Consumer Campaigners Read T&C Of Their Mobile Phone Apps To Prove a Point (bbc.com)

From a BBC report: Norwegians have spent more than 30 hours reading out terms and conditions from smartphone apps in a campaign by the country's consumer agency. The average Norwegian has 33 apps, the Norwegian Consumer Council says, whose terms and conditions together run longer than the New Testament. To prove the "absurd" length, the council got Norwegians to read each of them out in real time on their website. The reading finished on Wednesday, clocking in at 31:49:11. Some of the world's most popular apps were chosen, including Netflix, YouTube, Facebook, Skype, Instagram and Angry Birds. Finn Myrstad from the Norwegian Consumer Council, said: "The current state of terms and conditions for digital services is bordering on the absurd."

Comments

Terms and conditions are generally obnoxious

[Anonymous Coward]

Has anyone read Slashdot's T&C? There are some onerous things in there, too. It's not exactly short or easy to understand. This is pretty common, unfortunately. And Slashdot is no better.

Re:Terms and conditions are generally obnoxious

[DaHat]

Most, but you can still have fun with em from time to time if you really don't care about the T&C's.

I've a few apps on a less than popular app store, each of which have some boiler plate terms which I wrote ages ago, and still to this date gets the occasional happy or angry email about it:

This license agreement represents a contract, between the author of this program (*author name*), and the user of it (you), that both parties freely enter into for the use of this software (app name).

By installing and/or using this program you give your consent to this license and thus you agree to the following:

You will not:

• Reverse engineer, sell, sublicense, or otherwise misappropriate this program or it's components except where otherwise agreed to between both parties.
• Use this program in any unlawful manner.

Furthermore, you agree that:

• Any allegations of abuse that arise as a result of this program are the sole responsibility of the user of the program and at no time will the author be in any way accountable except where forbidden by law.
• You are not now, nor have ever been a member of the Communist Party.
• Your use of this program is strictly voluntary and can, as such, end at any time at the sole or joint decision of you or the author.
• *author name* is a cool and happening guy.
• In the event this contract is terminated, your right to use the licensed software is also terminated.
• All disputes resulting from the interpretation of this agreement shall be settled at the author's whim.
• You will hold harmless and completely indemnify the author of this program (*author name*) from any civil or criminal liabilities related to the use, possession, transmission or thought about this program.
• You will not donate to Obama for America, DCCC, DSCC, DNC, Jay Inslee in any way or any fund supporting Democrats running for any office during the 2012 campaign.
• If any provision or provisions of this Agreement shall be held to be invalid, illegal, unenforceable or in conflict with the law of any jurisdiction, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.

Re:Who is to blame?

[Piata]

A good start.

Re:Who is to blame?

[jfdavis668]

We should sue whoever is responsible.

Re:Who is to blame?

[mwvdlee]

This has nothing to do with a litigious society.
T&C's are this way because nobody in their right mind would accept them if they weren't obfuscated beyond comprehension.

Re:Yes, they are stupid

[michelcolman]

Funny how they call it "bordering on the absurd". I think we've gotten well across that border by now.

Re:Yes, they are stupid

[Calydor]

You are missing the point.

These are the average 33 apps the average citizen has installed. You need to know ALL OF THEM as they are not perfectly identical, and you need to somehow remember which T&C is connected to which app.

Trust

[captaindomon]

So what is interesting is that 100 years ago, most business was transacted on trust. Shaking someone's hand and trusting them to be honest. Then we got into a lot of legalese. But now we've gone back - there is *so much* legalese around *everything* that we are back to doing business based on trust again. We buy apps from companies that we generally trust. We do business online based on reputations of companies. So the legalese has peaked and now we don't even pay attention to it anymore. It's interesting how we have gone full circle.

We need standard TOS

[gurps_npc]

A government agency should right up a generic TOS, with appropriate safeguards for consumer rights as well as for the corporation. Even include a reasonable requirement for arbitration (one that works both ways - they can't sue you if you can't sue them).

Then we could say that you can only get consent by click if the TOS was approved by the agency. Otherwise, you would need a real, actual ink on paper signature to get consent for TOS.

Nice compromise - corps can still create bullshit TOS, but they need to get you to sign paper to use that.