KUWAIT CITY // A restaurant in Kuwait has lost its case against a local blogger it sued over an unfavourable online review.
The Kuwait branch of the Japanese chain Benihana took action against blogger Mark Makhoul, a Lebanese national living in Kuwait, over comments posted on his popular blog www.248am.com.
Mr Makhoul wrote a negative review after visiting the restaurant in December. "The chicken was very chewy (I could swear it was undercooked if not raw) and tasted terrible," Mr Makhoul wrote. "Would I go back to Benihana? No I wouldn't."
Benihana responded by suing Mr Makhoul. The company's general manager in Kuwait, Mike Servo, claimed in a posting to the blog that Benihana's name has been "destroyed and abused" by the posting.
Mr Makhoul and his lawyer confirmed that a Kuwaiti court ruled against Benihana on Tuesday, although they said the restaurant has 30 days to appeal the ruling.
"They announced the verdict, which is in my favour," said Mr Makhoul. "If they don't appeal, the case officially gets closed."
Khaled Al Shamali, the managing partner at The Group Law Firm in Kuwait, which represented Mr Makhoul, confirmed that the court's ruling was in his client's favour.
However, Benihana's Mr Servo said that no official communication had been received from the judges. "We never received a final verdict copy from the judge," he said. "We cannot say whether [Mr Makhoul] has won or lost."
Mr Makhoul said that the ruling marks a legal "precedent" for bloggers in Kuwait.
"Bloggers in Kuwait do not have to fear expressing their opinion. This has set a precedent," he said. "Kuwait is known for respecting people's rights, and freedom of speech."
Mr Makhoul said that he would pursue Benihana for his legal fees. He declined to say how much the legal battle cost him, but said they amounted to "a lot".
Commentators said that Benihana's decision to sue has damaged its brand.
Meredith Tuqan, head of digital communications for the Middle East at Action Global Communications Group, said that companies "must pay attention to constructive criticism online", and respond in a positive way.
"Any organisation that's worth its salt should be interested in what their customers say about their business," said Mrs Tuqan.
"Irrespective of whether the case was won or lost, I think the damage has already been done," she said.
Fiona Robertson, a lawyer at The Rights Lawyers in Dubai, said that while the case may not set precedent, it may deter other companies from suing bloggers.
"If you were a corporation at this point, I think you'd be looking at this case and thinking it may not be the right decision to take this course," she said. "They don't take on Time Out or anyone else who's doing a review, so why did they take on a blogger?"
Ms Robertson said that if such a case was heard in the UAE, the total legal fees for both sides would amount to between Dh60,000 and Dh100,000.
The Rights Lawyers and Action Global Communications, along with online analysts Clique Social, prepared a paper on the Benihana case.
It found that there were more than 5,200 mentions of the case on the microblogging site Twitter between Janurary 30 and February 15.
Internet users from across the globe sent messages of support to Mr Makhoul, with many suggesting a boycott of the Benihana restaurant for what they claimed was a heavy-handed reaction.
Out of 800 sample social media conversations about the case, 164 mentioned the word "boycott", according to the paper.
bflanagan@thenational.ae
Company%20Profile
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Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
PROFILE OF INVYGO
Started: 2018
Founders: Eslam Hussein and Pulkit Ganjoo
Based: Dubai
Sector: Transport
Size: 9 employees
Investment: $1,275,000
Investors: Class 5 Global, Equitrust, Gulf Islamic Investments, Kairos K50 and William Zeqiri
Tree of Hell
Starring: Raed Zeno, Hadi Awada, Dr Mohammad Abdalla
Director: Raed Zeno
Rating: 4/5
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs: 2018 Jaguar F-Type Convertible
Price, base / as tested: Dh283,080 / Dh318,465
Engine: 2.0-litre inline four-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 295hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm @ 1,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.2L / 100km
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
Asia Cup 2018 Qualifier
Sunday's results:
- UAE beat Malaysia by eight wickets
- Nepal beat Singapore by four wickets
- Oman v Hong Kong, no result
Tuesday fixtures:
- Malaysia v Singapore
- UAE v Oman
- Nepal v Hong Kong
The%20specs
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SPEC SHEET
Display: 10.9" Liquid Retina IPS, 2360 x 1640, 264ppi, wide colour, True Tone, Apple Pencil support
Chip: Apple M1, 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Memory: 64/256GB storage; 8GB RAM
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, Smart HDR
Video: 4K @ 25/25/30/60fps, full HD @ 25/30/60fps, slo-mo @ 120/240fps
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR, Centre Stage; full HD @ 25/30/60fps
Audio: Stereo speakers
Biometrics: Touch ID
I/O: USB-C, smart connector (for folio/keyboard)
Battery: Up to 10 hours on Wi-Fi; up to 9 hours on cellular
Finish: Space grey, starlight, pink, purple, blue
Price: Wi-Fi – Dh2,499 (64GB) / Dh3,099 (256GB); cellular – Dh3,099 (64GB) / Dh3,699 (256GB)
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Company%20profile
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Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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THE%20HOLDOVERS
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COMPANY PROFILE
● Company: Bidzi
● Started: 2024
● Founders: Akshay Dosaj and Asif Rashid
● Based: Dubai, UAE
● Industry: M&A
● Funding size: Bootstrapped
● No of employees: Nine
LIVING IN...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.