Facebook can do anything they want with your content.
Feb
17
Written by:
2009/02/17 08:48 AM
Facebook's has changed their terms of service (TOS). It used to say that when you closed an account on their network, any rights they claimed to the original content you uploaded would expire. But now that is no more. Now their TOS says that they right to your content for ever, meaning that they can do what they want with it for as long as they want.
Now, anything you upload to Facebook can be used by Facebook in any way they deem fit, forever, no matter what you do later. Even if you close your account, Facebook still has the right to do whatever it wants with your old content. They can even sublicense it if they want.
Many people have gotten angry over this. What do you think? IS this type of thing the demise of Facebook. Will people stop using it, stop uploading their content. Facebook has just hit the 175 million mark. Will that drop?
The question is though can this TOS be upheld in a court of law? As far as I know any such legal document has to be in the realm of fair and reasonable. When you use a service and asked to give up certain rights, is that deemed as fair and reasonable. Any content that you you right, or create is by default copyrighted to you. Is it fair and reasonable to give that up even though you are not using said service.
I am not a lawyer, perhaps someone reading can clarify, but I do not believe that this can be upheld in court.
Will you continue to use Facebook? Let us know what your thoughts are?
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