dealers and Advisers, and Investment Companies
Posted in EventReaders in the New York area, please join us for a complimentary, in-person event on Tuesday, May 28. Recently, regulators provided some additional guidance regarding the use of social media channels to disseminate issuer information. FINRA and the Commission also have been focused on the use of social media by registered broker-dealers, and by investment… Continue Reading
Spoliation of Social Media Evidence: New Jersey Court Cracks Down
Posted in LitigationA March 23, 2013 decision from the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey serves as a cautionary tale for litigants. As a result of some arguably poor decisions by the plaintiff and likely miscommunication between the parties regarding access to the plaintiff’s Facebook account, the Court sanctioned the plaintiff for causing his… Continue Reading
Federal Court in Manhattan “Likes” Service of Process via Facebook
Posted in FTC, LitigationOn March 7, 2013, a federal court in Manhattan ruled, in Federal Trade Commission v. PCCare247 Inc., that service via Facebook is an acceptable alternative means of serving court documents on foreign defendants. Although this is a watershed ruling in many respects, in other ways, it is a natural extension of current authority in a… Continue Reading
Technology Law Update: Recent Developments in Social Media & Internet Law
Posted in EventPlease join Socially Aware editor John Delaney as he speaks at the New England Corporate Counsel Association’s “Technology Law Update: Recent Developments in Social Media & Internet Law” event in Waltham, MA on Wednesday, April 10. Issues to be addressed in the presentation include the following: Recent developments and trends impacting corporate uses of social… Continue Reading
SEC Offers Guidance on Use of Social Media for Public Disclosure
Posted in SEC, Securities LawOn April 2, 2013, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued guidance in the form of the Report of Investigation under Section 21(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 which indicates that social media channels—such as Twitter and Facebook—could be used by public companies to disseminate material information, without running afoul of Regulation… Continue Reading
More Trouble With Work-Related Social Media Accounts
Posted in Litigation, PrivacyWe have written before about cases involving disputes between employers and employees over work-related social media accounts, but a new case out of Arizona federal court raises issues that appear to be unlike those we have addressed previously. In Castle Megastore Group, Inc. v. Wilson, plaintiff Castle Megastore Group (CMG), a retailer of novelty and… Continue Reading
Can Touting Your New Job on Social Media Sites Violate a Non-Solicitation Agreement?
Posted in LitigationAccording to a federal judge in Oklahoma in Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. v. Cahill, simply sharing information about a new job over social media does not mean that you are inviting former co-workers to come join you in violation of a non-solicitation agreement. On February 12, 2013, U.S. District Court Judge James Payne of the… Continue Reading
A Fistful of Data: Facebook and Profile Technology, Inc. Showdown Over the Right to Use Outdated User Information
Posted in Litigation, PrivacyAs social media matures and users become more concerned about the privacy of the information they publish online, New Zealand-based search engine app company Profile Technology, Inc. and Facebook are engaged in a legal battle stemming from a dispute over the right to use certain user data. The story first came to light in October… Continue Reading
FTC Updates Its “Dot Com Disclosures” With a Focus on Social Media Advertising
Posted in FTCOn March 12, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued an important update to its “Dot Com Disclosures” guide to advertisers on making effective online disclosures. In doing so, the FTC has driven home the points that: The consumer protection laws apply to all advertisers, regardless of the medium used—and including social media, even where there… Continue Reading
German Court Says Facebook Not Subject to German Law
Posted in LitigationFacebook may be gaining ground in its struggle against German authorities. In a preliminary ruling, the state of Schleswig-Holstein’s Administrative Court has rejected penalties against Facebook Inc. and Facebook Ireland, stating that the social network is not subject to German law. The Schleswig-Holstein state data protection authority (the ULD) started enforcement proceedings against the social… Continue Reading
Decades-Old Japanese Electioneering Law May Get a Web 2.0 Refresh
Posted in AsiaHere at Socially Aware, we report regularly on the difficulties inherent in applying long-established laws to new technologies like social media. An interesting example of this is unfolding in Japan: it concerns a decades-old law that has been interpreted to prohibit candidates, parties, and even the voting public from engaging in most campaign-related activities on… Continue Reading
Dear Facebook, Could You Please Forget I Exist?
