Latest News 
 
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
 
In Rem ACPA Relief Granted Against Domain Names Using Trademark for Phishing 
 
A trademark owner whose mark was used by unknown foreign individuals to create phishing sites is entitled to in rem relief against the domain names under the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia held Jan. 8.  The court said that in rem jurisdiction was proper over 11 domain names involved in a phishing scheme using the plaintiff's trademark. The domain registrants were unavailable, but the names had been registered in Virginia and there was a clear violation of the ACPA.  Atlas Copco AB v. AtlasCopcoIran.com, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1013.  Subscribers read more ...

Other Intellectual Property news:
 
·  Canadian Court Rejects Proposed Levy on Digital Audio Recording Equipment
·  Re-Hearing in 10th Circuit Copyright Term Case Denied
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Intellectual Property database

INTERNET COMMERCE 
 
NSI Reserves Queried but Unbought Names; ICANN Will Evaluate Practice's Propriety 
 
In a self-described effort to protect registrants from domain name "front running," domain name registry Network Solutions, Inc. recently began "reserving" names in its database after the names were searched-for, but not purchased, by potential registrants, the registrar said in a statement issued Jan. 8.  NSI said that it began freezing names after customers complained about domain name front running.  Subscribers read more ...
 
Other Internet Commerce news: 
 
·  Utah's Child Protection E-Mail Registry Could Shape Future Course of MySpace Deal
·  ICANN Annual Report:  Commerce JPA On-Track
·  ICANN Seeks Comments Before Revisiting Whois
·  QuickBooks Users File Software Class Action
·  Antitrust Complaint Filed Against Apple, Inc.
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Internet Commerce database

FREEDOM OF SPEECH
 
Husband's Blog Posts About Estranged Wife, Divorce Protected by First Amendment 
 
A temporary order issued by a Vermont family court ordering a husband to remove comments he posted on his blog about his wife was an impermissible burden on the husband's freedom of expression, the Washington, Vermont Family Court held Jan. 14.  However, the court held that the husband's freedom of expression did not override the wife's physical and intellectual property rights to her private diary, portions of which he scanned and posted on the blog.  Garrido v. Krasnasky, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1025.  Subscribers read more ...
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Freedom of Speech database 

TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
 
Time Warner to Meter Bandwidth, One Public Interest Group Skeptical 
 
Public interest groups Jan. 17 expressed mixed reaction to the announcement that Time Warner Cable will be testing a new pricing model for its broadband service based on customer usage rather than a flat rate.  The move comes during a Federal Communications Commission investigation of Comcast for allegedly blocking BitTorrent, a file sharing application that uses large amounts of bandwidth.  Comcast has strongly denied blocking the site, but has defended its use of "reasonable network management" practices to ensure all of its customers are well served.  Subscribers read more ...
 
Other Telecommunications news: 
 
·  Martin Tries to Put Best Light on Upcoming Spectrum Auction
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Telecommunications database

PRIVACY & SECURITY 
 
At EU Hearing on Google/DoubleClick, Top Official Says IP Addresses Are Private 
 
Internet protocol addresses, the numeric identifiers used to route data packets between computers on networks, should be considered personal information and their use should be controlled by European Union data protection law, Peter Schaar, chairman of the Article 29 Working Party, a group of EU data protection regulators, said Jan. 21.  "It is possible to use this data to identify people," said Schaar, who is also Germany's Federal data protection minister.  Subscribers read more ...
 
Other Privacy & Security news: 
 
·  Murky Outlook Seen for Data Security Legislation in 2008
·  Search Engine Firms Expected to Face Continued Hill Scrutiny
·  Key Senate Committee Eyes Spyware, but Lobbyists Skeptical About Floor Action
·  SANS Lists Top Cybersecurity Threats Most Likely to Cause Damage in 2008
·  Online Retailer Settles FTC Charge of Failing to Meet Its Privacy Policy Security Promises
·  Court Rejects First Privacy Lawsuit in China; Search Engine Sued Over Release of E-Mails
·  France Probing Facebook Privacy Practices; Will Push for Pan-EU Social Networking Talks
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Privacy & Security database 

TAXATION
 
Streamlined Committee to Study Tax Consequences of Software License Upgrades 
 
A committee of the Streamlined Sales Tax Governing Board, Inc. Jan. 17 agreed to draft an interpretation that would clarify whether software license upgrades fit within the definitions of "tangible personal property" and "computer software."  The Compliance Review and Interpretations Committee (CRIC) unanimously accepted an interpretation request presented by the Software Finance and Tax Executives Council (SoFTEC).  CRIC will now examine the question and draft an interpretation that would require consideration by the governing board.  Subscribers read more ...

Subscribers may search ILR's Taxation database 

CRIMINAL LIABILITY 
 
New Jersey Enacts First Web Dating Site Law; Services Must Post Background Check Policy 
 
New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine (D) Jan. 13 signed a measure that requires online dating services to disclose prominently on their sign-up pages whether they conduct criminal history background screenings on their members.  The new law is the first of its kind in the country, according to a Jan. 14 statement from the Safer Online Dating Alliance (SODA), a nationwide coalition of Internet safety organizations that has lobbied for dating web site background check laws.  Subscribers read more ...
 
