PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Trending Now: An IP Podcast - Advertising & Customer Engagement in the Digital Age - Customer Reviews and Response
New Developments in the World of Section 230
PATIENT PRIVACY IN AN ERA OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Are websites legally responsible for content posted by their users?
Stealth Lawyer: Zach Abramowitz, 'Blogcaster'
The Online Safety Act (the OSA) received Royal Assent on 26 October 2023 and is now in force. The OSA establishes an extensive regulatory framework for providers of online user-to-user services and search services with...more
In the prior two installments of our six-part series examining Section 230, the section of the 1996 Communications Decency Act (CDA) that immunizes online service providers from liability stemming from the publication and...more
The Internet makes it easier than ever to connect with people around the world, share ideas and information, and have their voices heard regardless of whether they are a single individual with limited resources or a massive...more
Since the emergence of the Internet, under current European Union rules, services that host user-generated or user-contributed content have enjoyed legal immunity from liability, provided they take down unlawful content once...more
Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, 47 U.S.C. §230(c)(1) (hereafter “§230”), protects internet services, like Facebook, Twitter, and the like, from liability based on words used by third parties who use their...more
Key Points - This September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 587 into law, establishing new transparency requirements for social media companies. The new requirements include publicly posting and submitting to the...more
Since the passage of Section 230 of the Communication Decency Act (“CDA”), the majority of federal circuits have interpreted the CDA to establish broad federal immunity to causes of action that would treat service providers...more
The June 10, 2020 and July 22, 2019 posts on Trending Law Blogs discussed, among other things, how Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, 47 U.S.C. §230 (c)(1) (hereafter “§230”), has come under attack by politicians...more
Online platforms that allow users to post content face a constant choice: to remove or to not remove, to police or not to police. Shakespearean allusions aside, platforms generally want user engagement — to reach as many...more
The proposals includes fines for non-compliance of up to the greater of £18 million or 10% of a provider’s annual global revenue. On 12 May 2021, the UK government published the Online Safety Bill (the Bill), which aims...more
Section 230(c)(1) of the Communications Decency Act (codified at 47 U.S.C. § 230 (“Section 230”)) has long been credited for the boom of user generated content on the internet — the crux of social media that has driven the...more
While we are still in the infancy of the Biden Administration, it is clear that bipartisan desire to amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (“Section 230”) remains active. On February 8, 2021, Sen. Mark Warner...more
Interactive online platforms have become an integral part of our daily lives. While user-generated content, free from traditional editorial constraints, has spurred vibrant online communications, improved business processes...more
Social media has experienced an unprecedented growth in popularity and usage since its inception. This is owed in large part to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Unlike their print counterparts, internet...more
On February 5, 2021, three Democratic Senators released the SAFE TECH Act, which aims to require online service providers to address fraud, harassment, and the use of social media to organize extremist violence. If passed,...more
The appetite for acquisitions and investment in online businesses has never been stronger, with many of the most attractive online opportunities being businesses that host, manage and leverage user-generated content. These...more
On Wednesday, October 28, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation held a much-anticipated hearing titled, “Does Section 230’s Sweeping Immunity Enable Big Tech Bad Behavior?” The witness line-up featured...more
Social media and influencers. Online feedback and electronic oversight. Data protection and privacy. Managing the legal issues surrounding doing business online is a significant concern for many in-house counsel. Join us for...more
We wrote recently about proposed changes to laws governing content on the internet. Washington has now proposed even more changes that could affect policing of the internet and social media. In brief, Section 230(c) of the...more
Last week, President Trump signed an Executive Order targeting social media companies and the liability protections afforded to them under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (Section 230). The Order directs the...more
How do you trust what you’re reading online? This is one of the most significant questions of the modern era. Over the past two decades, the ever-expanding use of the internet, particularly unfiltered and unchecked social...more
The UK government recently published an interim update on its consultation on proposed legislation to tackle online harms. The legislation will impose a new duty of care on companies that facilitate the sharing of...more
The UK's diverse ecology of online platforms is a key growth engine for the UK economy and society. It enables knowledge discovery, sales, social and economic interaction and the sharing and distribution of content. ...more
As user-generated content explodes over the Internet, intellectual property disputes over posting or uploading such content without the owner’s consent continue to escalate. As we touched on in a recent post, social media...more
Brand companies have come to view user-generated content as often one of the most effective and authentic ways to advertise their products or services. This is known as “user-generated content marketing.” For example, with...more