Is it OK to curse a company name publically?

[tkalfaoglu]

A friend had bought a printer which never worked right.
So he made a video and published it online where he is seen burning the printer down (!) and heard placing a few festive words to the company that made the printer.

Can he be sued by the company?

thanks, -turgut

 

[justalayman]

that would depend on exactly what he said, the intent of the speech, if it was true or false, and if it could be construed as opinion or a factual statement.

 

[tkalfaoglu]

that would depend on exactly what he said, the intent of the speech, if it was true or false, and if it could be construed as opinion or a factual statement.

Thank you very much for that very prompt response!

Well, he is a computer scientist, so I assume what he said is true..
He basically said "they sell cheap printers that fall apart by the second cartridge, damn you <company name>, damn you, here I'm pouring alcohol on the printer and this match, whoosh!".
I agree they make cheap printers

However, if you mean that an independent lab study, or some repair center receipt saying "cannot be fixed", I doubt he bothered with any of that..

This "fine" company also charges $25 just for looking at your broken printer. Regardless of outcome.

-turgut

 

[quincy]

If this computer scientist can prove that ALL of the cheap printers this company sells fall apart by the second cartridge, then he has no problem.

I think, based solely on what you describe of the video, a court would probably find that what was expressed by your friend about the company is opinion and, therefore, protected by the First Amendment. However, if the statements made by your friend in his video extend beyond what you have posted here, and he went on to generalize about the company as a whole based on his one less-than-satisfactory experience with this single printer, it is possible he defamed the company. A review of the entire video would be necessary to determine, for sure, its defamatory nature.

Whatever the case, the company CAN sue your friend, whether any suit has merit or not. Anyone can sue for pretty much any reason at all. Whether the company WILL sue or not is anyone's guess, however. My guess is that they won't.

 

[LeeHarveyBlotto]

Sounds reasonably harmless albeit extremely juvenile.

 

[justalayman]

Sounds reasonably harmless albeit extremely juvenile.

I'm not so sure. The fact the guy is a "computer scientist" may give cause for the general public to put more value in his statements and it appears the statements were not limited to just his printer but extended to all <insert company name here> printers.

While I would not get too concerned, I believe the facts presented with some speculative thought does give rise to a possible claim by <insert company name here>

even from the OP:

Well, he is a computer scientist, so I assume what he said is true..

If the guy made a point of publicizing his claimed knowledge of computers and peripherals and expertise due to education, that could weigh heavily against him.

 

[Zigner]

US Law Only


(or, did I miss it?)

 

[justalayman]

US Law Only


(or, did I miss it?)

we all did zig, we all did.