Facebook Pays $10m To Charity To Settle Advertising Lawsuit

Facebook Loses Crucial Lawsuit

Facebook has agreed to pay $10m to charity to settle a lawsuit over its Sponsored Stories ads.

The Sponsored Stories feature launched in 2011, and gave publishers the ability to sell your updates as ads.

For instance, if you 'like' a brand's page, that brand can publish the update on your friends timelines with a caption indicating your decision to choose that product.

But a law in California - the Civil Code - says that it's illegal to use "another's name, voice, signature, photograph, or likeness for advertising, selling, or soliciting purposes".

Five users in the state challenged the practice last month - and the decision was made public over the weekend.

Facebook said that by signing up to its website its users gave implied consent for them to use your picture and profile in its ads.

But the US district judge in the case said that the state had "long recognised" the right to protect your name and image.

The decision could slightly sour Facebook's news that its stock price experienced its first positive week since its long-awaited floatation on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

The stock closed at $30.01 on Friday - up 6.1% for the day but down 21% overall from its IPO price of $38.

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