Introduction It has taken the UK 50 years to follow the US example of having a televised debate among the main parties' leaders – we are not the quickest when it comes to embracing new media! However, television is now "old media" in comparison with the internet, and particularly when looking at social networking sites, where much of the publicity effort is being aimed.  And the rate at which the use of new media is being used for marketing purposes (whether for political, fast moving consumer goods, financial services and a whole swathe of others) is bringing with it challenges on how to prevent it being abused. This month's edition highlights how the various law enforcers are grappling with this issue.  Whether it is politicians abusing marketing and privacy laws (as well as personal data issues), in their eagerness to tap the power of "new media", or that epitome of new media, Google, being faced with brand owners' anger for "selling" brands to the highest bidder for its keywords service. Couple this with the Government pushing through the Digital Economy Bill to become an Act (before the dissolution of Parliament) with its controversial internet termination provisions, and the message becomes clear: new media cannot be allowed to be abused.  Behave or the consequences will be serious.

 

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UK Information Commissioner fires a warning shot at the political parties

As election fever grips the UK, the Information Commissioner has warned the political parties and their respective candidates that they need to understand the importance of privacy rules when promoting themselves to voters...read more 

 

Should you encourage or ban social media in the workplace?

Over the past few years Web 2.0 – the rise of social networks and virtual worlds – or to be honest whatever we choose to describe the new form of the internet, has grown rapidly and has become both a social as well as a business phenomenon...read more

 

European Court bowls internet advertisers a Google-y

The European Court of Justice (Grand Chamber) ("ECJ") has now ruled that an advertiser who uses keywords identical with a registered proprietor's trade mark (without consent) to advertise their own goods, runs the risk of this constituting trade mark infringement...read more

 

OFT smokes out unlawful pricing practices

After a gruelling seven year Competition probe the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) finally imposed fines of £225m on a number of leading tobacco manufacturers and retailers relating to the fixing of the resale prices of tobacco products in the UK...read more

 

UK Information Commissioner gets tough on charities and not for profits

Many of the well publicised investigations by the UK Information Commissioner into data protection breaches and information security failures have in the past focused on household names in retail, banking and financial services. The recent investigation into a data security breach by a UK registered charity demonstrates that even charitable institutions and not for profits are subject to regulatory scrutiny...read more