Posted in PrivacyEurope is currently undergoing a significant reform of its privacy regime. Under the current European Union (EU) Privacy Directive, individuals already have broad rights curtailing companies’ ability to process their personal data. The proposed EU Privacy Regulation seeks to broaden these rights even further. In particular, the proposed “right to be forgotten” may ultimately impose… Continue Reading
Social Media 2013: Addressing Corporate Risks – New York City Presentation
Posted in EventPlease join Socially Aware editor John Delaney as he chairs Practising Law Institute’s (PLI) “Social Media 2013: Addressing Corporate Risks.” Issues to be addressed at the conference include the following: Social media: How it works, and why it is transforming the business world Drafting and updating social media policies User-generated content and related IP concerns… Continue Reading
Thinking About Using Pictures Pulled From Twitter? Think Again, New York Court Warns
Posted in Copyright, DMCA, IP, Litigation, Terms of UseIf you want to use those pictures you found on Twitter, beware. A federal judge in New York recently held that taking photos from Twitter to use for a commercial purpose infringes the photographer’s copyrights. On January 14, 2013, Judge Alison Nathan ruled that Agence France Presse (AFP), which provides subscribers with access to photos… Continue Reading
Watch What You Tweet: Proposed Social Media Guidance for Financial Institutions
Posted in Financial Institutions, PrivacyWith the explosive growth of social media, consumers increasingly expect to be able to interact online with the companies from which they buy goods and services. As a result, financial institutions have begun to explore the use of social media, both to strengthen relationships with existing customers and to attract new ones. Financial institutions, however,… Continue Reading
Socially Aware Looks Back: The Social Media Law Year in Review
Posted in Employment Law, Litigation, Privacy2012 was a momentous year for social media law. We’ve combed through the court decisions, the legislative initiatives, the regulatory actions and the corporate trends to identify what we believe to be the ten most significant social media law developments of the past year–here they are, in no particular order: Bland v. Roberts – A… Continue Reading
New Issue of the Socially Aware Newsletter Now Available
Posted in Employment Law, FCC, FTC, IP, Litigation, Privacy, Section 230 Safe Harbor, Statistics, Terms of Use, TrademarkIn the latest issue of Socially Aware, our Burton Award-winning guide to the law and business of social media, we look at recent First Amendment, intellectual property, labor and privacy law developments affecting corporate users of social media and the Internet. We also recap major events from 2012 that have had a substantial impact on… Continue Reading
Social Media 2013: Addressing Corporate Risks
Posted in EventSocial media sites are transforming not only the daily lives of consumers, but also how companies interact with consumers. However, along with the exciting new marketing opportunities presented by social media come challenging new legal issues. In seeking to capitalize on the social media gold rush, is your company taking the time to identify and… Continue Reading
Social Media and the National Labor Relations Act: What Employers Need to Know in Drafting and Updating Their Social Media Policies
Posted in Employment LawThis article was first published by ALM Media Properties LLC in Internet Law & Strategy (January 2013). For over a year, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has been taking employers to task for intruding too far into employees’ social media activities. The NLRB’s enforcement actions have provided a well-publicized reminder that the protections of… Continue Reading
Facebook ’em, Danno: Federal Court May Decide Whether Citizens Have First Amendment Right to Use Social Media to Publicly Criticize the Hawaii 5-0
Posted in LitigationOn top of a presidential election, protests over Instagram’s terms of use, and the invention of gloves that can translate sign language, 2012 also brought to light interesting constitutional issues involving public entities’ use of social media when a citizens’ group filed suit against the City and County of Honolulu for “violations of [the group’s]… Continue Reading
PeopleBrowsr Wins Round One Against Twitter
Posted in LitigationThe Superior Court of the State of California has entered a temporary restraining order requiring Twitter to continue to provide PeopleBrowsr with access to the Firehose, Twitter’s complete stream of all public tweets. Through the Firehose, Twitter provides third-party access to over 400 million daily tweets. PeopleBrowsr is a San Francisco-based social media analytics firm… Continue Reading
Infographic: The Growing Impact of Social Media
Posted in Infographic, StatisticsBorn to Mock: Trademark Holder’s Fight to Remove Mark on Kitsch Merchandise May Have Broad Legal Implications
Posted in Copyright, DMCA, IP, Litigation, TrademarkPopular online marketplace CafePress.com suffered a legal setback recently when a U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York denied CafePress’s motion for summary judgment against claims of trademark infringement. CafePress operates an online “print on demand” service that allows users to upload designs which CafePress then prints on a variety of items…. Continue Reading