Other Criminal Liability news: 
 
·  Cybercrime Bill Has Good Chance of Seeing Final Passage, Lobbyists Say
·  Co-Occupant with Computer Access Has Authority to Consent to Computer Search
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Criminal Liability database 

Latest Cases 
 
·  Apple Canada, Inc. v. Canadian Private Copying Collective, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1009 [Can Fed Ct App] (Canadian court rejects proposed levy on digital audio recording equipment)
·  Atlantic Recording Corp. v. Andersen, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1019 [D Ore] (Defendant entitled to attorney's fees against record companies, as there has been a material alteration of the legal relationship of the parties)
·  Atlas Copco AB v. AtlasCopcoIran.com, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1013 [ED Va] (In rem ACPA relief granted against domain names using trademark for phishing)
·  Basis Technology Corp. v. Amazon.com, Inc., 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1015 [Mass App Ct] (Terms of a settlement agreement as set forth in an e-mail are binding)
·  Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association v. Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1011 [Can Fed Ct App] (Canadian court upholds collection of royalties on the wireless transmission of musical cellular telephone ring tones by wireless carriers)
·  Garrido v. Krasnasky, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1025 [Vt Fam Ct] (Husband's blog posts about estranged wife, divorce protected by First Amendment)
·  Johnson v. Burmaster, 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 3301 [Wis Ct App] (School district's operation of Internet-based school does not comport with Wisconsin's charter school, open-enrollment, and teacher licensing statutes)
·  Life is good, Inc., In re (Agreement Containing Consent Order), 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1017 [FTC] (Online retailer settles FTC charge of failing to meet its privacy policy security promises)
·  Schwartz v. Comcast Corp., 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 3101 [3d Cir] (Where terms of subscriber agreement were available to customer via defendant's website, they are binding, despite the fact that customer was unaware of them)
·  Siesta Village Market, LLC v. Perry, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1021 [ND Tex] (Texas' ban on the sale and shipment of wine by out-of-state retailers to Texas residents is unconstitutional, but the requirement that wine retailers—including out-of-state retailers—first purchase such wine from Texas-licensed wholesalers is constitutional)
·  United States v. Sager, 2008 ILRWeb (P&F) 1023 [ND Ind] (Co-occupant with computer access has authority to consent to computer search)
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Cases database

Latest Pleadings, Motions, & Briefs 
 
·  Create-A-Card, Inc. v. Intuit, Inc. (Class Action Complaint), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 3228 [ND Cal] (QuickBooks users file software class action)
·  Somers v. Apple, Inc. (Class Action Complaint), 2007 ILRWeb (P&F) 3230 [ND Cal] (Antitrust complaint filed against Apple, Inc.)
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Pleadings database 

Latest Research from Pike & Fischer

Broadband Competition Outlook 2008 - New!
This report offers up Pike & Fischer's projections for the coming year on competitive 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 mobile broadband applications, high-definition TV and VoIP will have on the marketplace. Eight bar and pie charts are included.

U.S. Mobile WiMAX Market Update
With the recent resignation of Sprint Nextel CEO Gary Forsee raising speculation as to the long term prospects of Sprint Nextel's WiMAX effort, Xohm, and news that Clearwire has delayed its WiMAX rollout in at least one market, we take a look at how these developments, along with the demise of the Sprint Nextel/Clearwire WiMAX partnership, could affect the future of services riding on the next-generation wireless technology. We provide our views of the likely success factors and challenges for WiMAX initiatives over the next 12 – 18 months.

High-speed Internet Packaging & Pricing Strategies: 4th Edition
This report provides a detailed and up-to-date analysis of the high-speed Internet pricing, bundling and marketing strategies of the top providers, including Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox, Cablevision, Charter, Insight, Mediacom, Qwest, AT&T and Verizon. The report ranks each provider by maximum speeds provided and by price points, and includes 18 tables of data and analysis. It will also examine the impact that the emergence of telco fiber-optic services, mainly Verizon FiOS and AT&T U-vrse, are having on cable offerings and strategies.

View all Market Research Reports & Briefs

Events & Conferences 
 
Broadband Policy Summit IV - Navigating the Digital Revolution
The Westin Embassy Row, Washington, D.C., June 12 -13, 2008
BPS IV--the 2008 edition of the preeminent annual forum for the broadband telecommunications industry--will once again air and dissect the critical and complex issues facing broadband businesses and policymakers. Interact with panels of top federal, state, and private sector players and top-level keynoters to gain invaluable, actionable insights into the industry's emerging shape and explore new developments in recurring themes. View the Summit Agenda or our list of speakers, growing daily. Register today and take advantage of our early bird rate. 

Best Practices for Businesses Exploring, Exploiting, and Expanding in Web 2.0
Best-selling audio conference CD now available!
Don't miss out on this opportunity to gain practical guidance from industry professionals on how best to harness the power of Web 2.0 while mitigating legal risks. The recording of our Jan. 15 program, on CD, is now available--to revisit on your own, or share with colleagues. Your purchase includes the original presentation handout--PLUS the Q&A with our speakers.  Order now.

View all Events & Conferences

Internet Law Attorney Directory

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Many of your colleagues have already added their names to Pike & Fischer's Internet Law Attorney Directory!  Isn't it time to add yours?  ILR subscribers are entitled to one complimentary premium listing per account. Additional listings and listings by non-subscribers can be purchased for $49.99 (or $69.99 for a premium boldfaced listing).  Use this form to submit your complimentary or paid listing today!

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