Insta-Fringement: What is a Fair Use on Social Media?, 18 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 102 (2018)

The phenomena of the Internet reinforced the need for well-defined intellectual property rights. In turn, the enactment of the General Data Protection Regulation emphasized the importance of social media and privacy. However, the problem remains that the law has not yet fully embraced the relationship between many technological advancements and social media. The widespread use of social media illustrates that contemporary copyright law must address what constitutes “shareable content.” This article examines what social media platforms can do in order to provide a clearer definition of what constitutes a “fair-use” on their platforms. A data controller such as Instagram must provide more transparency with respect to the definition of “shareable content.” Additionally, the primary policy objective of this article is to enhance the general public’s knowledge about copyright law, and to ensure that copyright protections are retained for social media influencers