Trademark-Based Keyword Advertising – Next Week!

Wednesday, July 22, 2009 | 2:00 – 3:30 p.m. EDT
The debate over the use of others' trademarks to trigger online advertisements is heating up. A recent ruling held that such use constitutes an actionable "use in commerce"; other cases are pending, including claims against advertisers and search engines, and even class action lawsuits. At the same time, Google is liberalizing its policy to permit use of third-party trademarks in some text ads. Join Pike & Fischer for an interactive Webinar featuring legal experts from Google, Santa Clara Law School, Marriott International, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati as they clarify common misconceptions about keyword advertising, examine the implications of third-party trademark use, and offer guidance for brand owners, marketers, resellers, and website operators.  Learn More  Register Now

Latest News 
 
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
 
AP and Media Standards Trust Announce Internet News Information, Copyright Tags

The Associated Press and the Media Standards Trust proposed July 10 a "microformat" for news articles intended to provide additional metadata tags so that Internet search engines can identify authors, publishers, and datelines more easily.  Subscribers read more ...

Other Intellectual Property news: 
 
·  ACPA, Lanham Act Damage Awards Are Not Duplicative; Serve Different Purposes
·  ICANN Board Promises Continued Attention to Trademark Concerns in New gTLD Process
·  SoundExchange and 'Pureplay' Webcasters Reach Royalty Agreement
·  Paid Internet Newsgroup Operator Liable for Direct, Secondary Copyright Infringement
·  Only 'Live Broadcasts' Qualify for Statutory Damages on Unregistered Foreign Works
·  French Senate OKs New Version of Rejected Web Cut-Off Law After Judicial Review Added
·  Court Says Bilski's 'Particular Machine' Must Be 'Specially Programmed' to Perform Steps
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Intellectual Property database

INTERNET COMMERCE 
 
Senate Commerce Committee Expands Probe of Web Marketing Services' Billing Practices

The chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee July 10 added a third online company to the committee's investigation of certain Internet marketers' allegedly deceptive billing practices.  Sen. John D. Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) wrote to Norwalk, Conn.-based Affinion Group, Inc. July 10, seeking, among other things, information about how the company enrolls consumers in online discount clubs.  Subscribers read more ...

Subscribers may search ILR's Internet Commerce database

FREEDOM OF SPEECH
 
Employers Urged to Tread Carefully When Investigating Workers' Web Posts

An employer that monitors employees' personal web postings on blogs or social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace might be motivated by the reasonable goals of protecting its reputation or proprietary information.  But an employer that proceeds carelessly could create liability on several fronts.  Subscribers read more ...

Other Freedom of Speech news: 
 
·  CDA Bars Claims That MySpace Failed to Protect Minors from Predators
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Freedom of Speech database 

TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
 
Hutchison Introduces Legislation to Promote Broadband Deployment

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) July 14 introduced legislation (S. 1447) intended to expand broadband deployment in the United States, in part by amending the tax code to provide tax credits for investments in broadband infrastructure.  Subscribers read more ...

Other Telecommunications news: 
 
·  Verizon Wireless to Refund Florida Consumers for Third-Party Charges
·  Industry Gripes About New Rules Governing Rural Broadband Programs
·  Annual FCC Budget Legislation Moving Slowly Through Congress
·  Landscape of Broadband Debate Shifts with More Activist Administration
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Telecommunications database

PRIVACY & SECURITY 
 
Industry Behavioral Advertising Proposal Prompts Mixed Reviews from Privacy Experts

A proposal by leading marketing groups to strengthen online advertising industry standards governing consumer data collection is receiving mixed reviews from privacy attorneys.  The proposal calls for a broad range of Internet companies to abide by a set of industry-wide principles when engaging in behavioral advertising, which involves tracking consumers' online activities for advertising purposes.  Subscribers read more ...

