Blogging - Are You Exposing Yourself To Legal Liabilities?

In November 2006, Blogging Asia: A Windows Live Report launched by using Microsoft’s MSN and Windows Live Online Services Business revealed that 46% or almost half-of-one web populace have a weblog [Blogging Phenomenon Sweeps Asia available at PRNewswire.Com].

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Blogging Asia:

A Windows Live Report was conducted online at the MSN portal throughout 7 nations in Asia, particularly Hong Kong, India, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. Interestingly, the document observed that 56% of Malaysians blogged to specific their perspectives, even as forty-nine% blogged to keep pals and circle of relatives updated. This article focuses on Malaysian regulation, but as the Internet transcends boundaries and jurisdictions, many countries’ legal guidelines may also observe. In Malaysia, bloggers face criminal dangers that convey civil or crook liabilities along with;

(a) copyright;
(b) trademark;
(c) defamation; and
(d) sedition.

Other than the above, a blogger has to recall other felony dangers along with fraud, breach of confidentiality, and misrepresentation to not be addressed in this text. However, copyright protects the way artists or authors express their idea or reality on a chunk of labor, not the underlying idea or reality itself. Copyright protects the originality of the work and prohibits unauthorized copying. Copyright safety is eligible for the subsequent works to talk to Section 7 (1) of the Copyright Act, 1987:-
(a) literary works, including written works, novels, source codes in PC program and net pages and content material in multimedia productions;
(b) musical and dramatic works, together with the musical score, plays, and television scripts;
(c) inventive works, including drawings, sculptures, and pictures; and
(d) sound recordings and movies, together with films (traditional celluloid and numerous video codecs), statistics, tapes, and CDs of tune, drama, or lectures.

Unfortunately, a good deal of the copyright infringement occurring on the Internet goes undetected. New blogs often use present blogs for their content, which is carried out through copying or linking. Apart from that, posting copyrighted snapshots, designs, product snapshots, or product packaging from another internet site is also unlawful.

There are “guidelines of thumb” to comply with whilst growing or posting contents along with- (a) create one’s own authentic photo, photo, code, and phrases; (b) use licensed works within the scope of authorized use laid down by the owner, and (c) use free pictures of the Internet as long as the terms of the author of the image are followed.

The identical “policies of thumb” follow while posting programming scripts as it’s miles typically a violation of copyright law to appropriate programming scripts from 0.33 events. Regarding postings on one’s blog through third parties, the blog owner may get hold of an implied license to the postings made by way of 1/3 events. When offering podcast I., E. Recorded and downloadable audio report to be downloaded from blogs, it is nice that the podcast does not include any copyrighted tune belonging to others, thus protecting oneself from copyright infringement suits. If copyright protects the way ideas or facts are expressed, a trademark protects words, designs, terms, numbers, drawings, or snapshots related to products and services.

A trademark proprietor enjoys one-of-a-kind proper to apply his mark when it comes to his products and services refer Section 35 (1) of the Trademark Act, 1976. Trademark safety offers proper to the trademark owner to save you others from using an identical trademark with the same goods or similar goods. This is probable to motive confusion to the general public refer to Section 19 (1) and 19 (2) of the Trademark Act, 1976.

How does a blogger infringe a trademark belonging to every other? One instance is when a blogger posts links on emblems belonging to a trademark owner. When a tourist clicks on the trademark, it will immediately lead the traveler to the blogger’s blog rather than directing the tourist to the trademark owner’s website. Such linking can also motive confusion or deception. It increases the danger that the blog is in a few manners related to or associated with the trademark owner’s products and offerings.

Generally, the term defamation refers to a false declaration made by a person or a corporation. This is damaging to their recognition. The person publishing the announcement should have regarded or need to have known that the assertion changed into fake. While the Internet provides the arena in which defaming assertion can be made or posted, there are no unique rules that deal with defamation on the Internet in Malaysia. In Malaysia, the Defamation Act, 1957 applies to guides in printed materials and broadcasting thru radio or television. Since the regulation applies to posted or broadcast substances, consequently, in principle, it applies to materials such as blogs and websites published on the Internet.