Is FC Bayern Munchen Guilty of Like-Gating?

FC Bayern Munchen recently created a public relations own goal with its social media usage that may have legal consequences. A couple of days ago, Bayern Munchen announced on its website they had agreed to sign a 'spectacular name' and then directed fans to listen to the announcement live on the club's Facebook page. However, in order to listen to the announcement the Facebook user had to first "Like" the page.

There was no announcement of the signing of a "spectacular name". Instead, Bayern Munchen's GM Christian Nerlinger appeared in a video that contained the fans' own Facebook profile photo along with their name on a Bayern Munchen shirt. Many fans were not amused and complained loudly across multiple social media platforms.

If Bayern Munchen was located in the United States the National Advertising Standards Board and/or the Federal Trade Commission may have investigated them for "Like-Gating". Like-Gating occurs when a marketer uses misleading means to inflate the number of Facebook Likes. It appears that Bayern Munchen utilized a misleading advertising message to increase its number of Facebook Likes.

The bottom line is that sports organizations must be very careful when implementing social media marketing campaigns. There are major legal implications with every single social media marketing promotion.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at http://shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2012 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Supreme Court Signals It Will Protect Students' Social Media Privacy Rights

The Supreme Court ruled today that the Fourth Amendment still matters in the Social Media Age. In U.S. v. Jones, the court voted 9-0 that a warrant was required to place a GPS tracker onto a car.

This case has wide ranging ramifications in the Social Media Age. If the installation of a GPS tracking device onto a car constitutes a search then the required installation of social media monitoring software onto a student's personal electronic device by a state school also constitutes a search. In addition, the requirement by public schools that their students provide them access to all of their personal electronic content is also a search.

As I have stated over and over again, schools must be very careful when trying to regulate or access a student's personal electronic content. Requiring students to Facebook Friend school administrators, and/or download social media monitoring software onto personal electronic devices and/or requiring students to turn over their social media user names and passwords may create major legal liabilities for academic institutions. Last week, the Supreme Court let stand a couple cases that protected student social media free speech and now this week the court unanimously ruled that there still is an expectation of privacy in the Social Media Age.

As I previously stated on January 18, 2012,

"Unlike China that has a Microblog Identification Program that requires its citizens to register their online user names so the government may track their online posts, the United States strongly believes in freedom of speech. Therefore, schools must be careful when trying to regulate student social media speech.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2012 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Supreme Court Signals It Will Protect Students' Social Media First Amendment Rights

The Supreme Court recently declined to review three social media free speech cases. According to the Associated Press, the Supreme Court let stand two cases that stated that public schools do not have the right to discipline students for off campus speech that was disseminated via social media. In the third case, the Supreme Court let stand a student's suspension by a West Virginia school that was handed out because the student created a web page that suggested another student had a sexually transmitted disease.

On-campus and off-campus speech has been blurred because of the reach of social media. However, the Supreme Court demonstrated that at this point Tinker v. Des Moines (393 U.S. 503, 1969) is still the law of the land. According to Tinker, students do not "shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate." Furthermore, the Tinker Court stated, "[i]n order for the State in the person of school officials to justify prohibition of a particular expression of opinion, it must be able to show that its action was caused by something more than a mere desire to avoid the discomfort and unpleasantness that always accompany an unpopular viewpoint."

In my Social Media Law Predictions For 2012, I mentioned as my third prediction: "State Legislatures and/or the courts in the United States will address whether students and/or college applicants may be required to turn over their social media user names and passwords and/or install social media monitoring software onto their personal electronic devices in order to attend or play inter-collegiate sports."

As I have previously stated, I believe it is unconstitutional for a public school to require their students to turn over their private social media user names and passwords and/or provide access to their private social media content via "Facebook Friending" a school employee and/or to require that students install social media monitoring software onto their personal electronic devices. Public schools that require their students to provide them access to their private social media content are violating the U.S. Constitution and are creating tremendous legal liability issues that may ultimately harm taxpayers who provide school funding.

Unfortunately, some public schools are listening to social media consultants who are advising them that it is legal and acceptable public policy to require students to provide schools unfettered access to their personal electronic devices and content in order to play intercollegiate sports. It appears that consultants who are advising some public schools on these issues do not understand NCAA social media compliance issues, the law, legal liability issues, public policy, etc...