Other Privacy & Security news: 
 
·  Lower German House Amends, Adopts Bill Including Breach Notice, Consumer Opt-In
·  Alberta Privacy Agency Probing Health Data Theft in Virus Attack
·  FTC Chair Says Agency Would Maintain Key Privacy Powers Under Obama Proposal
·  12 Month Dutch Telecom Data Retention Set; Ministry to Seek Lower Six Month ISP Limit
·  Court Rules IP Addresses Not Personal Data, PII Collection Ban Agreement Not Breached
·  EC Seeks EU Data Protection Framework Comments
·  Phorm's Online Behavioral Ad Plans Delayed as Two U.K. ISPs Back Off
·  European Data Protection Supervisor Seeks Comprehensive Data Protection Framework
·  Spanish DPA: Social Network Site Fixes Privacy Gaps
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Privacy & Security database 

TAXATION
 
Washington State Agency Drafts Rule for Digital Products Taxation

A preliminary draft rule on taxation of digital products issued July 10 by the Washington Department of Revenue provided businesses with guidance on how the agency will implement a new law for taxing downloaded music, streaming video, online video games, and services.  Subscribers read more ...

Other Taxation news: 
 
·  States, Retailers Near Agreement on Vendor Compensation Issue for Federal SSUTA Bill
·  Missouri Rules Software Implementation Services Taxable
·  West Virginia Enacts Exemption for High-Tech
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Taxation database 

CRIMINAL LIABILITY 
 
MySpace Cyberbullying Convictions Likely to Be Dismissed, Federal Judge Says

A federal judge presiding over the case of Lori Drew, a Missouri woman who allegedly used a fictitious MySpace.com identity to harass a teenage girl who then committed suicide, July 2 told the parties involved that he intended to dismiss the three misdemeanor convictions against Drew handed down in November 2008.  United States v. Drew (Order Granting Acquittal), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2221.  Subscribers read more ...

Subscribers may search ILR's Criminal Liability database 

Latest Cases 
 
·  Arista Records LLC v. Usenet.com, Inc., 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2115 [SD NY] (Online newsgroup service that marketed itself as a source for pirated music is liable as a direct, contributory, and vicarious infringer of the copyright in the plaintiff's sound recordings)
·  DealerTrack, Inc. v. Huber (Order re '427 Patent), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2225 [CD Cal] (Court applied the Bilski machine-or-transformation test for patentability of a method claim and found the claimed system for automating credit applications wanting for failure to disclose a "particular machine")
·  DealerTrack, Inc. v. Huber (Order re '841 Patent), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2227 [CD Cal] (Motion for summary judgment of noninfringement granted; claim construction excluding Internet use required a finding that the company did not directly infringe the patent)
·  Doe II v. MySpace, Inc., 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2113 [Cal Ct App] (CDA bars claims that MySpace failed to protect minors from predators)
·  Football Association Premier League Ltd. v. YouTube, Inc., 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2217 [SD NY] (Statutory damages for copyright infringement may not be recovered on foreign works that have not been registered with the U.S. Copyright Office, unless the claim qualifies for the narrow "live broadcast" exemption of the Copyright Act)
·  Fox v. Hildebrand, 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2231 [CD Cal] (DMCA's copyright management information provision is not limited to copyright notices that are digitally placed on a work)
·  Intercollegiate Broadcast System, Inc. v. Copyright Royalty Board, 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2229 [DC Cir] (A final determination of the Copyright Royalty Judges, setting rates and terms relating to webcasting, is affirmed, save for the $500 minimum fee charged to all webcasters)
·  Johnson v. Microsoft Corp., 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2129 [WD Wash] (Microsoft's collection of Internet protocol addresses in conjunction with software updates did not breach an end user licensing agreement with consumers that it would not collect "personally identifiable information" without consent)
·  Missouri Department of Revenue Letter Ruling No. 5673, 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 1913 [Mo Dep't Rev] (Missouri rules software implementation services taxable)
·  Pietrylo v. Hillstone Restaurant Group (Jury Verdict), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2131 [D NJ] (Jury decides that employee was impermissibly pressured into revealing her password to a protected MySpace account—which led to the firing of two employees who posted disparaging remarks on the website—in violation of the SCA)
·  SoundExchange, Inc. v. Librarian of Congress, 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2219 [DC Cir] (Court affirms CRJ determination with respect to the royalty rate for the use of sound recordings, but reverses with respect to the CRJ's failure to set a royalty rate for "ephemeral copies" of sound recordings)
·  St. Luke's Cataract and Laser Institute, P.A. v. Sanderson, 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2223 [11th Cir] (ACPA statutory damages award not duplicative of actual damages award for service mark infringement)
·  United States v. Drew (Order Granting Acquittal), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2221 [CD Cal] (MySpace cyberbullying convictions likely to be dismissed, federal judge says)
·  Verizon Wireless Services LLC, In re (Assurance of Voluntary Compliance), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2127 [Fla Att'y Gen] (Verizon Wireless will pay $1.5 million to end a Florida investigation into the practices of its third-party mobile content billings)
·  Viacom International, Inc. v. YouTube, Inc. (Stipulation Regarding Privilege Logs), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2213 [SD NY] (Parties to copyright dispute agree to certain procedures for the creation and production of privilege logs)
·  Yahoo! Inc. v. National Football League Players Association, Inc. (Order of Dismissal), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2215 [D Minn] (Yahoo voluntarily dismisses its declaratory judgment action against the NFL regarding its use of NFL player statistics in connection with its fantasy football game)
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Cases database

