Re: Trading Standards
Typical Euro arguement, lets grass up (Insert name of any American web based company) because a commentard left a crappy review about our product that we didn't like.
The issue of "Libel" or "Defamation" is ONLY between the actual negative reviewer and the company or person getting the negative review, Amazon just provided a service and a forum for feedback. They have no business censoring or editing the review and are not liable for what its' posters say.
Have you ever heard of Yelp? or Angies List? They provide similar systems that effectively do the same thing.
If any company was going to test the legal waters it would have been those companies as they are structured around positive or negative reviews.
http://ideas.time.com/2013/01/07/yelp-reviewers-beware-you-can-get-sued/
"Under federal law — 47 U.S.C. § 230, to be specific — websites like Yelp and Angie’s List are shielded from being sued for defamation, but the writers — people like Perez — are legally responsible for what they write and lawsuits can be filed against them. That may not be what a lot of people are thinking when they go on Angie’s List or Amazon to air grievances. In fact, Perez told the Washington Post that when she posted her reviews it never occurred to her that she might end up in court or on the hook for thousands of dollars in legal fees — not to mention the monetary damages. Dietz is suing for $750,000, and awards can go far higher than that. In 2006, a jury awarded a Florida woman $11.3 million in damages against a woman who made defamatory comments on an Internet message board.
The Virginia Supreme Court’s ruling is an important defense of people’s right to go online and express their views. But it is also a reminder that anyone who crosses the line may have to pay up — big time."
Biting the hand that feeds IT
