Social Media Commercial Ads (A comparative jurisprudential applied study)

Abstract

Due to the tremendous technological advancement today, electronic means of social communication that were not available before have been innovated, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, YouTube, televisions, mobile services, and all online websites of companies, organizations, pages, etc. Our daily life has become highly dependent on such technologies, the matter which made it difficult to dispense with it. Due to this widespread of such means among users, those in charge of its management decided to make it means of profit and commercial marketing with paid ads (advertisements) that appears to users compulsorily. Such ads may be in accordance with the Islamic Sharīʿah and may contradict it due to violating Islamic legal conditions such as Gharar  it may contain. Gharar often invalidates contracts that become as a result prohibited by the Sharīʿah.

The researcher relied on the comparative descriptive analytical inductive approach, in an applied and comparative study that combines the views of the famous four schools of Islamic Jurisprudence, and the views of contemporary Muslim jurists. In addition, a brief comparison between these Islamic views and the Egyptian positive law related to some of the ad clauses. This is to stand on the positivist legislative side and to enrich the applied research. Besides, the study will try to reach an authentic sound Islamic legal view regarding these widespread ads, by stating the points of their corruption and invalidity, and stipulating the conditions and elements that must be available in ads, then monitoring several findings and recommendations.