FLAME WARS

If you flame someone online can the online service be held responsible? That's the issue being decided in New York's State Supreme Court. A Long Island financial firm, Stratton Oakmont, sued Prodigy -- one of theonline world's Big Three-- claiming that it was unfairly accused of fraud on a Prodigy bulletin board. Prodigy, like other online service providers have always said they're simply a communications conduit -- much like a phone company -- and have claimed that they're not responsible for what their customers post. "Liability," says Kent Stuckey, general counsel of Compuserve, "could present a chilling effect on the free flow of information." Still, this week, Prodigy agreed to try and track down the person who allegedly vilified the Long Island firm. It will also tell the court how it monitors message boards.Post your opinion on theNew Mediabulletin board.