Keywords
Intellectual Property Right
Copyright
Labor Contact
Terms of Service
Consumers’ Rights
Categories
How to Cite
Abstract
Abstract
The rise of social media sites has dramatically transformed the humans’ interaction from material shape to digital shape. This dynamic change has helped information to fly and interconnect with enormous number of profiles in a short time. Through these engaging platforms, individuals can easily share information and exchange experiences in almost every aspect of life. These platforms have no limit capabilities in reaching out people, as well as geographical locations. Thus, businesses have started to utilize these social platforms for commercial promotion. The increasingly use of these patterns of social interaction gives rise to certain of legal issues. Yet, the functioning rules of these platforms are not clear. Furthermore, the relations between the users and providers, the users and the content, as well as the users and businesses need legal clarification. Therefore, it is significant that the engagement of individuals is shaped in a proper legal conditioning. This requires thorough analysis and deep-rooted legal examination of the social media policies that govern these platforms, as well as prevailing legislation, whether in Iraq or developed countries, that are pertinent to deal with such issues when arise.
Keywords: Social Media Account, Business Account, Personal Account, Virtual Property, Intellectual Property Right, Copyright, Labor Contact, Terms of Service, Ownership, Consumers’ Rights.
References
References
A- Journals
Clark, Will, ‘Copyright, Ownership, And Control of User-Generated Content on Social Media Websites’ (2010) 5 (2) Journal of Business & Technology Law.
Dan E. Stigall, ‘From Baton Rouge to Baghdad: A Comparative Overview of the Iraqi Civil Code’ (2004) 65 (1) Louisiana Law Review.
Daniele Battista, and Gabriele Uva, ‘Exploring the Legal Regulation of Social Media in Europe: A Review of Dynamics and Challenges-Current Trends and Future Developments’ (2023) 15 (5) Sustainability.
Edina Harbinja, ‘Legal Nature of Emails: A Comparative Perspective’ (2015) 14 (1) Duke Law & Technology Review.
Elena Anatolyevna Kirillova, Albert V. Pavlyuk, Oleg Evgenyevich Blinkov, Elena Victorovna Blinkova, Elina Leonidovna Sidorenko, ‘Digital Inheritance of Social Media Accounts’ (2019) 8 (4) International Journal of Engineering and Advanced Technology.
Gebicka, Aleksandra, and Andreas Heinemann, ‘Social Media & Competition Law’ (2014) 37 (2) World Competition.
Hugh McLaughlin, ‘You're Fired: Pack Everything but Your Social Media Passwords’ (2015) 13 (1) Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property.
Hu Ying, ‘Private and Common Property Rights’ (2021) 33 Singapore Academy of Law Journal.
Jasmine McNealy, ‘Who Owns Your Friends?: Phonedog V. Kravitz And Business Claims of Trade Secret In Social Media Information’ (2013) 39 (21) Rutgers Computer & Technology Law Journal.
Kateryna Nekit, ‘Legal Aspects of The Use of Social Media Accounts: Current State and Perspectives’ (2020) 10 (3) The lawyer Quarterly.
Kathleen McGarvey Hidy, J.D., Mary Sheila E. McDonald, J.D, ‘Risky Business: The Legal Implications of Social Media’s Increasing Role in Employment Decisions’ (2013) 18 (1) Journal of Legal Studies in Business.
Kathleen McGarvey Hidy, ‘Let Them Eat Cake: Social Media Accounts Property Rights, and the Digital Rights Revolution’ (2021) 71 (1) Depaul Law Review.
Dr. Mahmood Mohammed Abo-frwa, ‘Social Media Platforms and Its legal liability over Illegal Content’ (2022) 10 (3) Kuwait International College of Law Journa.
Mateusz Grochowski, ‘Inheritance of the Social Media Accounts in Poland’ (2019) 27 European Review of Private Law.
Michael Furlong, ‘Putting a Price on Friendship: Examining the Ownership Battle Putting a Price on Friendship: Examining the Ownership Battle between a Business' Social Media Networks, and the Humans That Operate Them, 47 J. Marshall L. Rev. 745 (2013) That Operate Them, 47 J. Marshall L. Rev. 745 (2013) (2013) 47 (2) UIC Law Review UIC Law Review.
Rivaldi Aka Akbar, Aji Mulyana, Mia Amalia, ‘Legal Challenges in the Age of Social Media: Protecting Citizens from Misuse of Information’ (2023) 3 (1) Golden Ratio of Law and Social Policy Review.
Ryan Garcia, Thaddeus A. Hoffmeister ‘Social Media Law in a Nutshell’ (2017) School of Law Faculty Publications.
Susan Park, Patricia Sánchez Abril, ‘Digital Self-Ownership: A Publicity-Rights Framework for Determining Employee Social Media Rights’ (2016) 53 (3) American Business Law Journal.
