Editing Clickwrap (section)

{{Short description|User prompt to accept a digital policy}}
A '''clickwrap''' or '''clickthrough''' [[Contract|agreement]] is a  prompt that offers individuals the opportunity to accept or decline a digitally-mediated policy.<ref name="SMS">{{cite journal |last1=Obar |first1=Jonathan A. |last2=Oeldorf-Hirsch |first2=Anne |title=The Clickwrap: A Political Economic Mechanism for Manufacturing Consent on Social Media |journal=Social Media + Society |date=2018 |volume=4 |issue=3 |pages=205630511878477 |doi=10.1177/2056305118784770|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Obar |first1=Jonathan |title=The Clickwrap and The Biggest Lie on the Internet |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtQ2tNUTF3Q |website=YouTube |access-date=30 June 2022 |date=June 23, 2022}}</ref> [[Privacy policy|Privacy policies]], [[terms of service]] and other user policies, as well as [[copyright]] policies commonly employ the clickwrap prompt. Clickwraps are common in signup processes for [[social media]] services like [[Facebook]], [[Twitter]] or [[Tumblr]], connections to wireless networks operated in corporate spaces, as part of the installation processes of many software packages, and in other circumstances where agreement is sought using digital media. The name "clickwrap" is derived from the use of "[[shrink wrap contracts]]" commonly used in boxed software purchases, which "contain a notice that by tearing open the [[Shrink wrap|shrinkwrap]], the user assents to the software terms enclosed within".<ref>[http://www.murdoch.edu.au/elaw/issues/v9n3/kunkel93_text.html#Shrinkwrap%20License%20Cases_T Murdoch University Electronic Journal of Law]</ref>

The content and form of clickwrap agreements vary widely. Most clickwrap agreements require the [[end-user]] to indicate their assent by clicking an "ok" or "agree" [[Button (computing)|button]] on a [[dialog box]] or pop-up window.  A user indicates rejection by clicking cancel or closing the window. If the user opts to reject the terms, they cannot use or purchase the [[Product (business)|product]] or [[Service (economics)|service]].  Classically, such a take-it-or-leave-it contract is described as a "[[contract of adhesion]], which is a contract that lacks bargaining power, forcing one party to be favored over the other."

The terms of service or license do not always appear on the same [[webpage]] or window, but are always accessible before acceptance, such as through a [[hyperlink]] embedded in the product's webpage or a pop-up screen prior to installation. In order to be deemed to have accepted the terms of service, the purchaser must be put on notice that certain terms of service may apply. If the terms of service are not visible and/or accessible, courts have found the notice requirement to be lacking and as such, the purchaser may not be bound to the terms of the agreement. An analysis of the terms of service of major consumer websites has found that they frequently contain clauses that impede consumer rights in substantial and often unexpected ways.<ref>A Nicol. [http://www.clickwrapped.com/ Clickwrapped: Who Respects Your Rights Online?] Accessed July 30, 2013.</ref>