A class action lawsuit against Facebook and Zynga was filed in Federal district court in Northern California by the Sacramento based law firm of Kershaw, Cutter, and Ratinoff on November 17, 2009. The law firm is seeking five million dollars for the social network users on Facebook who were subjected to the ‘spammy’ type advertisements that appeared with Zynga’s games FarmVille and Mafia Wars. http://gawker.com/5408472/facebook-named-in-federal-class+action-suit-over-scammy-zynga-ads
The advertisements did not originate with Facebook or Zynga, yet both are named in the suit. The advertisements originated with other companies who bought advertising space from Zynga to run the social networking site.
The advertisements that brought about this lawsuit were reported to be free offers or free trials; in reality, they were anything but free to the consumers. Some consumers received high priced mail order products or cell phone charges, which were charged to their debit cards or credit cards. Game players using Facebook applications FarmVille and Mafia Wars who listed their bank accounts also saw bogus charges. http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/digital-life/digital-life-news/facebooks-farmville-loses-its-country-glow-20091201-k3c7.html
It has been reported that both Zynga and Facebook made large amounts of ad revenue from the companies running the advertisements in question.
With Farmville and Mafia Wars both being among the most popular games on Facebook, this class action lawsuit affects many people.
Farmville Class Action Suit History
This class action lawsuit involving Facebook and Zynga originated after players of Mafia Wars and Farmville complained about unauthorized charges on credit cards, debit cards, or bank accounts. Some consumers also reportedly received reoccurring SMS messages they did not request.
The cause of this lawsuit was the sales of advertisement space by Zynga to outside companies. These ads were served to millions of people as they played the Zynga games on the Facebook social networking site.
This is the first time a social networking site has been sued in a class action lawsuit in conjunction with a gaming company.
Featured Video of Farmvile Addiction
In this video people who play the “Farmville’’ game talk about their addiction to the game. Viewers of this clip will see the game in action, but it mainly focuses on the addictive nature of the game. Once people become addicted to the game, they buy the virtual goods, to try and make their farms the best they can be.
References
Fast Facts
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Law offices of Kershaw, Cutter & Ratinoff
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Rebecca Swift is the consumer named in the lawsuit as the Plantiff
