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Latest News 
 
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
 
Panel Gives ISP-Friendly Reading to DMCA; CDA §230 Held to Preempt State IP Claims 
 
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit March 29 issued an interpretation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act that puts primary responsibility for policing copyright infringement on the copyright owner and relieves Internet service providers of a statutory duty to police their users' activities except in cases where they have strong notice that infringement is occurring.  Perfect 10, Inc. v. CCBill LLC, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1467.  Read more ...

Other Intellectual Property news:
 
·  EMI Will Allow Music Downloads Free of Digital Rights Management Blocks
·  Experts Debate Strategies for Keeping Infringing Content Off UGC Sites
 
Search ILR's Intellectual Property database

INTERNET COMMERCE 
 
Forum Selection, Other Click-Wrap Terms Enforceable Regardless of Whether Viewed 
 
So long as a forum selection clause in an online contract's terms is readily accessible and clear, requiring users to scroll down or print the contract to see it and other terms is acceptable, and will not absolve a party who clicks "I Agree" without taking the time to view the whole agreement, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania held March 28.  The court determined that Google's AdWords contract, a "clickwrap" contract, was enforceable in its entirety. The terms, including a forum selection clause, were clearly presented in readable text, despite being in a window that required scrolling.  Feldman v. Google, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1493.  Read more ...

 
Other Internet Commerce news: 
 
·  CFAA Likely Violated by Downloading, Then Deleting, Employer's Business Data
·  Apple Contends iTunes Complies with Law, Seeks Resolution with European Commission
·  Non-Prosecution Agreement Announced with Clearing House in Gambling Case   
·  German Business Group Says Rome I Agreement Would Harm Internet Commerce
·  Virtual Property Ownership Rights in Video Games Need Better Articulation, Makers Urge
·  Study Labels XM-Sirius Proposed Merger Anticompetitive, Without Consumer Benefits
·  U.S. Plays It Close to Vest on Whether It Will Appeal WTO Ruling on Gambling Laws  

 
Search ILR's Internet Commerce database

FREEDOM OF SPEECH
 
Wary of Becoming Web Content Cop, ICANN Board Rejects .xxx for Adult Sites 
 
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers March 30 rejected a proposal that would have allowed a sponsored top-level domain (sTLD) for pornographic material, citing an inability or unwillingness to enforce rules governing acceptable content in the proposed domain.  The proposal, sponsored by Jupiter, Fla.-based ICM Registry, would have created a .xxx sTLD for "responsible adult entertainment sites," though it would not have compelled any sites to register there.  The ICANN board rejected the proposal by a vote of 9 to 5, with one abstention, at its just-concluded Lisbon, Portugal meeting.  Read more ...

 
Other Freedom of Speech news: 
 
·  Government's Justification for Withholding .xxx-Related Documents Too Weak for FOIA
·  Disparate Enforcement of E-Mail Policy Against Union Violates NLRA, Court Rules
·  NLRB Hears Oral Argument in Important Case on Workers' Use of Employer's E-Mail System

Search ILR's Freedom of Speech database 

TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
 
FCC Releases Rules Designed to Beef Up Call Data Protection 
 
The Federal Communications Commission released a long-awaited regulatory package April 2 designed to beef up the protection of customer phone records.  Under the rules, telecommunications carriers are required to request passwords prior to giving out call information online or in real-time over the phone.  In addition, carriers must obtain "opt-in" consent from customers before disclosing their personal information to joint venture partners or independent contractors for marketing purposes. In re Implementation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996: Telecommunications Carriers' Use of Customer Proprietary Network Information and Other Customer Information; IP-Enabled Services (Report and Order and Further NPRM), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1485.  Read more ... 

 
Other Telecommunications news: 
 
·  D.C. Court Backs Verizon, AT&T Mergers Under Tunney Act Review
 
Search ILR's Telecommunications database

PRIVACY & SECURITY 
 
Despite Progress, SEC Lacks Controls for Protecting Confidential Data, GAO Says 
 
In a report released March 28, the Government Accountability Office said that while the Securities and Exchange Commission has made "important progress" in redressing previously noted weaknesses in data-security controls, it still has not implemented "key controls" to safeguard effectively the confidentiality of its information systems.  In a March 20 letter appended to the report, SEC Chairman Christopher Cox and Chief Information Officer R. Corey Booth pledged to address the "remaining gaps" in the agency's information security program.  Read more...

 
Other Privacy & Security news: 
 
·  House Democrat Offers Bill to Rein in FBI Data Collection
·  California Office Issues Report on State Privacy Laws
·  Justices Nix Review of Interior Data Security Case
 
Search ILR's Privacy & Security database 

TAXATION
 
Retail Store in Parish Does Not Establish Online Company's Presence for Tax Purposes
 
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana found March 22 that the online retailer barnesandnoble.com did not have a presence in a parish and was not required to collect local sales and use taxes, despite the fact its parent company, Barnes & Noble, Inc., operated a retail bookstore there.  "The existence of a close corporate relationship between companies and a common corporate name does not mean that the physical presence of one is imputed to the other," wrote Judge Sarah S. Vance.  St. Tammany Parish Tax Collector v. Barnesandnoble.com, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1469.  Read more...

