Duty of Care or Couldn't Care Less?
Being A Responsible Business in Secondlife
This article is by way of a wake up call for those businesses in Secondlife involved in BDSM in some form or another, a reminder that you are responsible for your product's impact on people and liable for those effects. You see, most people involved in these businesses know that people are emotionally involved in Secondlife and that there's potential to emotionally damage a few of them, but they kid themselves it's just roleplay, that they just provide a product/service and people don't have to use it.
So first, the legal side as a warning:
Well this attitude was once the one of the tobacco companies of the world, knowingly affecting people's health but arguing they just make a product. Things have changed now cigarettes etc all carry health warnings and they do so becuase the tobacco industry is massive, retains a lot of very clever lawyers and has a lot of influence. By rights all tobacco companies should be bankrupt where everyone has sued them.
Now, look at Secondlife, how many products with a potential to cause harm carry a warning? Does your product help facilitate an abusive relationship? Do you realise that although you feel people have a choice as you're not warning them of the possible impact of using your product or service they can't make an informed choice and therefore you are responsible? You see, your customers aren't virtual, they are paying to use your products or service and the laws of most countries require them to be safe. Now also consider that you are not a company with limited liability. You don't have a large firm of lawyers on a retainer. You live in a world where litigation is rife and people sue at the drop of a hat. Linden Labs is completely paranoid about litigation and lets face it at the merest hint of legal action they will crack down on you, they're not going to be the ones held reposnsible for your products/services.
Disclaimer
Virtual-BDSM is in no way, shape or form associated with Linden Lab.Second Life® and Linden Lab® are registered trademarks of Linden Research, Inc. No infringement is intended.
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MISCELLANEOUS
Being a responsible business in SL
Now the Moral side:
Peoples emotions here can be very real, and Dominance/submissiveness are both in the mind. What people feel here is very real, it's what creates the demands for the products and services we sell. You're not stupid, you know who your customers are, if you didn't you wouldn't be in business. However, there is a huge difference between providing a service and exploiting a need then burying your head in the sand and pretending it doesn't have an impact. You have a moral responsibility to your customers to operate as an ethical business.
The coming backlash:
If you look beyond Secondlife a moment and start to delve into real life BDSM forums you will see posts by Real Life BDSM lifestylers outraged by what's going on in SL and appeals for help to fight it. There's a growing movement of Lifestylers looking at Secondlife and these products and services that are being sold. They are the ones that the people that have been hurt are turning too, the ones giving advice and the ones aware of just how damaging these products/services are. They are not afraid to abuse report businesses in SL and it's only a matter of time before they do so in a co-ordinated manner. They are not afraid to arrange co-ordinated boycotts of products and use their influence to persuade others to do so. In Real Life BDSM we largely self police, when someone is abusive the community acts and that community is moving into SL.
In short, people need to clean up their acts and start taking a little reponsibility for what they do.
Article written by Ivana Pawlowski
