Arctic
05-04-2003, 02:56 PM
from http://news.independent.co.uk
Former KGB agent sues Amazon over book review
By Charles Arthur, Technology Editor
03 May 2003
A former KGB agent is suing the online retail giant Amazon for libel over a customer book review published on its internet website.
Alexander Vassiliev, co-author of a book entitled The Haunted Wood: Soviet Espionage in America – The Stalin Era, claims that the review, by the British lawyer and film-maker John Lowenthal, is defamatory, and it undermines his chances of selling film and television rights for the book.
The case is likely to raise further issues concerning the law on internet-based publication, and on the murky area of where such defamation cases should be heard.
The lawsuit marks the first time that Amazon has been sued over a customer review, which can be written by anyone visiting the website. Previously the company has been sued in the British courts for offering particularly controversial books through its American or British sites – first in February 1999 over a book about the Scientology cult, and then in May 1999 over a book called The Committee: Political Assassination in Northern Ireland, which the Ulster Unionist MP David Trimble claimed libelled him.
In the review that has sparked the latest case, Mr Lowenthal alleges that KGB papers which Mr Vassiliev claims he saw exclusively in return for payment from a publishing house cannot be verified as authentic or accurate.
Written in February 2001, the extensive book review can be read on both the US and UK websites, along with 15 other reviews of the book by other readers. Mr Lowenthal, a British resident, is a former lawyer and professor of law at New York's Rutgers University, and has also written about intelligence subjects. The review was posted to the Amazon US site, but is also visible on the UK one.
Amazon confirmed that Mr Vassiliev is suing the company for libel. It said: "Mr Lowenthal's review was published on the US Amazon.com site and is a personal critique which does not reflect the views of the Seattle-based company in any way."
Mr Vassiliev is also suing the London-based publishing house Frank Cass for libel over an article by Mr Lowenthal in one of its journals.
A pre-trial review for both libel claims was heard in the High Court earlier this week. looks like amazon has some troubled times ahead as far as free speech goes, though personally i think this case is BS. if the guy's book can't stand up to intelligent criticism, how good can it really be.
However, as any amazon user knows, the customer reviews on that site are almost never fair, and are seldom written by lawyers and emeritus professors. Most of the time i think it's only people who have strong reactions to the books that post the reviews. so you'll either end up with glowing reviews or hate letters. Be that as it may, many average comsumers still use the reviews to some extent in deciding what to purchase (i myself am a guilty party to this at times). When an item has few reviews and most of these are short and negative, that has to hurt sales for that item, regardless of who wrote the reviews or whether they actually read/used the item or not.
how many of you have ever posted a review on amazon, and what prompted you to do it? is this guy justified in his libel lawsuit? should the reviews at amazon be used when deciding what to buy?
Former KGB agent sues Amazon over book review
By Charles Arthur, Technology Editor
03 May 2003
A former KGB agent is suing the online retail giant Amazon for libel over a customer book review published on its internet website.
Alexander Vassiliev, co-author of a book entitled The Haunted Wood: Soviet Espionage in America – The Stalin Era, claims that the review, by the British lawyer and film-maker John Lowenthal, is defamatory, and it undermines his chances of selling film and television rights for the book.
The case is likely to raise further issues concerning the law on internet-based publication, and on the murky area of where such defamation cases should be heard.
The lawsuit marks the first time that Amazon has been sued over a customer review, which can be written by anyone visiting the website. Previously the company has been sued in the British courts for offering particularly controversial books through its American or British sites – first in February 1999 over a book about the Scientology cult, and then in May 1999 over a book called The Committee: Political Assassination in Northern Ireland, which the Ulster Unionist MP David Trimble claimed libelled him.
In the review that has sparked the latest case, Mr Lowenthal alleges that KGB papers which Mr Vassiliev claims he saw exclusively in return for payment from a publishing house cannot be verified as authentic or accurate.
Written in February 2001, the extensive book review can be read on both the US and UK websites, along with 15 other reviews of the book by other readers. Mr Lowenthal, a British resident, is a former lawyer and professor of law at New York's Rutgers University, and has also written about intelligence subjects. The review was posted to the Amazon US site, but is also visible on the UK one.
Amazon confirmed that Mr Vassiliev is suing the company for libel. It said: "Mr Lowenthal's review was published on the US Amazon.com site and is a personal critique which does not reflect the views of the Seattle-based company in any way."
Mr Vassiliev is also suing the London-based publishing house Frank Cass for libel over an article by Mr Lowenthal in one of its journals.
A pre-trial review for both libel claims was heard in the High Court earlier this week. looks like amazon has some troubled times ahead as far as free speech goes, though personally i think this case is BS. if the guy's book can't stand up to intelligent criticism, how good can it really be.
However, as any amazon user knows, the customer reviews on that site are almost never fair, and are seldom written by lawyers and emeritus professors. Most of the time i think it's only people who have strong reactions to the books that post the reviews. so you'll either end up with glowing reviews or hate letters. Be that as it may, many average comsumers still use the reviews to some extent in deciding what to purchase (i myself am a guilty party to this at times). When an item has few reviews and most of these are short and negative, that has to hurt sales for that item, regardless of who wrote the reviews or whether they actually read/used the item or not.
how many of you have ever posted a review on amazon, and what prompted you to do it? is this guy justified in his libel lawsuit? should the reviews at amazon be used when deciding what to buy?