•CAN-SPAM Act Updates -- New Email Rules For Multiple Senders, Opt-Outs, And "Send-To-A-Friend"
Commercial email is one of the most significant -- if not the most significant -- marketing tool of small ecommerce websites.
For this reason, it's a good idea to stay current with the CAN-SPAM Act's email rules. In May, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved several new rules for purposes of clarifying CAN-SPAM's requirements.
Here's an easy-to-read summary of these important developments that affect all ecommerce websites.
Multiple Senders And Email Marketing Campaigns
One issue...
•CAN-SPAM: "No Harm, No Foul" -- 4th Circuit Passes on Trivial Violations
The federal CAN-SPAM Act permits the sending of unsolicited email advertisements under certain conditions. One condition is that header information in the email should not be "materially false or materially misleading". What does this mean, and if you make a "technical" mistake in an email header, are you strictly liable under CAN-SPAM?
The Vacation Spammer Case
In November, 2006, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals commented in the case of Omega World Travel v. Mummagraphics, Inc.(sometimes...
•Do You Own - And Control Your Domain Name? You May Be Surprised!
Do You Own - And Control Your Domain Name? You May Be Surprised! All too often, website owners are lax in nailing down ownership and control of valuable domain names, and as a result, are often required to litigate these issues costing them thousands. The case of Dawson v. Brandsberg illustrates these costly mistakes and how to avoid them.
Dawson v. Brandsberg - The Facts
The dispute was between a website operator and developer regarding rights to a domain name that consists of the...
•Ecommerce Sites: Beware of 3rd Party Cookies - Are Google Analytics Users In Privacy Breach?
? To be successful, ecommerce sites require information about site visitors.
What sites are the top referrers? Which search engine produces the most traffic? How long do visitors remain on-site, what is their pathway through the site, and what pages do they exit from?
One method of collecting this information is often referred to as using 3rd party cookies. If you use 3rd party cookies, are you aware of the privacy concerns, and will you be liable for a privacy policy breach?
What's A...
•Email Marketing: Are You Liable For Your Affiliates' CAN-SPAM Violations?
? How you build and use your email list involves the federal CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (CAN-SPAM). CAN-SPAM applies to essentially all businesses in the United States which send commercial email, which is defined as any email message "the primary purpose of which is the commercial advertisement or promotion of a commercial product or service (including content on an Internet website operated for a commercial purpose)".
Nearly any business email is covered by CAN-SPAM, including email newsletters as...
•Intellectual Property: Why "Borrowing" Web Content Is A Really Bad Idea
We've all been there before.
There's some graphics or content (or even website legal documents) on the web that you like... there's no copyright notice associated with it.
You'd like to take it and incorporate it into your site, right?
It's so tempting, but DON'T do it!
Copyright Infringement Issues
Under the US Copyright Act, there is a principle some refer to as the "rule of automatic copyright". This rule provides that once an author or artist:
* creates a work of authorship (text,...
•SaaS, Membership, and Subscription Agreements -- How To Avoid Unenforceable Amendments
If you're like most small ecommerce businesses, you'll need to amend your Customer Agreement from time to time. You might want to add a new membership option... or add a clause for a money-back guarantee, just to name a couple of examples.
Note that your Customer Agreement may go by any one of several names -- such as SaaS Agreement, Membership Agreement, Subscription Agreement, Terms of Sale, Content License Agreement, etc.
Will your amendments be effective? That's the question you should...
•Shrink, Click, Browse-Wrapped Agreements -- What Does It All Mean?
? The terms -- "shrink-wrapped", "click-wrapped", and "browse-wrapped" -- are in widespread use. They describe certain types of contracts, past and present. Originally, these agreements were used solely for the licensing of PC software. Now, they're used for a wide range of online transactions.
What do these terms mean, and what's their legal significance?
Manifestation of Assent
The key to understanding these terms is understanding a key term in contract law -- "manifestation of assent"....
•User Generated Content (UCG) Presents Big Advertising Oppoutunity For Small Online Businesses
User Generated Content (UCG) Presents Big Advertising Oppoutunity For Small Online Businesses User generated content (UGC) is a rapidly growing phenomenon on the Internet. Popular social networking sites that rely on UGC for content include YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, Friendster, just to name a few. Generally, UGC refers to various kinds of media content produced by regular, every-day people (as distinguished from traditional media producers).
But UGC is not just for social networking...
•Website Advertising: 2 Legal Traps To Avoid When Writing Your Own Copy
If you're like most small ecommerce businesses, you're likely to write your own marketing copy. Be aware that this is a highly regulated area that could result in substantial liability. I've boiled most of the regulations into 2 basic traps you must avoid.
What is Marketing Copy?
Wikipedia defines "copy" as written material, in contrast to photographs or other elements of layout, in a large number of contexts, including magazines, advertising, and book publishing. In advertising, web...
•Website Behavioral Ads May Be Cool But Beware Of Privacy Concerns
If you're a small ecommerce business, you know that virtually anything that provides significant increases in conversion rates will get a lot of attention.
Behavioral ads promise just that -- higher conversion rates than conventional contextual ads -- so they've been getting a lot of attention lately.
If true, this could be a very good thing for ecommerce sites looking to boost revenues. But the buzz over behavioral ads has also raised the concerns of privacy advocates, and recently even the...
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