On the Bookshelf - Webmaster Rules

Click large or small 'A' above. Any text links, unless otherwise stated, will open in new windows.

Webmasters - those who create and manage web sites - often find themselves sorting through a host of legal problems. What is permissible to post? What information can be buried in HTML tags? Can the web site be sued because of its subscribers' actions? Here we explore issues faced by web site managers including legal liability, framing, linking and coding.

Improper use of someone else's copyright and or trademark in your meta tags can land you in legal hot water. Here's what you need to know:

A meta tag is programming code used in the creation of a web site. Meta tags are powerful tools because they have a direct effect on the frequency with which search engines will find a web site. Even though an Internet user never sees this code meta tags have been the subject of trademark lawsuits because companies have used them to divert or confuse consumers. For example: Company A inserts the trademark name of a rival business - Company B into its meta tag. A customer using a search engine to find Company B may be diverted to Company A instead. Or - John gets fired from Company C, creates a web site to spread false rumors about Company C and inserts Company C's trademark into his web sites meta tags. Customers searching for Company C are directed to John's false statements.

The deceptive use of another company's trademark in these or similar ways can result in a successful trademark infringement lawsuit leading to an award of financial damages and in some cases, attorney fees. But there are some instances when the use of another company's trademark is permitted in a meta tag. (See Permissible Uses below.)

Meta tags do not affect the appearance of a web site and are not visible when you look at a web page but they provide information regarding the content of the web site. While you are using Netscape Navigator or Internet Explorer you can actually view the meta tags on any web page by clicking on View then Source. The tags always start with the word meta.

Meta tags are used primarily by search engines that wade through the programming code and text of each page. When a search engine finds a search term in a meta tag, it indexes the web page and displays it in the search results. In the early days of Internet search engines, web page programmers learned to influence Internet searches by spiking the meta tags with the same word over and over to increase the likelihood of the page being hit. Most search engines have since been trained to largely ignore these repetitions.

A link takes a user from one web site to another by clicking on a link or image. It sounds simple enough - but every web site developer should know about links and the law.

Let's start with some basic definitions of online linking terminology. A link (or hyperlink) is any component of a web page that connects to another web page or another portion of the same web page. Clicking on highlighted text or a graphic image activates most links. For example: a user might click on the words Coca-Cola or an image of a Coke bottle to be transported to the Coca-Cola Company's home page. A deep link is a hyperlink that bypasses a web sites home page and takes the user directly to an internal page. For example: instead of linking to the home page of a newspaper a deep link might take the user directly to a newspaper article within the web site.

In addition to hyperlinks, framing or inlining can also connect objects. Framing is the process of allowing a user to view the contents of one web site while it is framed by information from another site, similar to the picture-in-picture feature offered on some televisions. For example: a user of a search engine may view the contents of an online store that is framed by the search engine's text and logos.

Inlining is the process of displaying a graphic file on one web site that originates at another. For example: inlining occurs if a user at site A can, without leaving site A, view a cartoon of the day featured on site B.

Linking is so fundamental to the functioning of the World Wide Web that many users feel that any legal restriction on their use of links is a violation of the right to travel and speak freely in cyberspace. But many businesses who don't want their valuable content associated with or connected to certain web sites are far less enthusiastic about some aspects of linking and have challenged some linking practices under theories of trademark, copyright, defamation, invasion of privacy and other laws. Here we briefly discuss some of the legal principles that may limit the right to link in some circumstances.

A link may defame if its effect is to create an untrue statement that injures the reputation of a person or business. Example: A student creates a hyperlink titled Alcoholics on the Net and links it to a picture of the school principal at another web site. The hyperlink is defamatory because it serves as an untrue statement that injures the reputation of the principal within the community.

Example: A disgruntled employee of Company A creates a hyperlink titled Washed Up that links to a hidden camera in Company A's executive washroom.

As discussed earlier, deep linking allows visitors to bypass information and advertisements at the home page and go directly to an internal page. As a result, sites can lose income because their revenues are often tied to the number of viewers who pass through their home page. Some businesses also dislike the practice because bypassing the homepage may mistakenly create the impression in a user's mind that the two linked sites are associated or endorse each other. There is no law prohibiting deep links.

Although copyright law may not be violated by these types of deep links, some businesses have attempted to stop the practice of deep linking by using legal theories such as unfair competition, trademark infringement and false advertising.

IMG links - a special type of programming HTML link - can be used to display graphic files from one web site that are stored on another. This is also illegal bandwidth use if done without permission unless the linkee owns both web sites.

Framing may trigger a dispute under copyright and trademark law theories because a framed site arguably alters the appearance of the content and creates the impression that its owner endorses or voluntarily chooses to associate with the framer. It is reasoned that the addition of the frame modifies the appearance of the linked web site and such modifications could, without authorization, amount to infringement.

If a web site owner is concerned about liability for links but is unable or unwilling to seek permission from the linkee, a prominently placed disclaimer may reduce the likelihood of legal problems. A disclaimer is a statement denying an endorsement or waiving liability for a potentially unauthorized activity. A disclaimer is rarely a cure-all for legal claims but if a disclaimer is prominently displayed and clearly written, a court may take it into consideration as a factor limiting damages. In some cases, such as trademark disputes, it may help prevent any liability. To minimize liability for any activities that occur when a visitor is taken to a linked web site, a webmaster may want to include a linking disclaimer on its home page or on any pages with otherwise troublesome links.

By providing links to other sites, (name of your web site) does not guarantee, approve or endorse the information or products available at these web sites nor does a link indicate any association with or endorsement by the linked web site to (name of your web site.)

The simplest method of avoiding linking problems is to seek permission. As a general rule permission is never required for a hyperlink that uses highlighted text (a text link.) For example: highlighting the word Wally as a link to the Wally home page does not require authorization and will not cause a dispute. But since the following types of links may cause disputes it makes sense to ask for permission for:

•  Deep links that bypass a linked web sites home page.
•  Links that result in framing.
•  IMG links that pull only certain elements from a web site (such as an image.)
•  Graphic links comprised of trademarked or copyright items from the linked site.

Knowing that realistically, only a small number of these links will ever lead to problems, many businesses choose to ignore the possibility of legal trouble. But others take a conservative approach and when in doubt, seek permission to link - often called a linking agreement.

A linking agreement can be oral or it can be informal - for example: an email authorization stating you have permission to link to our web sites home page using the words (insert the words in the link.) However, especially when deep linking or use of graphic trademarked and copyright items are involved, many Internet companies prefer more formal written agreements detailing the length of time and the elements of the link.

The below image links will open in external new windows. To use the FAE validation process access the image link (below) and insert the URL of this web page.