Sunday, 31 October 2010

Legality and websites


The more successful a film is, the more likely that fans would want to buy products which provide more information about the film; for example, interviews with cast, character profiles and merchandise. It is certain that companies do not just make money by selling DVD's - due to the developing nature of the media and easy access to the internet, websites are necessary for promotion and success.

There are certain requirements which websites have to follow and abide by the rules - this applies when the company advertises a product, has an online magazine and sells products.
  • E-commerce and distance selling regulations may apply even if you are only using your website for promotion and not to actually sell products or services online – need to provide information about the business. 
  • Data protection regulations apply if you are collecting information from your visitors through online forms, by e-mail or telephone – this is crucial when fans interact on the website in competitions, purchasing merchandise etc.
  • Trade descriptions - If you are describing your goods or services online then your descriptions must be accurate and not misleading.
  • Access for users with disabilities is an important issue, and parts of the Disability Discrimination Act of 2004 may affect websites – need to take in consideration to have a user-friendly website, with clear font style, size and colour with simple links.
  • Intellectual property rights - have rights regarding the information that you publish on your site through international copyright laws. Cannot infringe anyone else’s rights – therefore will need permission to use other people's logos, images or text before you include them in your site. 
  • The EU 'Anti-spam' laws - the 'Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003' only relate to web sites if 'Cookies' are used to track visitor behaviour. You have to tell users that you are using cookies, explain why and show them how to switch them off.



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