News
Change of contract was deemed illegal under danish law
(2011-05-29)The Danish internet service provider Sydfyns Intranet upgraded their internet capacity by the end of last year. During the upgrade, the company contacted their customers with Internet, telephone and television subscriptions and announced that they would automatically be upgraded to a higher internet speed for a higher price. In this announcement customers were informed that they had to contact the company on their own behalf in order to choose the cheaper solution which was offered in the original package. The Danish Consumer Ombudsman (FO) pointed out that such measures in order to bind customers to new agreements are not permitted unless enacted by the original contract or if the change is beneficial to the customer. Sydfryn acknowledged the mistake and offered customers the cheaper package solution and compensation for the difference.
Freedom of speech vs. Intellectual property
(2011-05-29)Fashion Company Louis Vuitton sued the artist of an acclaimed painting as the work included among other things an emaciated African child carrying a Louis Vuitton bag. The court banned the painting from being displayed to the public. The artist felt that the ban was a violation of freedom of speech (European Convention on Human Rights article 10) and appealed the decision. The court in The Hague found the freedom of speech to outweigh the intellectual property rights of Louis Vuitton in this particular case.
Larger text, please!
(2011-05-29)The Swedish Consumers Association and the Stockholm Consumer Cooperation Society have examined the readability of food packages in seven food chains and found the letters to be small, the contrast too poor, the lines too long and fonts hard to read. Therefore, they have started the campaign “Larger text, please!”, demanding trade, producers and purchasing managers to immediately take responsibility, as they believe illegible texts on packages to be a crime. The campaign fights for consumers’ rights to be able to read the content, nutrient and ways of cooking on food labels. The report has been handed over to the Swedish Food and Drug Administration for review.
