Last month’s newsletter from Australia-based law firm Gadens Lawyers has some good tips for brand owners using social networking sites.
They make some interesting points about:
- Reading site T&Cs: Facebook’s broad licence terms are still ambiguous
- Use of trademarks
- Monitoring sites where your brand may be used and checking for appropriate usage
We would also advise caution when reacting to any type of copyright, trademark or intellectual property infringement. Sometimes a heavy-handed legal approach in the first instance can escalate the issue into a PR disaster when a polite conversation could’ve resolved the issue with a, sometimes unknowing, siteowner or brand fan.
You need to choose your battles – your online reputation in how you react to these sorts of issues is just as important as the original brand infringement you might be trying to resolve.
Not sure how to proceed? You’re welcome to give us a call for some informal advice.
Image:
Tempero on Google+
