A business operator used Twitter to make inaccurate criticisms about the products sold by a rival business. Does the rival business have a remedy under the misleading or deceptive conduct provisions of the ACL? Select one: a. The ACL is not concerned with the use of social media. b. The business criticised has no remedy under the ACL as Twitter is only social media. The statements are therefore not made in trade or commerce. c. Only consumers can complain under the ACL as they are the ones purchasing the goods being referred to. d. The business may have a remedy under the ACL if the business operator was using Twitter as part of its commercial operations.
Question
A business operator used Twitter to make inaccurate criticisms about the products sold by a rival business. Does the rival business have a remedy under the misleading or deceptive conduct provisions of the ACL?
Select one:
a. The ACL is not concerned with the use of social media.
b. The business criticised has no remedy under the ACL as Twitter is only social media. The statements are therefore not made in trade or commerce.
c. Only consumers can complain under the ACL as they are the ones purchasing the goods being referred to.
d. The business may have a remedy under the ACL if the business operator was using Twitter as part of its commercial operations.
Solution
The correct answer is:
d. The business may have a remedy under the ACL if the business operator was using Twitter as part of its commercial operations.
Here's why:
The Australian Consumer Law (ACL) prohibits misleading or deceptive conduct in trade or commerce. This includes statements made on social media platforms like Twitter if they are used as part of a business's commercial operations.
In this case, if the business operator was using Twitter to promote its own products or to criticise the products of a rival business, this could be considered conduct in trade or commerce. Therefore, if the criticisms were inaccurate and could mislead or deceive consumers, the rival business may have a remedy under the ACL.
The other options are incorrect. The ACL does apply to the use of social media (option a), and businesses, not just consumers, can complain under the ACL if they are affected by misleading or deceptive conduct (option c). Also, statements made on social media can be considered as made in trade or commerce if they are part of a business's commercial operations (option b).
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