French Government bans mentioning of Facebook & Twitter on TV and Radio

The French government passed a law that bans the mentioning of the popular social network sites, facebook and twitter. What that means is, TV and Radio presenters can no longer mention either social network by the brand name. So phrases like "find us on facebook/twitter" are not allowed anymore. They can however mention the brand names if either of the companies are the focus of the news story. No more free advertising.

Christine Kelly, spokeswoman for the Conseil Supérieur de l'Audiovisuel (CSA), the government broadcasting authority, said: "Why give preference to Facebook, which is worth billions of dollars, when there are other social networks that are struggling for recognition. This would be a distortion of competition. If we allow Facebook and Twitter to be cited on air, it's opening a Pandora's box. Other social networks will complain to us, saying 'Why not us?'"

This doesn't mean that they are blocking the use of those social networks. It gives a chance to other social networks to gain more recognition.

Source: Guardian