IP & Technology Series
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Understanding your legal responsibilities is crucial before you go live with your digital platform. The legal responsibilities of a digital platform owner includes, publishing usage policies and implementing security measures in connection with the use of the digital platform. Publishing and implementing legal policies help a digital platform with regulating its use and limiting potential risks and associated liability. A digital platform that has published policies and is compliant with law is considered significantly more credible than one which hasn’t.
Let's explore the various legal documents that are vital to ensure compliance with the Information Technology Act, 2000; to protect the interests of the owner and the users of the digital platform; and to provide a better user experience.
Legal Documents Mandated by the Information Technology Act, 2000:
A Privacy Policy: Digital platforms that collect information must provide a policy for privacy, disclosure, and handling of such information generally.
A Cookie Policy: Digital platforms that use cookies or similar tracking tools to collect user information must have a policy stating the purpose and the terms and conditions for use of the cookies or similar tracking tools by the digital platforms.
Terms & Conditions or a User Agreement: Digital platforms which allow the user to access and use such digital platforms must publish a user agreement or terms & conditions setting out the rules and regulations for use of the digital platform, which includes, among various other things, user rights, user obligations, and prohibited actions.
Other Legal Documents for the better operation of Digital Platforms:
Disclaimers: Digital platforms must display disclaimers to protect the digital platforms from potential liabilities arising out of a claim of lack of notice against a potential risk. Disclaimers are statements that clarify the intended purpose of a digital platform including its features and services; the condition in which the digital platform is provided to the user; and the limited role and responsibilities of the digital platform, etc.
An Intellectual Property (IP) Policy or a Content Policy: Digital platforms must also have a policy for reserving intellectual property rights by the digital platforms as also for protection of the intellectual property embodied in the content that is provided on the digital platforms by the digital platforms themselves and/or its users.
Specific Business Terms & Conditions: Depending on the nature of the services offered or the business operated, a digital platform may, as a good practice, publish policies setting out specific business terms in connection with shipping, return, exchange, refund, and other operational aspects of the service or the business.
Community Guidelines: Digital platforms that facilitate user interaction must set out community guidelines for user behavior permitted and that which is expressly prohibited while interacting with other users on the digital platform.
A Marketing Policy: Digital platforms that contact users for promotional purposes must have a marketing policy that sets out the conditions and manner in which a user can be contacted.
This article only provides a general overview and not an exhaustive list of the legal documents necessary for digital platforms. Not all legal documents mentioned above may be needed for a digital platform, as it depends on the nature of the digital platform. Each digital platform will need different legal documents that cater to their specific nature and requirement. It is advisable to consult with a legal professional to ensure you have all necessary legal documents in place as well as to ensure you do not have anything unnecessary in place that creates unintended legal obligations.
In the upcoming articles, I will address some of these legal documents in detail.
About the Author
Ekta Jhaveri has been with MZD Legal Consultancy and practicing law since 2016. Ekta is a part of the Transaction Advisory; Technology; Media Disputes; and General Corporate teams at MZD Legal Consultancy. She can be contacted at ekta@mzdlegal.in
About MZD Legal Consultancy
MZD Legal Consultancy is a boutique law firm in Mumbai, India. The firm was established in 2011 and comprises professionally qualified lawyers with varied levels of experience and expertise in specific practice areas. To know more, click here www.mzdlegal.in