((Automatic translation by Reuters, see disclaimer https://bit.ly/rtrsauto))
(Detailing the decision, comments from the New York City Law Department, DoorDash, paragraphs 4-8 and 11-14) by Jonathan Stempel
A federal judge on Tuesday declared a New York City law requiring food delivery companies to share customer data with restaurants unconstitutional.
US District Judge Analisa Torres in Manhattan ruled for DoorDash
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Grub
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and Uber Eats
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claiming that the law violated the First Amendment by improperly regulating commercial speech.
New York City passed the law in the summer of 2021, one of several measures to help its thousands of restaurants weather the COVID-19 pandemic.
Delivery companies were required to provide restaurants with customers’ names, delivery addresses, email addresses and phone numbers, as well as the contents of the orders.
Although the city said those requirements protect restaurants from “exploitative practices” by delivery companies, it agreed not to enforce the law while the companies file suit.
They argued that the law violated consumers’ privacy rights and threatened the security of their data.
They also said the law hurt their own businesses because restaurants could use the data for marketing purposes and “poach customers.”
Nicholas Paolucci, a spokesman for the city’s legal department, said: “We are carefully reviewing the court’s decision: “We are carefully reviewing the court’s decision”
Ms. Torres said the city had not shown much interest in helping restaurants collect customer data from delivery companies, and that they did not have such intrusive ways to achieve that goal.
She said these included letting consumers decide whether to share data, providing financial incentives for businesses to share data, and subsidizing platforms online ordering for individual restaurants.
DoorDash said the decision “correctly recognizes that this law would have violated the fundamental First Amendment rights of how we protect New Yorkers’ data.”
UberEats, Grubhub and their lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The law was supported by the New York City Hospitality Alliance, a trade group for the restaurant and nightlife industry.
Their executive director Andrew Rigie said Torres’ decision “hurts small businesses and consumers. We urge the city to appeal”
2024-09-24 22:16:25
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