Facebook, in a bid to get their members back on side, have placed the Terms of Service issue in the hands of the users. Users will be able to make their own comments and eventually vote on the policies that Facebook uses. These terms are called, by Facebook, Principles and Statement of Rights and Responsibilities.
Last month Facebook changed their Terms of Service (TOS), a move that completely outraged their users. Users began to jump ship until Facebook U-turned and re-instated their old Terms of Service. Now Facebook is trying a change of their terms again but this time they are including the users in a hope to find a new TOS that pleases everyone.
The new Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, once settled upon, will replace the site’s existing terms of use. Importantly, it states that Facebook’s licence to a user’s content will end when the user stops using Facebook and deletes their account. It was the lack of such a clause that caused the outrage last month.
Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, had this to say, “The past week reminded us that users feel a real sense of ownership over Facebook itself, not just the information they share. Rather than simply reissue a new terms of use, the changes we’re announcing today are designed to open up Facebook so that users can participate meaningfully in our policies and our future.”
The two drafts have now been unveiled for the users to vote on. 30 per cent of the sites users have to vote for a draft for it to be passed. Facebook currently has 175 million users, that means 52 million votes.
So get to work everyone and vote for the TOS you like.
