LinkedIn has agreed to settle with users of its Add Connections service for their troubles associated with it after a lawsuit was filed. Settlement totals add up to $13 million.
While LinkedIn execs are discovering spam is a four-letter word, some users of the social media platform for professionals are finding it may occasionally result in a financial windfall.
Those realizations come courtesy of a class action lawsuit that evolved into a proposed $13 million settlement.
The Add Connections Disconnect
Add Connections enables users to import their external email contacts into LinkedIn. Those contacts then receive email invitations to connect on the social media platform, essentially expanding a user’s network and LinkedIn’s reach simultaneously.
While Add Connections enabled some users to expand their professional networks on the platform, it did so in a way that was less than desirable, the lawsuit contends. LinkedIn is accused of sending out up to two email reminders if connection invitations weren’t accepted within a certain period.
The problem, according to the suit, is that those reminders added up to spam since LinkedIn members didn’t consent to them. Complicating matters, the reminders included members’ names and profile photos, giving the impression the person endorsed the action.
LinkedIn has denied any wrongdoing or liability, but a court didn’t necessarily agree. Rather than continuing to battle it out in the legal system, LinkedIn has agreed to the $13 million settlement.
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Claim Eligibility
LinkedIn members, current and former, who used the Add Connections tool to import external contacts who were non-members between Sept. 17, 2011, and Oct. 31, 2014, may be eligible for financial compensation. The settlement requires that LinkedIn members submit claims to get their piece of the settlement pie.
It is unclear how much cash LinkedIn members will end up with as a result of the settlement, but the amount will be at least $10 per eligible claimant, according to the settlement website. Should enough claims be filed to deplete the $13 million down to equal-share payouts of less than $10, LinkedIn has agreed to add another $750,000 to the pot to make payouts at least that much.
Authorized claimants will receive their cash within about 90 days of the court providing final approval of the settlement. The approval hearing date is set for Feb. 11, 2016, in California.
LinkedIn members who feel they have a rightful claim may file for participation in the class action suit online. To make a claim, visit the settlement website online. Claims must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time Dec. 14, 2015.
