Wednesday, January 17, 2007		ILR Home Page

Weekly Alert January 17, 2007 Directory of Internet Lawyers Latest News Intellectual Property Internet Commerce Freedom of Speech Privacy & Security Taxation Criminal Liability Latest Cases Latest Pleadings, Motions, & Briefs Latest Research from Pike & Fischer Broadband Policy Summit III: Broadband Full Steam Ahead Subscription Information

Directory of Internet Lawyers Thanks to those who responded to last week's Attorney Directory announcement. Based on your positive feedback, Pike & Fischer has decided to move forward with the enhancement. We hope to have the Directory posted in the near future. Watch this space for instructions on how to add a listing. For those who missed last week's announcement, Pike & Fischer plans to create a Directory of Internet Lawyers in order to assist web visitors who send legal questions our way. Inclusion in the directory will be entirely voluntary. We plan to list attorneys alphabetically, displaying basic contact information with an optional link to each attorney's online biography. ILR subscribers will be entitled to a single listing free of charge. Additional listings and listings by non-subscribers will be subject to an annual fee of $49.99. Inquiries concerning the Directory should be forwarded to customercare@pf.com.

Latest News INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY No Gripe Site Defense Available for Site That Is Competitor of Target A gripe site operated by a direct competitor of the plaintiffs enjoys no fair use defense against a cybersquatting claim where neither the domain name nor the site itself tips off visitors that the defendants are not associated with the plaintiffs, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio held Jan. 5. The defendants, as direct competitors to the plaintiffs, are making a commercial use of the marks and thus fall outside the parameters of "bona fide noncommercial use" needed to support a finding of fair use under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, the court concluded. HER, Inc. v. RE/MAX First Choice, LLC, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1017. Read more...

Other Intellectual Property news: Web Site's Misquoting of Endorsements Deemed Blurring of Plaintiff's Identical Mark France Begins Implementing Digital Copyright Law by Issuing Initial Decree Cisco Claims Apple's iPhone Infringes Its Registered Trademark Bipartisan Group Reintroduces Measure Requiring Royalties for Downloaded Music Keyword Use for Comparative Ad Held Permissible Search ILR's Intellectual Property database

INTERNET COMMERCE Court Finds Marketer's Unsolicited E-Mail Complied with Washington State Spam Law Unsolicited commercial e-mail messages that contain transmission paths and information on domain names do not violate the Washington statute on unsolicited e-mails, even if recipients' replies to the e-mails are undeliverable, the Washington Court of Appeals, Division II, ruled Jan. 9. The court upheld a decision by the Washington Superior Court, Pierce County, that a Grants Pass, Ore., Internet marketing company did not violate the Washington statute by sending the plaintiff, Washington resident E. John Benson, 251 unsolicited commercial e-mail messages. Benson v. Oregon Processing Service, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1019. Read more...

Other Internet Commerce news: UPS Shipper Bound by Liability Limits Reasonably Presented in Linked Online Pages FTC Enters Stipulated Deals with Movieland.com on Advertisements Group to Offer Free Web-Based Software for Prescriptions to Every American Doctor Search ILR's Internet Commerce database

FREEDOM OF SPEECH Changes to NY Online Advertising Rules Are Toned Down from Original Proposals Following an extended comment period on proposed changes to the disciplinary rules that govern lawyer advertising and solicitation in New York, the state court system has released new rules that are in certain areas substantially less restrictive than the original proposals. The new rules, announced Jan. 4 by the presiding justices of the Appellate Division's four departments, take effect Feb. 1. Read more...

Other Freedom of Speech news: CDA Immunity Extends to Private Civil Suits Charging ISPs with Criminal Activity Search ILR's Freedom of Speech database

PRIVACY & SECURITY Bush Signs Legislation to Punish Fraudulent Acquisition of Call Data President Bush signed legislation Jan. 12 that provides criminal penalties for individuals who attempt to fraudulently obtain telephone records. The measure (H.R. 4709) targets a practice known as "pretexting," where someone calls a phone company impersonating a customer and attempts to secure personal phone records without the consumer's knowledge or permission. The House approved the bill in the spring with a vote of 409-0, and the Senate passed the measure late Dec. 8 by unanimous consent. Read more...

Other Privacy & Security news: Incoming Senate Judiciary Chairman Eyes New Safeguards for Personal Data Feinstein Reintroduces Bills on SSN Use, Breach Notice That Died in 109th Congress NLRB Announces Oral Argument, Invites Amicus Briefs in E-Mail Case South Korea to Require Web Sites to Confirm Identity of Online Posters HHS Advisory Workgroup Recommends Patient ID Proofing Policy for E-Records Era Canadian Group Urges Implementation of Federal Data Breach Notification Law Republication of Photo in Ad Context Not New Publication for Statute of Limitations Search ILR's Privacy & Security database

TAXATION Sununu Plans Legislation to Clarify, Eliminate Loopholes in Internet Tax Ban Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.) announced Jan. 10 he is developing new legislation to clarify the existing Internet tax ban and prevent state and local tax jurisdictions from undercutting Congress's intent that Internet access remain tax-free. Sununu said the bill would complement the bipartisan Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act (S. 156) he recently introduced with Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.). Read more... Search ILR's Taxation database

CRIMINAL LIABILITY Italian Ministers Tighten Compulsory Time Frame for Shutting Down Illegal Web Sites Italy's Ministry of Communications ruled Jan. 3 that Internet service providers that unknowingly host illegal sites must shut down those sites within six hours of being notified. Previously, providers had up to 48 hours to close offensive sites—longer if it was determined that the provider itself should conduct its own review of the case or if the notification came on a weekend or holiday. Read more...

