An Italian court ruled today that Google violated privacy laws for allowing a user to post video on its site that showed an autistic child being bullied. The privacy laws in Italy are very strict but it is unprecedented for an Internet company to be held accountable for merely being the avenue to posting of material. The court went as far as to charge three executives of Google with a crime for the violation of Italian privacy laws.
This decision could have significant effects on various types of hosting platforms, including Facebook, You Tube, and all of the other thousands of retail and topic type social networking sites that are popping up each year. It also could put restraints on free speech.
More information on this here.