Mini Law Lesson: How Brands Can Use

Twitter’s New App: VineBrian Heidelberger

bheidelb@winston.comInfo @ www.winston.com/bheidelberger

What is Vine?

• Video App similar to Instagram (photos)

• Post a video up to 6 seconds played in a loop along with 140 characters

• Like Twitter, users can follow, like and comment on the videos

• Owned by Twitter but separate

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Sample Personal Vine Video

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Sample Personal Vine Video

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Sample Brand Vine Video

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Third Party Rights

• Don’t include without permission images owned by a third party, images of people, anything that infringes a trademark

• Treat any Vine Video similar to a television commercial and undertake legal clearance

• Ensure that the licensed rights include Vine specifically, if you can, and take down the Vine Video before the license expires.

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Advertising Issues

• Vine Videos made by brands most likely constitute advertising. May be some exceptions (but few)

• If Vine Video makes any advertising claims, such claims must be substantiated.

• Certain Vine Videos could be seen as “commericals” by SAG so you may want to use non-signatories to create

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IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER

• I am not your attorney.• This is not legal advice.

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Use of Celebrities

• Relatively Limited Risk of Challenge Commenting on or liking a single Vine video

posted by a celebrity that positively mentions your brand;

• Higher Risk of Challenge Use of a celebrity’s name or likeness or

otherwise linking a celebrity to brand Use of a celebrity’s Vine Video or third party’s

comments on outside of social media without permission.

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Following and Commenting on Non-Celebrity Vine Users or Vine Videos

• Relatively limited risk of Challenge Following and comment on other Vine

users and Vine Videos as long you do not imply endorsement and comment in a positive fashion.

• Carefully assess the risk with the legal department before following or commenting on competitors or their Vine videos.

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Vine Video Contests

• Vine does not currently have specific terms and conditions which apply to promotions

• Twitter, which owns Vine, does have promotions guidelines which discourage the creation of multiple accounts to enter the promotion and posting of the same Tweet (Vine) multiple times.

• Other typical UGC prohibitions apply.

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Vine Video Contests (Cont.)

• Vine Video is public upon creation and Brand would be unable to screen entries prior to publication.

• Likely will contain content that connects the Vine Video to Brand, since the mechanism for entry would presumably be through use of a hashtag to the Vine Video text area.

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Vine Video Contests (Cont.)

• Description field for each Vine Video is limited to 140 characters, which provides brands with a small space in which to make required disclosures such as the official rules of the promotion.

• Brands can disclose promotion terms and details through the use of tiny URLs.

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More Mini Law Lessons @ adage.com and

youtube.com/BrianHeidelberger

• Can Brands Use Celebrities in Social Media Without Permission• How to Handle a Cease and Desist• Law of Facebook• Law of Apps• Law of Pinterest

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