Other Criminal Liability news: Colorado Private Investigator Pleads Guilty in Hewlett-Packard Pretexting Case Search ILR's Criminal Liability database

Latest Cases Ameriwood Industries, Inc. v. Liberman, 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3269 [ED Mo] (Court allows an independent expert to obtain and search a mirror image of defendants' computer equipment under certain conditions) Bejinha v. Whois Guard Protected, 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3275 [NAF] (Complainant's purported three-year Internet use of term "Global Chip" inadequately documented to establish common law trademark rights) Benson v. Oregon Processing Service, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1019 [Wash Ct App] (Court finds marketer's unsolicited e-mail complied with Washington state spam law) Blair v. Nevada Landing Partnership, 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3263 [Ill App Ct] (Appropriation of likeness claim tolled by limitations; use of plaintiff's photo in various media—in menu, on billboard, on web site—constituted a single overt act) Bradley v. Google, Inc., 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3265 [ND Cal] (Lanham Act and other claims brought by AdSense customer dismissed, but one claim survives to the extent that Google's alleged deletion of e-mail constitutes a claim for injury to personal property) CC v. AB, 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3273 [QB] (Adulterer wins injunction preventing wronged husband from disclosing the identity of his wife's celebrity lover on the Internet) Cherry Hill Vineyards, LLC v. Hudgins, 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3261 [WD Ky] (Amended statutory scheme regulating shipments of wine withstands constitutional challenge in all but one respect) Doe v. Bates, 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3245 [ED Tex] (CDA immunity extends to private civil suits charging ISPs with criminal activity) Federal Trade Commission v. Digital Enterprises, Inc., d/b/a Movieland.com (Stipulated Interim Agreement and Order), 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3111 [CD Cal] (FTC enters stipulated deals with Movieland.com on advertisements) HER, Inc. v. RE/MAX First Choice, LLC, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1017 [SD Ohio] (No gripe site defense available for site that is competitor of target) Horphag Research Ltd. v. Garcia d/b/a Healthierlife.com, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1007 [9th Cir] (Web site's misquoting of endorsements deemed blurring of plaintiff's identical mark) Nautilus Group, Inc. v. Icon Health & Fitness, Inc., 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3267 [WD Wash] (Keyword use for comparative ad held permissible) SanDisk Corp. v. Audio MPEG, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1013 [ND Cal] (Plaintiff fails to establish a reasonable apprehension that it will face an infringement suit based on statements on defendant's web site that its patents relate to MP3 players or the MPEG-1 standard) Telecommunications Relay Services and Speech-to-Speech Services for Individuals with Hearing and Speech Disabilities; Internet-based Captioned Telephone Service (Declaratory Ruling), 2006 ILRWeb (P&F) 3271 [FCC] (Internet Protocol captioned telephone relay service is a type of telecommunications relay service eligible for compensation from the Interstate TRS Fund when offered in compliance with the applicable TRS mandatory minimum standards) Treiber & Straub, Inc. v. United Parcel Service, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1009 [7th Cir] (UPS shipper bound by liability limits reasonably presented in linked online pages) United States v. Buckner, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1011 [4th Cir] (Wife validly consented to police search of husband's password-protected files) Zyprexa Products Liability Litigation, In re (Order for Temporary Mandatory Injunction), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1015 [ED NY] (Injunction requires removal of contested documents from any web site) Search ILR's Cases database

Latest Pleadings, Motions, & Briefs Cisco Systems, Inc. v. Apple, Inc. (Complaint), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1000 [ND Cal] (Cisco sues Apple for use of "iPhone" mark) Zyprexa Products Liability Litigation, In re (Motion for Reconsideration or in the Alternative for Stay Pending Appeal), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1002 [ED NY] (Injunction requiring removal of contested documents from any web site constitutes an unconstitutional prior restraint on speech) Search ILR's Pleadings database

Latest Research from Pike & Fischer 2007 Broadband Business Outlook January 2007 This report offers up Pike & Fischer's projections for the coming year on developments in the broadband services market. It includes forecasts on subscriber growth for various services and qualitative analysis of the impact that new applications such as user-generated content, mobile video technology and IP telephony will have on the marketplace. Ten bar and pie charts are included. Order now

Broadband Policy Summit III: Broadband Full Steam Ahead June 7-8, 2007 - The Ritz Carlton, Arlington, VA Early bird registration ends April 17th P&F's premier event will tackle the tough questions plaguing lawmakers, regulators and business executives as they continue to sort through the thicket of outdated laws and definitions that govern the development of all communications services. In 2005, 200 of your industry peers joined us for this unique event. In 2006, over 220 people joined us for a rigorous debate of net neutrality, video franchise reform, and other hot issues. This year, we'll once again explore, explain and debate the complex issues facing the communications industry to provide you with a clear sense of what has happened and, more importantly, what's likely to happen in the telecommunications and broadband policy arenas. Register now

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