When it comes to responding to internet trolls, many automakers have differing methods when it comes to dealing with them. Many companies prefer to stay silent and only get involved via a creative press release or occasional light-hearted jabs in the case of Jaguar and its ongoing rebranding effort.
However, if you troll Chinese automaker BYD, prepare for potential legal action with the Chinese auto giant taking a more combative approach to the problem with a new report confirming BYD is targeting select influencers and other content creators with lawsuits.
BYD is attempting to stamp out defamation
According to BYD, the main issue is alleged defamation with the automaker suing 37 influencers and placing another 126 online accounts into internal investigation over claims that these entities posted defamatory information about the company and its products. For now, it appears that the lawsuits are exclusively focused on the Chinese market with the country having different laws than other countries around the world when it comes to freedom of expression.
In a statement posted to Chinese social media platform Weibo, BYD’s legal department described the situation as a series of “repeated, organized, and malicious online attacks,” which it claims are being carried out by unnamed media outlets and PR firms. BYD says the alleged attacks “seriously damaged the company’s reputation, disrupted the market order, and had a negative impact on the healthy development of the industry.”BYD is not only targeting posts on Weibo but also WeChat another Chinese media platform. Some posts targeted the company’s vehicles saying that they were poorly built and overpriced while another post accused BYD of manipulating influencers, a charge the company is quick to deny.
BYD has had early success in court
For now, BYD has had a strong record in court with the company getting favorable judgments in some of these cases. The losing parties have either had to issue formal apologies or pay damages ranging from ¥60,000 (around $8,400) to ¥100,000 (about $13,900) with other cases still making their way through the Chinese legal system.
However, the company is also allegedly engaging in other investigative activity that some might consider unethical with BYD starting a new “News Anti-Fraud Office” with the firm encouraging the public to report defamatory posts. Any posts that the company can verify will see BYD give a reward of up to ¥5,000,000 ($700,000) depending on how significant the report is.
For its part, BYD says it’s still open to criticism with BYD’s General Manager of Branding and PR Li Yunfei stating to Car News China saying the company welcomes “media criticism and public oversight, but we will not tolerate defamatory content or false accusations”. Yunfei also said that any defamatory content is being preserved as legal evidence. BYD’s heavy-handed approach comes as part of a broader trend that has recently emerged with other Chinese automakers also using the courts to combat defamatory content online.
Carl Malek has been an automotive journalist for over 10 years. First starting out as a freelance photographer before making the transition to writing during college, his work has appeared on numerous automotive forums as well as websites such as Autoshopper.com.
Carl is also a big fan of British vehicles with the bulk of his devotion going to the Morgan Motor Company as well as offerings from Lotus, MG, and Caterham. When he is not writing about automobiles, Carl enjoys spending time with his family and friends in the Metro Detroit area, as well as spending time with his adorable pets.