Regulating Content On Social Media: Copyright, Terms Of Service And Technological Features

Description

How are users influenced by social media platforms when they generate content, and does this influence affect users’ compliance with copyright laws? These are pressing questions in today’s internet age, and Regulating Content on Social Media answers them by analysing how the behaviours of social media users are regulated from a copyright perspective. Corinne Tan, an internet governance specialist, compares copyright laws on selected social media platforms, namely Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, Twitter and Wikipedia, with other regulatory factors such as the terms of service and the technological features of each platform. This comparison enables her to explore how each platform affects the role copyright laws play in securing compliance from their users. Through a case study detailing the content generative activities undertaken by a hypothetical user named Jane Doe, as well as drawing from empirical studies, the book argues that – in spite of copyright’s purported regulation of certain behaviours – users are 'nudged' by the social media platforms themselves to behave in ways that may be inconsistent with copyright laws. Cover......Page 1 Half Title......Page 2 Title Page......Page 4 Copyright Page......Page 5 Prologue......Page 6 Acknowledgements......Page 8 Table of Contents......Page 10 List of tables......Page 12 I. Regulation on social media......Page 14 II. Regulation of content-generative behaviours from a copyright perspective......Page 18 III. Approach......Page 21 IV. Structure......Page 22 Notes......Page 24 I. Defining social media and user-generated content......Page 30 III. A day in the life of Jane......Page 33 Notes......Page 41 I. Relevant copyright standards......Page 44 A. Subsistence: works and other subject matter protected by copyright......Page 45 B. Subsistence: originality......Page 47 C. Subsistence: authorship......Page 49 D. Subsistence: fixation, recording or reduction to material form......Page 51 E. Infringement: scope of protection......Page 54 F. Infringement: other rights......Page 60 G. Infringement: remedies......Page 65 H. Infringement: fair use and fair dealing exceptions......Page 66 I. Conflict of laws issues......Page 69 J. Summary......Page 71 A. Jane’s use of the music video clip on YouTube as her morning alarm......Page 84 B. Jane’s ‘pinning’ of the YouTube music video clip on her pin-board titled ‘My Favourite Things’ on Pinterest......Page 85 C. Jane’s use of Evangeline’s earlier commentary on Facebook to create her own commentary......Page 86 D. Jane’s use of multiple photographs of newborn babies available on the pin-boards of other Pinterest users to create a collage to share on Pinterest......Page 87 G. Zee’s contribution to Wikipedia on ‘income inequality’ using what Jane has written......Page 89 H. Jane’s creation and sharing of a new video clip by way of ‘vidding’ on YouTube, and subsequently on Facebook......Page 90 I. Cheryl’s use of ‘stills’ from Jane’s video clip as thumbnail images on her website......Page 91 J. Other users’ partial use of Jane’s collage to create their own, and sharing the same on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter......Page 92 III. Conclusion......Page 93 Notes......Page 95 Chapter Three Application of the terms of service......Page 111 A. Ownership and licensing......Page 112 3. YouTube......Page 113 5. Wikipedia......Page 114 B. Copyright policy......Page 115 1. Facebook......Page 116 4. Twitter......Page 117 C. Indemnification and limitation of liability......Page 118 5. Wikipedia......Page 119 2. Pinterest......Page 120 E. Summary......Page 121 C. Jane’s use of Evangeline’s earlier commentary on Facebook to create her own commentary......Page 125 E. Jane’s simultaneous sharing of the collage on Facebook and Twitter......Page 126 H. Jane’s creation and sharing of a new video clip by way of ‘vidding’ on YouTube and subsequently on Facebook......Page 127 J. Other users’ partial use of Jane’s collage to create their own, and sharing the same on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter......Page 128 III. Relationship with the copyright regimes......Page 129 A. Alignment with the copyright regimes......Page 130 1. Vesting of ‘ownership’ under the terms of service......Page 131 2. Imposition of the terms of service on third parties......Page 133 3. Choice of governing law and jurisdiction......Page 134 (a) Choice of law......Page 135 (b) Choice of jurisdiction......Page 137 (c) Applicable copyright legislation......Page 138 (d) Implications......Page 139 IV. Conclusion......Page 140 Notes......Page 142 Chapter Four Influence of the technological features......Page 150 I. Technological features......Page 151 2. Modification......Page 152 3. Dissemination......Page 154 B. Technological features that constrain content-generative activities......Page 155 1. Limiting the modification of content......Page 156 3. Allowing for requests to remove content......Page 157 C. Summary......Page 159 C. Jane’s use of Evangeline’s earlier commentary on Facebook to create her own commentary......Page 163 G. Zee’s contribution to Wikipedia on ‘income inequality’ using what Jane has written......Page 164 J. Other users’ partial use of Jane’s collage to create their own, and sharing the same on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter......Page 165 III. Relationship with the copyright regimes......Page 166 A. Attribution of generator of content......Page 167 B. Notice and takedown mechanisms......Page 168 C. Filtering out content......Page 169 IV. Conclusion......Page 171 Notes......Page 173 I. Perceptions and awareness of copyright laws......Page 178 1. Perceived irrelevance and poor understanding of copyright laws......Page 179 2. Expectation that digital content is free......Page 180 3. Greater impact of perceptions on compliance with copyright laws......Page 181 B. Users’ perceptions and awareness of copyright laws......Page 182 C. Terms of service and users’ awareness of copyright laws......Page 185 D. Technological features and users’ perceptions of copyright laws......Page 187 II. Scenario four: regulation by copyright laws, the terms of service and technological features......Page 190 A. Jane’s use of the music video clip on YouTube as her morning alarm......Page 191 C. Jane’s use of Evangeline’s earlier commentary on Facebook to create her own commentary......Page 192 D. Jane’s use of multiple photographs of newborn babies available on the pin-boards of other Pinterest users to create a collage to share on Pinterest......Page 193 E. Jane’s simultaneous sharing of the collage on Facebook and Twitter......Page 194 G. Zee’s contribution to Wikipedia on ‘income inequality’ using what Jane has written......Page 195 H. Jane’s creation and sharing of a new video clip by way of ‘vidding’ on YouTube, and subsequently on Facebook......Page 196 I. Cheryl’s use of ‘stills’ from Jane’s video clip as thumbnail images on her website......Page 197 K. Editor Jasper’s use of Jane’s collage on the cover page of his magazine......Page 198 L. Concluding observations......Page 199 III. Regulation of content-generative behaviours by copyright laws......Page 200 IV. Conclusion......Page 202 Notes......Page 204 Conclusion......Page 211 I. Fairness from a user’s perspective......Page 213 II. Why regulating social media matters......Page 214 Notes......Page 218 A. Articles......Page 221 B. Books......Page 226 A. US cases......Page 230 B. UK cases......Page 232 D. Other cases......Page 233 IV. Treaties/Supranational materials......Page 234 V. Others......Page 235 Appendix 1: Screenshots of the technological features......Page 243 Index......Page 271 Back Cover......Page 280