The Virtual Gardener
The place where I explore online community cultivation, propagation and harvesting techniques.
I've been working as head of consultancy at Sift for the last four years. The business supports all organisations looking to respond to a Web 2.0 world and truly engage with their audience - and has been doing so for the past 10 years.
This blog originally started out as a comment on a conference I attended about online communities. I'm now using it as a thought-bin for related stuff. Any gaps in posting doesn't mean I've stopped thinking ...
May 27, 2008
4:42pm
Legal do’s and don’ts of running an online community
OK, so the law in the US is not the same as in Europe, but the principles are similar, with the caveat that you should assume it’s tougher in Europe! Kevin O’Keefe from Lexblog provided a few tips:
- 99% of legal stuff to do with communities is commonsense - precedents are few
- Never send a response (public or private) that could precipitate further response in the heat of the moment - wait til tomorrow
- The provider cannot be sued (except for issues concerning intellectual property rights, pornography and gambling) - if you join a conversation you become a ‘user’ (publisher) and open yourself up to the same legal challenges as anyone else
- For this reason, it is more safe to delete a post than amend it - although the action can appear heavy-handed and inflammatory if handled badly
- Concerning copyright - you can always buy them off or demonstrate ‘fair use’
- A challenge does require an action - but not necessarily taking something down
- Always obtain affirmative consent
- Retain data in a secure environment as long as is necessary for legitimate business purposes
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