Original content is becoming less important, while public criticism of competitors is gaining in importance.
However, the tactic of gaining attention by belittling others is not without legal risks.
Cologne Regional Court prohibits defamatory videos
In two recent cases (Ref. 33 O 301/24 and Ref. 33 O 266/24), the Regional Court of Cologne ruled against influencers and their business models that use the disparagement of their competitors to increase their own reach.
Competitors as ‘cheaters’
The first case (case no. 33 O 301/24) concerned a video that was distributed on various social media platforms and portrayed the applicant as a fraudster. The court ruled that such content was not only unlawful, but also likely to promote the defendant’s competition at the expense of the applicant. Infringement of this decision could result in a fine of up to €250,000, the value in dispute was set at a moderate €70,000.
‘Overpriced properties to unsuspecting buyers’
In the second case (case no. 33 O 266/24), the court also prohibited the distribution of videos that contained untrue factual claims about the applicant. In this case, the offender claimed that the applicant had sold overpriced properties to unsuspecting buyers. The court considered this to be an objectively unjustified disparagement and prohibited the further dissemination of this content. Here, too, a substantial fine is threatened in the event of infringement. This second offence was assessed at €200,000, not least due to the persistence of the offender.
Claims for damages not excluded
In addition to the injunctions against the dissemination of the defamatory content, the defendants must expect further legal consequences. The applicant will claim damages that go far beyond the court costs and also include the economic damage caused by the untrue and disparaging allegations.
Defendants accept urgent decisions
The defendants, the influencer personally, as well as the GmbH for which he was responsible, hastily submitted final declarations – probably in order to avoid further costs – and thus recognised the interim injunctions as final regulations.
You are also liable for third parties
What they have apparently not considered is that deleting their own content on social media is not enough. The supreme court has already clarified in several cases that an unlawful publication on the Internet also obliges third parties who further disseminate the statements to demand the removal of the infringements.
Practical tip
These decisions show that the courts are prepared to take decisive action against the misuse of social media to defame competitors.
These judgements should serve as a warning to influencers and businesses to choose their social media strategies wisely and ensure that their content complies with legal requirements. Publicly exposing competitors may generate attention in the short term, but can have serious long-term consequences.
In particular, it is not enough to simply delete your own defamatory video following a court ban. Especially not if – as is often the case – the publisher explicitly and conspiratorially points out that the video may not be online for long and that the interested public should therefore save it and distribute it separately.
(Disclosure: LHR represented the applicant).
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