facebook press release 260209

8/14/2019 Facebook Press Release 260209

1/4

PRESS RELEASE

PARIS, LE 26 FEBRUARY2009

Facebook Opens Governance of Service and PolicyProcess to Users

Releases Draft Principles and Statement of Rights and ResponsibilitiesFor User Review, Comment and Vote

PALO ALTO, Calif. February 26, 2008 Facebook today announced a newapproach to site governance that offers its users around the world an

unprecedented role in determining the future policies governing the service.Facebook released the first proposals subject to these new procedures TheFacebook Principles, a set of values that will guide the development of the service,and Statement of Rights and Responsibilities that make clear Facebooks and userscommitments related to the service. Over the coming weeks, users will have theopportunity to review, comment and vote on these documents. An update to thePrivacy Policy is also planned and this change will be subject to similar input.

As people share more information on services like Facebook, a new relationship iscreated between Internet companies and the people they serve," said MarkZuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook. The past week reminded us that usersfeel a real sense of ownership over Facebook itself, not just the information they

share."

Companies like ours need to develop new models of governance, Zuckerbergadded. "Rather than simply reissue a new Terms of Use, the changes wereannouncing today are designed to open up Facebook so that users can participatemeaningfully in our policies and our future.

This is an unprecedented action. No other company has made such a bold movetowards transparency and democratization, said Simon Davies, Director, PrivacyInternational. The devil will be in the detail but, overall, we applaud these positivesteps and think they foreshadow the future of web 2.0. We hope Facebook willrealize these extraordinary commitments through concrete action and we challenge

the rest of the industry to exceed them.

Facebook will continue to make independent decisions about the timing and rolloutof products. While these must be consistent with the Principles and in compliancewith the Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, they will not be subject to thenotice and comment or voting requirements.

Contacts presse : Agence Ballou PRSarah MICHAUD et Nadia BOUSSOUAR

01 42 22 98 69 / 96 [email protected] / [email protected]


2/4

PRESS RELEASE


Principles of the Facebook Service

The Facebook Principles are derived from the belief that certain values should guidethe company's efforts to achieve its mission of making the world more open andconnected. The 10 Principles include the "Freedom to Share and Connect","Fundamental Equality" of people on Facebook, "Ownership and Control ofInformation," and other basic tenets of the Facebook service. Achieving thesePrinciples should be constrained only by limitations of law, technology, and evolvingsocial norms about sharing.

Statement of Rights and Responsibilities

The Statement of Rights and Responsibilities was drafted to address the commonissues raised by users on the officially established Facebook Bill of Rights andResponsibilities Group, jointly administered by the company and two concernedusers, Julius Harper of Los Angeles and Anne Kathrine Yojana Pettere of Oslo,Norway. The document evolved from the Facebook Principles, and will governFacebook's relationship with users and others who interact with it. Once finalized,the Statement will take the place of Facebook's existing Terms of Use, Developer

Terms of Service, and the Facebook Advertising Terms and Conditions.

The document, which condensed almost 40 pages of legal jargon into fewer than sixpages, emphasizes clarity and accessibility. It reaffirms that users, not Facebook,own the content they share through Facebook services and that Facebook's

permission to use that content expires when users delete the content or terminatetheir accounts. The document also codifies the specific requirements that users begiven notice, an opportunity to comment, and, in certain cases, approval authoritythrough a vote for policy changes.

More About the New User Participation Mechanisms

Transparency and User Input

Facebook committed to holding virtual Town Halls following the announcement ofthe new Principles and Statement of Rights and Responsibilities for 30 days, with thecomment period scheduled to close at 12:01 am PDT on March 29. During this time,

users have an opportunity to comment on the proposed policy. This also addressesspecific concerns raised by users on the Facebook Bill of Rights and ResponsibilitiesGroup. Users are invited to comment on the Principles, and on the Statement ofRights and Responsibilities, by joining the following new groups specifically createdfor such comments; Principles athttp://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=54964476066 ; and Statement of Rightsand Responsibilities should join the group at


http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=54964476066mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=54964476066


3/4


4/4

PRESS RELEASE


for transparency and user control.

Facebooks decision to adopt a notice and comment model of rulemakingdemonstrates a truly unique commitment to transparency," said Aron Cramer,President and CEO of Business for Social Responsibility. "This step sets a newstandard for corporate transparency and stakeholder engagement by applying theprinciples of social networking in fundamentally new and important ways.

"The idea that a major company like Facebook would give it's users a vote in howthe service is governed is remarkable," said Julius Harper a Facebook user and a co-founding administrator of the People Against the new Terms of Service group onFacebook. "This decision should go far in restoring people's trust, and I hope it sets a

precedent for other online services to follow."About FacebookFounded in February 2004, Facebooks mission is to give people the power to shareand make the world more open and connected. Anyone can sign up for Facebookand interact with the people they know in a trusted environment. Facebook is aprivately-held company and is headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif.

Media and others interested in receiving Facebook news are invited to join theOfficial Group for Media & Analysts Following Facebook athttp://www.new.facebook.com/reqs.php#/group.php?gid=2388584547 .

# # #

Facebook is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc. Other names may betrademarks of their respective owners.


http://www.new.facebook.com/reqs.php#/group.php?gid=2388584547http://www.new.facebook.com/reqs.php#/group.php?gid=2388584547

facebook press release 260209

Documents