CYPRUS Law and Practice Contributed by: Stelios Christophides and Vasilis Charalambous, George Z Georgiou & Associates LLC
• sponsored programmes must be identified as such. The GDPR, which already establishes, for example, rules on users’ consent and their right to object to targeted digital marketing, is supported by the Digital Services Act, which covers all forms of advertising, including political ads, issue-based advertising, and digital marketing. 5.2 Liability for Third-Party Content The Cypriot courts have not explicitly examined the liability of advertisers for user-generated content. However, the approach considered by the Cypriot courts regarding the liability of website owners with respect to defamatory content may be useful. In the leading case of Christos Clerides and others v Arktinos Publishings Ltd 5208/2010 , dated 31 January 2017, the court assessed the responsibility of the host within the user-generated context by reference to degree of control over user-generated content, the actions taken once the host became aware of a complaint in relation to the content, and the nature of the content itself. It should also be noted that, according to the Law of Services of the Information Society and, in particular, the Electronic Commerce Law, as well as the Related Matters Law of 2004, a service provider can benefit from the exemptions for “mere conduit” when they are in no way involved with the information transmitted. This requires that they do not modify the information that they transmit. 5.3 Disclosure Requirements At present there are no exceptions to disclosure requirements for advertising in social media, notwith - standing any space limitations. However, it is recom - mended that advertisers should include “#AD” at the beginning of advertisements, irrespective of the social media platform. 5.4 Requirements for Use of Social Media Platforms The DSA will impose special obligations to major online platforms (with followers of 45 million or more) which, inter alia, will include enhanced transparency, auditing requirements, advertising, data sharing with
the relevant authorities, and appointing a specific compliance officer. 5.5 Influencer Campaigns and Online Reviews 5.5.1 Special Rules/Regulations on Influencer Campaigns Cyprus does not currently have legislation tackling the use of influencers in advertising campaigns. Howev - er, with rapidly growing digital marketing practices, CARO has introduced guidelines for influencer mar - keting, making the landscape more transparent and regulated for both influencers and consumers. As the line between content and advertising becomes blurred, it is important that consumers can distinguish when content is presented to them with the intent to influence their opinions or generate direct or indirect commercial benefit. Therefore, when it comes to disclosure requirements, influencers must clearly disclose the intent of their content and recognise it as advertising, ensuring that it is immediately noticeable and easy to understand to all audiences, including adults and children. Moreo - ver, disclosures must be made to the public, rather than being restricted to a particular audience – eg, followers of a specific influencer who may already be aware of their relationship with a brand through previ - ous posts or activities. In other words, the public must be informed of the existing relationship or agreement between the two parties (advertiser and influencer) every time a message is displayed. Lastly, disclosure may be conducted through various formats – whether by images, posts, tweets, or videos – and on many platforms that offer specific tools for this, such as “paid partnership” tags, “sponsored by” labels or even hashtags, and influencers are respon - sible for using these tools to maintain transparency. The provisions on the guide are based on the Euro - pean Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA) and are applied in addition to the CP Law 2021. Moreover, the Digital Services Act and the enhanced disclosure obligations are expected to impact the use of influenc - ers in advertising campaigns. Users should be able to see clearly when content is sponsored or organically posted on a platform, and should also see when influ - encers are promoting commercial messages.
76 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook