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Sony Hit With $1M Penalty For COPPA Violations
coondoggie writes "It really isn't a big enough penalty, and the company admitted no guilt, but Sony BMG Music Entertainment today agreed to pay $1 million as part of a settlement to resolve Federal Trade Commission charges that it knowingly violated the privacy rights of over 30,000 underage children.
Specifically the FTC said the company violated the agency's Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and the FTC did say the penalty was its largest ever in a COPPA case.
To provide resources to parents and their children about children's privacy in general, and social networking sites in particular, the penalty order requires Sony Music to link to certain FTC consumer education materials for the next five years."
Do the violated children get the money?
Boot Windows, Linux, and ESX over the network for free.
Or do they weasel their way into spending $1M on anti-"Piracy" propaganda instead? "Look we're spending money educating the children!"
However as I'm sure others will point out, Sony shareholders will only lose pocket money in lost profits (or alternately perhaps the execs can make do with 16 hookers at the corporate retreat instead of 20 this year). Boo-hoo.
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There are non-underage children? I guess technically everyone is someones child, but..
The FTC's complaint alleges that Sony Music violated COPPA by failing to provide sufficient notice on the Sony Music Web sites of what information the company collects online from children, how it uses such information, and its disclosure practices; failing to provide direct notice to parents of Sony Music's information practices; failing to obtain verifiable parental consent; and, failing to provide a reasonable means for parents to review the personal information collected from their children and to refuse to permit its further use or maintenance.
Seems to me like they were just a big, fat example, and this is possibly a sign of things to come.
...because it seems there is no statute that hasn't been overturned. Please help me to be better educated. Here's the best I could find on short notice... COPA, CIPA, COPPA, etc.
Apparently, it is this one.
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998
Comment removed based on user account deletion
COPPA applies to under-13 only.
See YrWrstNtmr's post.
I have developed a truly marvelous proof of this comment, which this signature is too narrow to contain.
Bulk discount. You know how it is.
Gee.
1000000/30000 = 33.34 rounded
So, that's under thirty four dollars per child.
Now how much do all these jokers want to get when a child violates the "privacy rights" of a song?
Not that anyone actually did anything wrong in this case mind you. No.
all the best,
drew
FreeMusicPush If you want to see more Free Music made, listen to Free
So the RIAA typically goes after $750 per song for a COPYRIGHT violation (but has asked for much more if I remember correctly).
For violating the PRIVACY of CHILDREN, Sony is charged $33 per child...
Isn't it amazing what society values more? Oops...scary is the word I was looking for, not amazing.
using System.Awesome;
Hmm, that is confusing... They should rename one of them to make it more specific:
Child Online Protection Act, for Filtering and Elimination of Electronic Lewdness
sic transit gloria mundi
Sony's annual revenue exceed $5B/year, so a $1M penalty is 0.02%. That would be like fining the average American middle-class family $10. It's basically a parking ticket. Wow what a deterrent! With penalties like that you know they'll never do anything like that again!