Other Taxation news: 
 
·  French Appeals Court Says E-Commerce Firms Cannot Be Forced to Apply Copy Tax
·  Multistate Tax Commission Subcommittee Rejects Online Travel Firms' Tax Proposal
·  Oregon DOR Rules Address Software Sales, Intangible Property, Filing Procedures
 
Search ILR's Taxation database 

Latest Cases 
 
·  Appropriate Regulatory Treatment for Broadband Access to the Internet Over Wireless Networks, In re (Declaratory Ruling), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1483 [FCC] (FCC classifies wireless broadband Internet access service as an information service)
·  Feldman v. Google, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1493 [ED Pa] (Forum selection clause in "clickwrap" agreement is enforceable)
·  ICM Registry, LLC v. U.S. Department of Commerce, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1475 [D DC] (Government's justification for withholding .xxx-related documents too weak for FOIA)
·  Implementation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996: Telecommunications Carriers' Use of Customer Proprietary Network Information and Other Customer Information; IP-Enabled Services (Report and Order and Further NPRM), In re, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1485 [FCC] (FCC releases long-awaited regulatory package designed to beef up the protection of customer phone records)
·  Media General Operations, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1471 [4th Cir] (Disparate enforcement of e-mail policy against union violates NLRA)
·  Nierle Media GMGH & Co. v. Rue du Commerce, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1465 [Cour d'Appel de Paris] (French appeals court says e-commerce firms cannot be forced to apply copy tax)
·  Novak d/b/a Petswarehouse.com v. Tucows, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1487 [ED NY] (Forum selection clause in "click-through" domain name transfer agreement is enforceable)
·  Perfect 10, Inc. v. CCBill LLC, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1467 [9th Cir] (Ninth Circuit gives ISP-friendly reading to DMCA; CDA §230 held to preempt state IP claims)
·  Person v. Google, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1495 [ND Cal] (Complaint challenging Google's AdWords program dismissed with leave to amend)
·  PharMerica, Inc. v. Arledge, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1479 [MD Fla] (CFAA likely violated by downloading, then deleting, employer's business data)
·  PowerOasis, Inc. v. T-Mobile USA, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1481 [D NH] (Claims related to plaintiff's "Power and Telecommunications Access Vending Machine" were anticipated by a wireless data network operated by T-Mobile's predecessor)
·  St. Tammany Parish Tax Collector v. Barnesandnoble.com, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1469 [ED La] (Retail store in parish does not establish online company's presence for tax purposes)
·  United States – Measures Affecting the Cross-Border Supply of Gambling and Betting Services; Recourse to Article 21.5 of the DSU by Antigua and Barbuda, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1473 [WTO] (WTO issues compliance panel report on gambling dispute)
·  United States v. SBC Communications, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1491 [D DC] (D.C. court backs Verizon, AT&T mergers under Tunney Act review)
·  Utah Lighthouse Ministry, Inc. v. Discovery Computing, Inc., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1489 [D Utah] (Hyperlinks that connect users to another site, which in turn links to an online bookstore, do not satisfy "commerce use" requirement under Lanham Act)
·  Xtraplus Corp. v. Flawless Computers, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1477 [WIPO] (UDRP complaint denied because complainant unable to demonstrate that gripe site is used for commercial gain)
 
Search ILR's Cases database

Latest Pleadings, Motions, & Briefs 
 
·  FreeConference.com, Inc. v. ATT, Inc. (Complaint), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1408 [D DC] (Teleconferencing service sues AT&T for allegedly blocking calls)
·  Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. v. Name.com, LLC (Complaint), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1410 [D Colo] (Retailer sues two domain name registrars over practice of "domain tasting")
·  Quigley v. Giblin (Complaint), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 1412 [D DC] (Public Citizen alleges that a union has violated its members' free speech rights by requiring members to use password-protections on web sites that contain information about union elections)
 
Search ILR's Pleadings database 

Latest Research from Pike & Fischer

Verizon vs. Vonage:  What It Means for Residential VoIP Service
On March 8th, A federal jury found that Vonage Holdings infringed on three Verizon patents, fueling speculation that the company could have to shut down its VoIP service.  This report analyzes the impact that this case will have on Vonage as well as other independent VoIP providers, and explains why the jury verdict will generate increased adoption of cable phone service. 

User-Generated Video on the Web: A Taxonomy and Market Outlook
The proliferation of user-generated online video has had a significant impact on Internet marketing methods, business models and copyright law. This report provides a snapshot of the current players in the user-generated video market and examines them on the basis of their respective content type, ownership and business model. We examine how various social media Web sites are differentiating their content and features. The analysis supports Pike & Fischer's conclusion that the market for user-generated content is approaching the glut stage and will undergo significant consolidation within the next three years.

View all Market Research Reports & Briefs

Events & Conferences 
 
Broadband Policy Summit III:  Early-Bird Discount Ends April 17
June 7-8, 2007 - The Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City, Arlington, VA
Learn firsthand from top industry experts and regulators what's hot on the legislative and regulatory agendas, how this affects broadband business practices, and what you need to do to position your organization for strategic success.  Hear from top policy-makers and industry leaders from Congress, the FCC, NTIA, state commissions, cable operators, telcos and law firms. 
Download Brochure   Register Now 

Legal Risk Management in the Web 2.0 World
September 18, 2007 - AED Conference Center - Washington, D.C.
Gain the latest insights and guidance on dealing with the growing array of legal risks associated with social networking, user-generated content and other applications in the Web 2.0 world.  Prepare yourself by learning about existing and potential liabilities, and how you can manage your risk.  Join Pike & Fischer's team of attorney-experts and Broadband Advisory Services analysts and your fellow telecom and law colleagues for this unprecedented event.  Take advantage of our early bird rate and secure your registration today.
Learn More  Register Now

The New, New Media Revolution: User Generated Content
If you missed our audio conference on User Generated Content, you haven't missed out completely. CD-ROM recordings of the event are now available. Order one today!

View all Events & Conferences

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