Facebook to poll users on new terms

Later this week, over 400,000 Irish users of the social networking site Facebook will have the chance to vote on the company's revised terms of use.

The poll follows controversial changes to the website’s policies in February, which among other things gave Facebook the right to use photos, personal information, posts and content created by some 200 million users even after they closed their accounts.

The company quickly reversed the policy following backlash by users over breach of privacy and the threat of a formal legal complaint by a US privacy advocate group.

“As people share more information on services like Facebook, a new relationship is created between Internet companies and the people they serve,” Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook said in February.

“The past week reminded us that users feel a real sense of ownership over Facebook itself, not just the information they share."

“Companies like ours need to develop new models of governance,” Zuckerberg added.

This week’s vote comes after a 30 day consultancy period open to some 200 million members, on new principles and new statement of rights and responsibilities.

These new rules are expected to be simpler and more transparent and take into account concerns of its members.

Less than 4,000 users submitted comments during the consultation. The company’s legal team is sifting through these comments to come up with the final draft.

Members involved in February’s protest have also been drafted in to summarise key concerns.

The organisation has also consulted with privacy, copyright and internet law experts and photography trade groups.

The final documents which users will get to vote for or against, will be published when voting begins on Thursday.

The new terms of use are expected to ensure that the use of people’s content by Facebook has clear limits, so that users retain ownership of own content and when they delete their content or account the company no longer has any rights to it, according to posts on the website’s consultation pages.

However it also seems that Facebook will retain some rights to use and distribute user content such as photos and videos of existing users.

The organisation has promised to create “a more democratic system of online governance” if the statement of rights is voted through so that similar changes will go through the same public process in future.

However in order for the vote to be binding, a third of active Facebook users are required to vote. Otherwise the vote will simply be "advisory".

The number of Facebook users in Ireland has doubled over the last year, according to research published by Mulley Communications in January.

There are over 400,000 registered users in Ireland, compared to less than 200,000 in January 2008 and just 7000 in January 2007.

The site has dominated social networking for Irish adults. Over three quarters of Irish users are aged between 21 and 35, with just 4.4 per cent aged under 18.

The vote begins on Thursday 16th April and is open to all active Facebook users. The voting will last for a week until April 23rd and results will be tallied by an independent auditor.