Unlike China that has a Microblog Identification Program that requires its citizens to register their online user names so the government may track their online posts, the United States strongly believes in freedom of speech. Therefore, schools must be careful when trying to regulate student social media speech.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2012 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Twitter Account Ownership Follow Up

On December 26, 2011, I discussed the Twitter account ownership lawsuit between PhoneDog and Noah Kravitz. On December 28, 2011, I appeared on Canada's CTV News to discuss the case. Since not all the facts are yet known it is too soon to speculate who owns the account. However, as I previously stated on December 26, 2011, PhoneDog's claim that each Twitter Follower is worth $2.50 appears to be clearly erroneous.

If PhoneDog hires an expert that claims under oath that each Twitter Follower is worth $2.50, I believe it would be easy to dispute this assertion. While some of the lawsuit's exact issues appear novel in a court of law, a case regarding the ownership of a LinkedIn account is currently being litigated. Below is my recent appearance on CTV News where I discuss the PhoneDog matter.




To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2011 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Disconnecting From Social Media in 2012

Disconnecting from social media may help one realize that there is more to life than Facebook posting, Tweeting, Google plussing, etc... On Wednesday January 4, 2012, I discussed some of these issues with Washington, DC's Fox 5 News morning Co-Anchor Tony Perkins.

Disconnecting from Technology in 2012: MyFoxDC.com

Life is more fun in the real world than in the virtual world.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2012 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

Social Media Law Predictions For 2012

Having foresight and advising clients on how to successfully navigate potential legal risks is what lawyers are paid to do. On January 10, 2011, I made 10 social media law predictions for the year and nine of them have come true; the tenth one appears that it will be realized within the next couple of months. In no particular order, below are some of my social media law predictions for 2012:

1) Social Media account ownership issues will increase.

2) State Legislatures and/or the courts in the United States will address whether employees may be required to turn over their social media user names and passwords and/or install social media monitoring software onto their personal electronic devices so employers may access their employees' private electronic content.

3) State Legislatures and/or the courts in the United States will address whether students and/or college applicants may be required to turn over their social media user names and passwords and/or install social media monitoring software onto their personal electronic devices in order to attend or play inter-collegiate sports.

4) In the United States lawmakers will work to pass bipartisan intellectual property legislation to address social media copyright and trademark issues.

5) Rakofsky v. the Internet will be decided in favor of the Internet.

6) The United States' Federal Trade Commission and the United Kingdom's Advertising Standards Authority will crack down on fraud and misleading social media advertising.

7) Governments around the world will continue to grapple with how to control social media flash mobs, anti-government content, Internet controls, etc...

8) Governing bodies and courts around the world will continue to address social media privacy issues.

9) Social Media usage by political candidates and political causes will greatly increase during the 2012 election cycle and this will lead to increased discussion on updating election compliance laws in the United States and around the world.

10) Lawyers will realize that some of their social media marketing consultants are violating the FTC advertising regulations.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2012 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.

2011 Social Media Law Predictions Update Part II

On January 10, 2011, I made ten predictions for 2011 regarding social media and the law. Now it is time to evaluate my ability to read the tea leaves in social media and the law. On December 28, 2011, I analyzed the first five of my ten predictions. Four out of my first five predictions have been realized and the one prediction that has not yet come to fruition may be realized within the next couple of months. Below were my second five predictions for 2011.

6. Regulated industries such as banking and finance, pharma, etc...will continue refining their approach to regulating social media usage. During the year, FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulation Authority provided more guidance on how brokers may utilize social media in their professional environment.

7. Federal and state governments will determine what official government social media records need to be retained. During the year, federal agencies created best practices for social media record retention.

8. Homeland Security, the CIA, FBI, NSA, U.S. Armed Forces, etc... will need re-evaluate their social media policies and determine what they allow their employees to post online. During the year, Homeland Security stated that it was reviewing its social media policies.

9. Cyberbulling, Privacy, Defamation, and First Amendment issues will become further intertwined and a rational legal framework will need to be created to address these matters. During the year, Connecticut passed a new cyberullying law and New York also discussed updating its bullying laws to account for the Social Media Age.

10. Social Media Credential Fraud will continue to increase as more people will try to create the perception that they are experts in their professional field due to their social media activity. Fraud in the social media space is a huge problem and during the year the National Advertising Division of the Better Business Bureau came out strongly against Like-Gating which may be another name for Social Media Credential Fraud.

For 2011, 9 of my 10 ten predictions came true and the other prediction will eventually come true because the issue is too important not to be resolved within the next year or two.

To learn more about these issues you may contact me at www.shearlaw.com.

Copyright 2012 by the Law Office of Bradley S. Shear, LLC. All rights reserved.