Comments on: Internet T’s & C’s – do we have a problem? http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/ Nic Brisbourne's view from London on venture capital and exploiting change in technology and media Sat, 11 Feb 2012 20:08:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: brisbourne http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6323 brisbourne Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:41:19 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6323 Thanks Danvers. Very interesting. Thanks Danvers. Very interesting.

]]> By: danvers http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6322 danvers Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:58:29 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6322 Nic, in the UK (and Europe for that matter) the rules on data protection are set out in law and are pretty well understood by most internet companies and savvy consumers. The Data Commissioner is in the process of consulting on new data privacy guidelines for online activity, which might be worth keeping an eye on (we are). What goes into the "terms and conditions" (as opposed to the privacy policy) is a decision for each company, but generally most companies take a defensive position and throw in the kitchen sink to be on the safe side. Of course, terms and conditions are also overlayed by consumer protection laws (if selling to the consumer) and other regulation (e.g. consumer credit laws), which already exist for all businesses and would have to be interpreted by the courts. The latter point is important, because if a company purported to do something outrageous in terms and conditions which you clearly would not agree to if you read them properly, the court would be unlikely to enforce. Equally, where a company relies on disclaimers buried in its terms and conditions (e.g. "you should verify this information before acting upon it"), such disclaimers have been found valid by courts in this country. I hope this helps... Nic, in the UK (and Europe for that matter) the rules on data protection are set out in law and are pretty well understood by most internet companies and savvy consumers. The Data Commissioner is in the process of consulting on new data privacy guidelines for online activity, which might be worth keeping an eye on (we are). What goes into the “terms and conditions” (as opposed to the privacy policy) is a decision for each company, but generally most companies take a defensive position and throw in the kitchen sink to be on the safe side. Of course, terms and conditions are also overlayed by consumer protection laws (if selling to the consumer) and other regulation (e.g. consumer credit laws), which already exist for all businesses and would have to be interpreted by the courts. The latter point is important, because if a company purported to do something outrageous in terms and conditions which you clearly would not agree to if you read them properly, the court would be unlikely to enforce. Equally, where a company relies on disclaimers buried in its terms and conditions (e.g. “you should verify this information before acting upon it”), such disclaimers have been found valid by courts in this country. I hope this helps…

]]> By: brisbourne http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6210 brisbourne Tue, 15 Dec 2009 08:41:19 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6210 Thanks Danvers. Very interesting. Thanks Danvers. Very interesting.

]]> By: danvers http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6209 danvers Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:58:29 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6209 Nic, in the UK (and Europe for that matter) the rules on data protection are set out in law and are pretty well understood by most internet companies and savvy consumers. The Data Commissioner is in the process of consulting on new data privacy guidelines for online activity, which might be worth keeping an eye on (we are). What goes into the "terms and conditions" (as opposed to the privacy policy) is a decision for each company, but generally most companies take a defensive position and throw in the kitchen sink to be on the safe side. Of course, terms and conditions are also overlayed by consumer protection laws (if selling to the consumer) and other regulation (e.g. consumer credit laws), which already exist for all businesses and would have to be interpreted by the courts. The latter point is important, because if a company purported to do something outrageous in terms and conditions which you clearly would not agree to if you read them properly, the court would be unlikely to enforce. Equally, where a company relies on disclaimers buried in its terms and conditions (e.g. "you should verify this information before acting upon it"), such disclaimers have been found valid by courts in this country. I hope this helps... Nic, in the UK (and Europe for that matter) the rules on data protection are set out in law and are pretty well understood by most internet companies and savvy consumers. The Data Commissioner is in the process of consulting on new data privacy guidelines for online activity, which might be worth keeping an eye on (we are). What goes into the “terms and conditions” (as opposed to the privacy policy) is a decision for each company, but generally most companies take a defensive position and throw in the kitchen sink to be on the safe side. Of course, terms and conditions are also overlayed by consumer protection laws (if selling to the consumer) and other regulation (e.g. consumer credit laws), which already exist for all businesses and would have to be interpreted by the courts. The latter point is important, because if a company purported to do something outrageous in terms and conditions which you clearly would not agree to if you read them properly, the court would be unlikely to enforce. Equally, where a company relies on disclaimers buried in its terms and conditions (e.g. “you should verify this information before acting upon it”), such disclaimers have been found valid by courts in this country. I hope this helps…

]]> By: brisbourne http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6205 brisbourne Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:14:54 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6205 Good point. I wonder if it is clear whether we are accepting on behalf of ourselves as individuals or on behalf of our companies. Good point. I wonder if it is clear whether we are accepting on behalf of ourselves as individuals or on behalf of our companies.

]]> By: truthflux http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6204 truthflux Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:31:05 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6204 It presumably creates an even bigger problem for corporations, where each employee could be signing their employer up to a thousand of these things, many stating "may not be used for commercial purposes". It presumably creates an even bigger problem for corporations, where each employee could be signing their employer up to a thousand of these things, many stating “may not be used for commercial purposes”.

]]> By: brisbourne http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6203 brisbourne Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:36:20 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6203 Sounds like a good idea Dave. I haven't seen anyone working on it. Sounds like a good idea Dave. I haven't seen anyone working on it.

]]> By: Dave http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6202 Dave Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:18:45 +0000 http://www.theequitykicker.com/2009/12/14/internet-ts-cs-do-we-have-a-problem/#comment-6202 Has anyone tried to simplify this whole T&Cs problem? eg. to simplify each one down to some standard elements? This way it would be possible to speed read T&Cs or to control at a browser level whether the T&Cs on each site you are visiting are OK (to what you have configured as acceptable) or you need to be concerned about any data you create there.<br><br>When I was playing around with Adverter (a firefox add-on to provide some info about adverts on a web page) I also thought about adding some tools to view T&C info in a standardised way. I couldn't find any examples of anyone working on this. Has anyone tried to simplify this whole T&Cs problem? eg. to simplify each one down to some standard elements? This way it would be possible to speed read T&Cs or to control at a browser level whether the T&Cs on each site you are visiting are OK (to what you have configured as acceptable) or you need to be concerned about any data you create there.

When I was playing around with Adverter (a firefox add-on to provide some info about adverts on a web page) I also thought about adding some tools to view T&C info in a standardised way. I couldn't find any examples of anyone working on this.

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