Commercial Advertisements on Contemporary Social Media Platforms: A Comparative Jurisprudential Applied Study

Abstract

Abstract:

Due to the remarkable technological advancements in our contemporary world, new electronic social media platforms have emerged that were previously unavailable, such as Facebook, X, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, YouTube, television, mobile services, and the various websites of companies, institutions, and pages, among others. Our lives have become heavily reliant on these platforms to the extent that it is challenging to imagine life without them. Given the widespread usage of these platforms, their administrators have utilized them as tools for generating profit through paid advertisements that appear compulsorily to users. These advertisements may conform to Islamic jurisprudence or may contradict it, due to their lack of adherence to the required legal conditions and parameters. Often, they involve excessive uncertainty (gharar), which can lead to the nullification of their contracts and their prohibition under Islamic law.

This research adopts an inductive, descriptive-analytical, and comparative methodology to conduct an applied study that juxtaposes the views of the four Islamic schools of thought (madhahib) and contemporary scholars, along with a brief comparison with Egyptian civil law concerning certain aspects of advertisements. The aim is to identify the legal framework from a jurisprudential perspective and enrich the applied research by arriving at a precise Islamic ruling on these prevalent advertisements. The study highlights areas of corruption and invalidity in these advertisements, specifies the necessary conditions and pillars that must be met, and presents key findings and recommendations based on the study’s conclusions.