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Local law for the social Web

Kathryn McConnachie
By Kathryn McConnachie, Digital Media Editor at ITWeb.
Johannesburg, 29 Feb 2012

Local lawyer Paul Jacobson is launching a specialised Web and digital media legal compliance and services firm. The new venture keeps the same name as Jacobson's popular blog “web.tech.law”, and has its origins in the unique “new media” focus Jacobson created within Jacobson Attorneys in 2008.

Jacobson says that, as businesses are starting to adopt social media strategies, consumers are also actively sharing their experiences with businesses and engaging with brands via the social networks.

“Consumers have discovered they have powerful voices through these services, and their conversations with businesses online are giving rise to an unusual set of legal and compliance risks which, increasingly, cannot be addressed using conventional legal tactics,” says Jacobson.

The new firm offers services in three broad categories: consulting and advice, frameworks and solutions, and corporate education.

“Businesses began to embrace social media in about 2007 and it took a few years before some sort of social media strategy became more commonplace in business. Recognition of the legal risks only came later and I started to see a demand for legal services focused on the social Web in about 2009 and 2010 when it began to pick up,” explains Jacobson. “I've seen a greater awareness that there are risks to be addressed in the last year or two but some of that demand is being addressed by firms that adopt an often inappropriate approach to these issues.”

Jacobson says that, for the time being, he will handle the bulk of web.tech.law's business, with his candidate attorney at Jacobson Attorneys seconding to the new firm on an ad hoc basis to help with research and supporting work. He says though that, as the business grows, he will look at taking on suitably skilled lawyers. “The challenge is that the lawyers who are likely to have the skills that web.tech.law will need are mostly coming through law school or are in the early stages of their legal careers in more conventional law firms.”

Local legislation

Jacobson says risks involved with the social Web include data protection and privacy, content licensing infringements, reputational harm and unlawful competition. “Neglecting to pay adequate attention to these concerns can result in very real and substantial harm, not to mention a failure to comply with a growing body of laws, regulations and rules.”

In SA, Jacobson says, there aren't yet any specific laws that deal with “new media”. “But legislation like the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, the Consumer Protection Act and the Protection of Personal Information (POPI) Bill will be the core statutes regulating important aspects of this space.

“Challenges include managing personal information responsibly and still marketing effectively; ensuring compliance with this legislation, other regulations and social services' legal frameworks; and dealing with some tricky situations which could arise, such as employees taking Twitter followers to competitors and managing increasing reputational issues arising from social engagement online. There will also be privacy issues, and a lot of them, as POPI nears finalisation and is implemented, as well as once it is in effect.”

Beyond the law

Jacobson adds that web.tech.law recognises the need for non-legal services to better address the many facets involved in the social space. “So we collaborate with a variety of professionals who are experts in social marketing, strategy, reputation management and other essential social Web-related services.” Strategic partners for web.tech.law's launch include Cerebra Communications and Vuma Reputation Management.

“It is an empowering platform and working in this space requires you to be part social marketer, part therapist and more than a little fanatical about the social and digital media. Very few lawyers combine these qualities and very few lawyers can appreciate just how differently we need to think about these challenges,” says Jacobson.

“We are obsessed with the medium. We're practically natives. We understand the landscape and we spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about and developing creative solutions to unusual challenges.”

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