The Basic Rules

Competitions on social media are regular business activities. Participants must be clearly informed about the organizer, period, prices, participation requirements and draw.

• Make conditions of participation easily accessible
• Set age limits
• Mark sponsored prices
• Observe platform rules

Privacy

The necessary data may be processed for the implementation. Separate consent is required for newsletters or disclosures.

No gamble

If participation in a purchase is linked, there is a risk of unauthorized gambling or impermissible coupling. A free opportunity to participate creates security.

Practical examples

Conclusion

With a good template, a legally secure competition is set up in a few minutes.

Do you have questions on this topic? More on this on our page Sweepstakes and giveaways or directly via our Initial assessment.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need conditions of participation for a giveaway?

Yes The organizers, the participation period, profit, participation requirements and the determination of the prize must be clearly stated. Without them, there is a risk of a cease-and-desist letter under competition law.

Can I make participation dependent on someone marking an account?

This is allowed as long as the mechanics are transparent and the platform rules allow it. Instagram, for example, prohibits users from asking for incorrect markings. On the other hand, a purchase obligation to participate is generally not permitted.

Does a sweepstakes have to be marked as advertising?

If a company makes the profit or the contribution advertises a product, yes. The marking must be recognizable at the beginning of the article, for example with “Advertisement” or “Advertisement”.

Further information: Sweepstakes and giveaways · Advertising law and labeling obligations

The post Summer giveaways: how to run legally compliant competitions first appeared on Influencerrechte.

What Niko didn’t know: Being an influencer is not a child’s play.
(Fictional story – but pretty realistic.)

The Case: Free Smoothies and Hidden Advertising

One day, Niko gets a colorful box of superfood smoothies sent to him. No payment, just a friendly note with: “Maybe you would like to show them in your story – greetings from the Fitfruit team!”

Said, done. Niko posts a good-humored video with the hashtag #healthyvibes – without labeling as advertising.

A few days later: An e-mail flutters into the inbox.
A competition center discovered the post – missing Advertising marking with an advertising relevant contribution. and: A cease-and-desist undertaking is included. Suddenly Niko is standing in the legal gray area with one foot – and because of a few smoothies.

Being an influencer also means taking responsibility

Niko is not alone. Exactly what happened to him happens to many influencers – mostly out of ignorance. The problem: ignorance protects against Cease-and-desist letters not.

Where is the problem?

Even if no payment has been made:
A free product for consideration – i.e. a “posting” – is considered legally Advertising.
Advertising must immediately recognizable be – and not just after a tap on “Show more”.
The note “Advertisement” or “Advertisement” must appear clearly and clearly before the first sentence.

What Niko learned from it:

After the first shock, he gets legal assistance. The cease-and-desist undertaking is checked, adapted and signed – And in the future, Niko correctly marks every advertising content. In addition, he is now in cooperation Contracts hand over, in which it is clearly regulated which content he may post, what is considered in return and what rights he retains his content.

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The post Content, camera, chaos: how Niko almost received a cease-and-desist letter first appeared on Influencerrechte.

A well-known tech gadget label offers Tobias sponsorship for his videos – including a six-month ambassador deal, in which Tobias undertakes to regularly show the product in its stories.

But this is where the legal part of the story begins. (fictitious, but quite realistic!)

Labeling requirement? Yes, please!

Tobias is unsure: does he really have to mark the gadget he received as a gift as an advertisement? After all, he also says what him not please. The answer: Yes, he must.

Regardless of whether the assessment is objective, critical or even negative – As soon as a consideration (e.g. a product or money) is involved, it’s advertising. And advertising must be clearly and immediately recognizable – otherwise there is a risk of cease-and-desist letters, fines or even legal action.

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Contractual stumbling blocks

Tobias had initially only skimmed the cooperation agreement – until he noticed that he had committed himself to the product exclusively to advertise and not to talk about competing products. Problem: Tobias had already planned a video with a similar speaker – from a different brand.

One-sided exclusivity can massively limit influencers – and should to begin with carefully checked or adapted. Ideal: Contracts that are legally waterproof and flexible enough for content planning.

Tobias does it right – with legal advice

Meanwhile, Tobias works with an experienced Lawyer team together, his Cooperation agreements checks, imprint and Privacy Policy up to date and if you have any questions about Advertising marking Oder Copyright stands by.

He now knows the rules of the game – and his reach continues to grow, Legally safe and with a good feeling.

Being an influencer is (also) business

Anyone who works as an influencer – whether full-time or part-time – should be legally prepared. Because the pitfalls are numerous: missing labeling, unfair contractual clauses, copyrighted content, missing Terms and conditions or gaps in data protection law.

The post Between Bluetooth speakers and advertising partners: influencer Tobias in the legal jungle first appeared on Influencerrechte.

Influencers live from attention – of reach, reaction, resonance. But those who publicly showcase other people enter legally-mined terrain. Because the right of personality does not end where the smartphone begins. A (fictitious but practical) case shows how quickly a contribution to legal burden can become – and why professional advice on influencer law is crucial.

The case: “just in the background” – and still sued

Fitness influencer “Leafit” shoots a workout video in the Munich English Garden. In the background: people sunbathing, a jogger with a striking tattoo, a mother with a child. She uploads the video to Instagram – it goes viral.
Three days later, she received mail from a lawyer: the client – the jogger – had been filmed without consent. His personal rights are violated, he demands omission, deletion and compensation.
The case is constructed – but quite realistic. And he shows: There are legal boundaries between public space and personal freedom.

What protects personal rights?

The General Rights of Personality Protects every natural person from unwanted presentation, distribution or use of their identity – in particular:

• The Right to your own image (§§ 22 ff. KUG)
• The Right to own name
• The Privacy and privacy
• The informational self-determination

Whether someone can only be seen “in the background” is there not crucial – but whether the person recognizable is. Clothing, tattoos, gaits or distinctive hairstyles may be sufficient. In the case of children, particularly strict rules apply.

And what does that mean for influencers?

Anyone who produces and publishes content also bears the legal responsibility. This includes in particular:

• Obtaining consent, when people are recognizable
• Unrecognizable Unreleased faces (e.g. through blurring)
• Sensitivity in sensitive places (e.g. hospitals, schools, retreats)
• Marking of advertising – even with personal recommendations

Lawyer Stefan Karfusehr of Horak Rechtsanwälte and the team in Munich regularly advises creative people, influencers and companies on issues of media, copyright and personality rights. His advice:

“Anyone who violates third-party personal rights quickly risks an expensive cease-and-desist letter or lawsuit – especially in an area that is designed for visibility and effect. Preventive legal protection is worth its weight in gold here.”

What is the threat of violations?

Depending on the individual case, those affected can under civil law Omission, Deletion, Monetary compensation and Damages complain. In the case of particularly serious interventions, criminal consequences conceivable (e.g. § 201a StGB – violation of the highly personal area of life).
In our example, “Leafit” threatened not only a legal dispute, but also a loss of reputation – and that in its own community.

Visibility needs responsibility

Influence law is not a legal vacuum – on the contrary: it is precisely here that the legal situation is often complex, the reach is high and the reaction is fast. Those who do not observe third-party personal rights not only risk likes, but also legal anger.

Attorney Stefan Karfusehr and that Team of Horak Attorneys in Munich Support you to reconcile creative freedom and legal security – for a professional, safe and future-proof influencer practice.

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We are there for you – discreetly, experienced, solution-oriented.

The post Between selfie and damages: influencers and personality rights first appeared on Influencerrechte.