A major Shopify Inc. client has filed an injunction against the Ottawa-based e-commerce platform in an Ontario court to restore its web store, in a significant test of its policy affecting hate and violence. The store was shut down last week over user-uploaded clothing designs that allegedly promoted imagery affiliated with groups connected with conspiracy theories, violence and terrorism.
Cleveland-based RageOn Inc. allows users from around the world to upload and sell designs on its platform, which uses Shopify tools for e-commerce functions. RageOn says it has nearly one million customers who have made more than 100 million products with its technology that allows an image to be printed in full colour across shirts, blankets or yoga mats.
Typical designs range from kitten collages to shirts that create the appearance of a shirtless torso with a tank-top tan line. But RageOn said in a civil claim, filed with the Ontario …