Brands may sue over ads on terrorist sites
ADVERTISING agencies and Google could face multi-millionpound legal claims from major companies over t he scandal which has seen their brands linked to extremist websites, a top media lawyer has warned.
Household names – including Volkswagen, Aviva and Heinz – have suspended or are reviewing their advertising with Google, which owns YouTube.
This comes after learning that their brands have been promoted on YouTube videos posted by extremists showing scenes of terrorism.
Now lawyer Sarah MacDonald, senior associate at leading media law specialists Wiggin LLP, has said advertisers could be entitled to compensation from Google or advertising agencies if their brands appeared on inappropriate websites.
She said: ‘ Advertisers could have a potential claim for contractual damages if their content appeared alongside inappropriate content.’
Around 250 companies are thought to have suspended advertising with the internet giant. They i ncl ude L’ Oreal, I TV, McDonald’s, Marks & Spencer, and Coca-Cola.
The dispute has spread to America where investment bank JP Morgan Chase has slashed its advertising exposure online – reducing the number of websites it uses from 400,000 to 5,000 – after reports that other US firms had seen their brands appearing on sites promoting terrorism.
Google and leading advertising agencies declined to comment on the possibility of legal action.
In the wake of last month’s Westminster attack, Google, Twitter, Facebook and Microsoft met Home Secretary Amber Rudd last week and agreed to create ‘new technical tools’ to remove terrorist propaganda.