Latest Pleadings, Motions, & Briefs 
 
·  Facebook, Inc. v. Power Ventures, Inc. (Defendants' Answer and Counterclaims), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2206 [ND Cal] (Aggregator of social networking sites countersues Facebook for unfair trade practices and other violations)
·  RootZoo, Inc. v. Facebook, Inc. (Class Action Complaint), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2208 [ND Cal] (Class action against Facebook for alleged click fraud)
·  Rosetta Stone Ltd. v. Google, Inc. (Complaint), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2202 [ED Va] (Plaintiff alleges that Google has sold plaintiff's trademark to third parties as a search engine keyword to trigger competitors' advertisements)
·  Tagged, Inc., In re (Letter Notice of Proposed Litigation), 2009 ILRWeb (P&F) 2204 [NY Att'y Gen] (N.Y. Attorney General announces intent to sue social networking company for deceptive e-mail marketing practices and invasion of privacy)
 
Subscribers may search ILR's Pleadings database 

Latest Research from Pike & Fischer

Communications Industry Report 2009: Views on the U.S. Economic & Regulatory Climate – New!
This is our second annual survey of communications industry executives, engineers and consultants, along with government officials, journalists, and academicians who focus on the communications industry. This year's survey centers on the impact that the recession is having on the communications industry, and on sentiments about the way the Obama administration and Congress are working to expand broadband availability across the country. More than half of respondents say they expect, with the federal government now providing grants to fuel broadband deployment, that the nation will achieve universal broadband availability within the next five to 10 years. But one-fourth of participants believe it will take more than a decade to reach that benchmark. And WiMAX is by far considered the emerging technology that will generate the biggest change in communications market dynamics over the course of the year. Details on these and other results are illustrated in more than 20 charts and graphs.  Learn More  Order Now

VoIP in the Business World: Market Forecast and Analysis, 2nd Edition – New!
This report compares the business-class VoIP offers from six carriers, detailing both the services for large enterprises and SMBs. We then project the market opportunity out to 2013, forecasting both numbers of business-class VoIP lines and resulting revenues. We predict that AT&T, Verizon and Qwest will capture the biggest share of large enterprises as VoIP customers, but will face competition in the SMB space from a variety of new entrants. Fourteen tables and charts are included.  Learn More  Order Now

Events & Conferences 


Pinning Down Cloud Computing: Legal Risk Management and Best Practices for Business – