E-Commerce Law

Copying Another Website's Terms of Use Can Lead to Trouble

Public Knowledge has highlighted a number of instances (most notably, instances involving Twitter and Adobe) in which e-commerce companies have failed to undertake the analysis and thoughtful drafting required to develop customized Terms of Use and, instead, used generalized terms or simply "borrowed" the Terms of Use posted at another company's website.  Unfortunately, it's a trend we've observed for some time. 

E-Commerce Law Briefs: Week of March 31, 2008

Surprise, surprise:  A recent article suggests that children are using social networking sites designed for adults.  "Research into internet use has found that, among children with internet access, more than a quarter of eight to 11-year-olds claimed to have a profile page on a social networking website. This is despite nominal age restrictions aimed at preventing pre-teens from using such sites."

(Link:  Adult social networking sites attract young users at guardian.co.uk)

Equally surprising is the suggestion that social networking sites don't generate large amounts of revenue when compared to other equally popular websites.  Fox Interactive, the Internet division of News Corp., may fall $100 million short on its $1 billion revenue forecast.  Social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook have tens of millions of users but generate relatively little revenue.  For example, the 80 million unique monthly visitors to MySpace generate well under $1 billion in revenue for News Corp. whereas Yahoo! has just over 50% more visitors and generates more than seven times the revenue.  Virtual communities don't generate substantial revenue, e-commerce sites that sell real-world products and services do (e.g., Amazon).

(Link:  News Corp. (NWS) Finds Out Social Networks Are Bad Business at 24/7 Wall St.)

E-Commerce Law Briefs is a weekly feature appearing each Friday afternoon on E-Commerce Law. Each week, E-Commerce Law Briefs will provide a brief summary and commentary on recent legal news affecting e-commerce businesses.

E-Commerce Law Briefs: Week of March 5, 2007

"A handful of police departments have utilized YouTube as a law enforcement tool, putting up video of suspects and eliciting help from the Internet-using public in identifying them. Experts say the idea has promise, but it's too soon to tell whether it will have staying power amid constantly evolving technologies and the difficulty of making a video stand out among millions. Some also see a risk of fruitless tips, misidentifications or privacy problems."

These criticisms could just as easily apply to the broadcasting of surveillance camera video on the local evening news, a practice which is commonplace in many jurisdictions when police require community assistance to identify suspects. YouTube may reach a different audience but the concept is the same.

(Link: Police Turn to YouTube to Catch Suspects at washingtonpost.com)

Two independent sources estimate that U.S. consumers spent more than $33 billion online last quarter. Though online spending is still a fraction of total consumer spending, it is growing at a rate of more than 25 percent annually.

The e-commerce industry is growing at a substantial pace. As it does, law schools and firms must adapt to serve the unique legal needs of these clients.

(Link: New numbers show e-commerce spending tops $33 billion at Washington Business Journal)

Wikipedia plans to ask contributors who claim particular expertise on a subject to verify their credentials. The change in policy follows the discovery "that a high-ranking member of Wikipedia's bureaucracy used his cloak of anonymity to lie about being a professor of religion."

After his fraud was discovered, the contributor seemed to blame the whole incident on Wikipedia’s liberal concept of collaboration, which permits anyone to submit or edit site information. In an apology written to the Wikipedia community, he is quoted as saying: " ‘It was, quite honestly, my impression that it was well known that I was not who I claimed to be, and that in the absence of any confirmation, no respectible (sic) publication would print it.’ " 

This is yet another example of why courts should not rely on Wikipedia as authority for any disputed fact that is material to a case.

(Link: After flap, Wikipedia wants ID from self-proclaimed experts at SilliconValley.com)

E-Commerce Law Briefs is a weekly feature appearing each Friday afternoon on E-Commerce Law. Each week, E-Commerce Law Briefs will provide a brief summary and commentary on recent legal news affecting e-commerce businesses.

Technorati Tags:  YouTube, Wikipedia

No One is Safe From E-Commerce

After breaking into the mobile market, e-commerce businesses are finding ways to reach the only potential customers to which they are not already connected:  airline passengers.  According to a post at engadget, companies that develop in-flight entertainment systems for airlines have been in discussions with Apple which may result in the integration of iPods and iTunes into those systems.