Eventbrite has apologised to its clients for a phrase in its terms of service that allowed it to attend, film and use the recording for its own purposes.
The section titled “Permissions you grant us to film and record your events” was listed toward the bottom of the website’s 10,000-word merchant agreement.
The section gave the ticketing firm extensive leverage to use private events for its own advertising and other purposes.
Eventbrite apologised for the clause on Sunday night, and removed it from its site. A spokeswoman told the Guardian newspaper: “Earlier this month we made an update to our terms of service and merchant agreement that would allow us the option to work with individual organisers to secure video and photos at their events for marketing and promotional purposes.
“We’ve heard some concerns from our customers and agree that the language of the terms went broader than necessary given our intention of the clause.
“We have not recorded any footage at events since this clause was added, and upon further review, have removed it entirely from both our terms of service and merchant agreement. We sincerely apologise for any concern this caused.”
In addition, the clause allowed Eventbrite to film behind the scenes as an event was being set up or packed down. It also required event hosts to gain all the “permissions, clearances and licenses” required to allow the firm to do what it wanted, leaving it unclear whether it was required to even credit performers or hosts “in its discretion.”
The section affected both the British and American versions of the site and was added to the merchant agreement at the beginning of April. User Barney Dellar noticed it earlier this month and brought it to public attention.
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Modification: Eventbrite logo added