Facebook to be sued for 'Like' button?

by Ryan Jericho Banned
13 replies

Facebook and its co-founder Mark Zuckerberg face risk of being sued over the site's "Like" button feature.


The site currently reveals any products or interests that users "like" to their friends. This could be illegal under Californian law which forbids unauthorised use of people's likenesses for commercial purposes.

The company has been warned it could be sued by anyone from celebrities to ordinary citizens, Daily Mail reported on Monday.

A judge in San Jose has thrown out the company's bid to dismiss the first case against Facebook - where users allege they have been "economically injured" by the site's use of the "Like" button for advertising.

Facebook first introduced "promotions" in January this year - where users opt to "Like" products, often in conjunction with prizes or even bonuses in online games - with Zuckerberg insisting that "a trusted referral is the Holy Grail of advertising."

However, US district judge Lucy Koh has insisted that users should be entitled to some gain from commercial endorsements that stem if someone chooses to "like" a certain product or interest on the site, according to the Mail.

Whilst the case against the popular site has yet to be heard, Koh added that such a claim "present novel issues of state law for which there is no binding authority."

The company have only just settled a previous complaint by the US Federal Trade Commission over privacy issues, after it was alleged that they made promises to keep consumers information on Facebook private, only to later allowing the data to be shared and made public.

Facebook had so far refused to make a comment with the investigation to continue, the newspaper added.
What do you guys think?
#button #facebook #sued
  • I think that people are being turned into Lemmings by an unnecessarily over-protecting govt.

    Tip: if you don't want to reveal the sites/products you like, then don't click on the damn social-media button!
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  • Haha! This shows that people are sue crazy and wil do anything for money!

    I must say I don like the new facebook but I'm going to have to make
    it work for me and stop complaining about it!

    I see this like button feature as an advantage to me! Facebook's fall had begun. Mark my words.
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  • Profile picture of the author Peru101
    In my experience, the larger a company grows, the less respect it has for its customers, the more it focuses on growing its bottom line, and the more likely it is to corrupt. There are exceptions to the rule like Amazon, but those are few and far between.
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    • Profile picture of the author RSMarketing
      In my opinion the "Like Button" is just another form of the oldest and BEST form of advertising, it's called "Word of mouth" - in this case, the passing of information from person to person through digital communication.

      Rich
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    • Profile picture of the author Paul Laughton
      Facebook seems to take 2 steps forward and then 1 step back. They make so many changes that it's almost inevitable that there are people who won't like this or that and will want to sue them. Facebook isn't going anywhere, whether they get sued or not.
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  • Profile picture of the author ezmystic
    I doubt it will come to anything in the long run. It's just people looking for money, or they'll change it slightly to join button or something
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  • Profile picture of the author Colin Palfrey
    Is facebooks hosting based in California then? If so they should just relocate. If not then Californian law doesn't apply. Or at least it only applies to the users, and not to the company itself.

    Personally I think facebook should just close access to Californian users for a month, to, "reevaluate the situation". See how the public opinion stacks against the government, then reopen Californian access and lay the blame squarely where it belongs. Facebook has a lot of power if it chooses to use it.

    It would be interesting to see what happened if Mark gave them a demo by putting a banner along the top of facebook, asking people to email the Californian government with their opinion on the matter. It would be perfectly legal as he is merely encouraging local political interest, while also showing he can make their email totally unusable.
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  • Profile picture of the author paul_1
    This info has been a good eye-opener. Thanks!
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  • Profile picture of the author adebayjim
    LOL, is this for real? What a joke.
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  • Profile picture of the author nicheblogger75
    Bottom line is that people now realize that Facebook (Zuckerberg) has an endless supply of cash and so of course the "sue happy" citizens of the US are going to start coming out of the woodwork if they have even the smallest inkling they can get something out of it.

    On that note, I'm calling my lawyer to see if he wants to sue...( a bad joke).
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  • Profile picture of the author HypeText
    They will just do what they do every other time....

    Add a line to their TOS stating that clicking the Like button means you are authorizing use of your likeness...problem solved!
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  • Profile picture of the author thebitbotdotcom
    I think Facebook is not intimidated and will file this with the rest of the lawsuits that they are really not worried about...
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  • Profile picture of the author Bofu2U
    I see this ... going nowhere. It's almost like linkbait to me.
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