The Liability Of Internet Hosting Providers For Content Published By Third Parties: The Wikipedia Case

Judgment No. 1065 of 19 February 2018 of the Court of Appeals of Rome deserves special mention for being one of the few judgements dealing with the topic of Internet hosting provider liability for online publication of news and information that is defamatory as being detrimental to honour and reputation.

The said ruling arises from a lawsuit brought pursuant to Article 702 bis of the Italian Code of Civil Procedure by Mr. Cesare Previti against the Wikimedia Foundation, in its capacity as administrator of the website Wikipedia, to ascertain liability on the part of the defendant company for having published, in the section dedicated to the biography of the Italian politician and plaintiff, information allegedly prejudicial to his honour and reputation.