• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, May 17, 2011

Don't be surprised to see more marketing efforts tied to cigarettes and booze on Facebook. That's because the company has lifted prior restrictions on promotions involving tobacco, dairy, gambling, firearms, prescription drugs, and gasoline, according to a post on the site Tuesday.

The updated promotions rules would also permit marketers to require a purchase for entry, and open up offers to those under 18, or to people in certain countries such as Sweden or India, where sweepstakes were previously banned.

Facebook, however, emphasized that all applicable laws and regulations apply in jurisdictions where contests or sweepstakes are held. In other words, it's now up to brands to ensure that their promotions on their Facebook pages don't violate any local, state or other laws.

The looser rules are part of updated promotions guidelines that Facebook unveiled this week as part of an effort to make them easier to understand and consistent with the format of other Facebook terms and policies, the company said. Obviously, the step opens up potential new opportunities on Facebook to companies whose "sin products" may have previously limited their promotions on the social network.

"The change could lead big brands in the now-unrestricted industries to step up their marketing efforts on Facebook, drawing spend away from more traditional marketing mediums such as TV and print. It will also allow all marketers more flexibility in promotion targeting and rules," according to an Inside Facebook post on the move today.

The Facebook-tracking blog noted that some brands appear to have skirted certain restrictions in the past. Starbucks, for instance, boosted its number of fans with a free ice cream giveaway two years ago, which would appear to violate the ban on dairy-related promotions. And the Facebook page for Bud Light shows an ongoing contest to win a trip to a UFC fight (although Bud Light itself is not mentioned as a part of the grand prize).

Shifting rules around promotions and gray areas has led to some confusion about what's compliant with the policy. "This simplification of the guidelines should make things more clear to some, but it could also be misinterpreted to mean these types of promotions are legal when they violate local laws," according to Inside Facebook.

The new guidelines also require that all promotions now must be administered via applications on Facebook, either on an app canvas page or in a tab on a brand page. They also impose new limits on use of Facebook's intellectual property. Advertisers are allowed to use Facebook's name and trademarks only "in connection with a promotion or to mention Facebook in the rules or materials relating to a promotion."

According to an advertising law alert sent out by the law firm Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz: "This appears to mean that advertisers can only use the Facebook name and trademarks to release Facebook from any liability associated with the promotion, to acknowledge that Facebook does not endorse or sponsor the promotion, and to inform the entrant that her personal information is being provided to the advertiser and not to Facebook."

Among other things, the new guidelines could end up creating more work for lawyers.