Tom Galvin, ‘Who Owns the Meme?: Establishing a Definitive Framework to Who Owns the Meme?: Establishing a Definitive Framework to Resolve Disputes in Social Media Account Ownership Between Employers and Employees’ (2022-2023) 14 (1) William & Mary Business Law Review.
Zankova, Bissera, and Valeriy Dimitrov, ‘Social Media Regulation: Models and Proposals’ (2020) 10 (2) Journalism and Mass Communication.
Zoe Argento, ‘Whose Social Network Account: A Trade Secret Approach to Allocating Rights’ (2013) 19 (2) Michigan Telecommunications and Technology Law Review.
B- Legal Articles
Aylix K. Jensen, Whose Followers Are They? Establishing Ownership of Company Social Media Accounts, legal article available at;
Deborah J. Enea, Ch. 11 Ruling Informs on Social Media Ownership Rights, Law360 on July 28, 2023, legal article available at:
<https://www.troutman.com/insights/ch-11-ruling-informs-on-social-media-ownership-rights.html>
Dyan Finguerra-DuCharme, Felicity Kohn and Abla Belhachmi, Social Media Account Ownership: When a Business Relationship Breaks Down, Who Gets the Accounts? (2024) 3. Legal Article available at:
John Gary Maynard, III & Daniel A. Schultz, Bang” Goes the Gavel: Ownership of Social Media, Accounts Hunton Retail Law Resource Hunton Retail Law Resource Analysis and Insight in Retail Law Analysis and Insight in Retail Law (2023) legal article available at:
Lawrence W. Gallick and Aaron P. Rubin, Owned: Second Circuit Holds That Traditional Principles Of Property Law Apply To Social Media Accounts (2024) legal article available at:
< https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/owned-second-circuit-holds-that-1724633/ >
Michael Masri and Pedram Tabib, Social Media at Work Raises Issues of Account Ownership (2012) legal article available at:
<https://meltzerlippe.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/pedram-tabibi-michael-masri-social-media.pdf>
Stewart McKelvey, Employer or employee: who owns social media accounts or contacts? (2019) Legal article available at;
Thomas C. Mahlum and Andrew J. Pieper, ‘From the Experts: Company vs. Employee Ownership of Social Media Assets’ (2012) legal article published on An ALM Website- Corporate Council August 20, Available at:
C. Case Law
Fairstar Heavy Transport N.V. v. Adkins, Justice Edwards-Stuart [2012] EWHC 2952 (TCC)
Phonedog V. Kravitz, 2011 U.S
JLM Couture, Inc. v. Gutman No. 21-2535 (2d Cir. 2024)
Re CTLI, LLC, No. 14-33564, 528 B.R. 359 (Bankr. S.D. Tex. 2015)
Hays Specialist Recruitment v. Ions, [2008] EWHC 745 (Ch)
Whitmar Publications Ltd. v. Gamage, [2013] EWHC 1881 (Ch)
D- Thesis
Louise Lundell, ‘Copyright and Social Media: A Legal Analysis of Terms for Use Of Photo Sharing Sites’ (2015) Thesis in Commercial and Tax Law (Intellectual Property Law) presented to the University of Jönköping 5. Available at:
< https://hj.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A883305&dswid=2253 >
Moses Kwame Kumah, ‘The Role of Social Media as a Platform for E-Commerce’ Vaasan Ammattikorkeakoulu, PhD Thesis submitted to University of Applied Sciences, International Business 3. Available at:
< https://www.theseus.fi/handle/10024/142134 >
Santa Prauliņa, Copyright Issues on Social Media (2021) Master thesis presented to the Riga Graduate School of Law 14. Available at:
<https://dspace.lu.lv/dspace/bitstream/handle/7/56516/Praulina_Santa.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y>
E- Terms of Service
Meta Terms of Service, clause 4. (Disputes) Available at:
< https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms?_rdr>
X Twitter Terms of Service, 6. General Available at:
< https://x.com/en/tos/previous/version_15>
Tiktok Terms of Service, 11. Other Terms. Available at:
< https://www.tiktok.com/legal/page/row/terms-of-service/en >
LinkedIn Terms of Service. Available at:
< https://www.linkedin.com/legal/user-agreement-summary >
YouTube terms of Service Available at;
< https://www.youtube.com/static?template=terms >
F- Iraqi Legislation
The Iraqi Civil Law (40) 1951.
The Iraqi Patents and Industrial Designs Law, Undisclosed Information and Integrated Circuits and Plant Varieties No. (65) of 1970, (as amended in 2004).
The Iraqi Copyright Protection Law No. (3) of 1971.
The Iraqi Commerce Law No. (30) of 1984.
The Consumer Protection Law No. (1) of 2010.
The E-signature and E-Transactions Law No. (78) of 2012.
The Iraqi Labor Law No. (37) of 2015.
G- English Legislation
Directive 2011/83/Eu of The European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011
Directive (Eu) 2019/2161 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019
The English Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
The English Consumer rights Act 2015.
The English Trade Secrets (Enforcement, etc.) Regulations 2018
Yaqeen Journal for legal studies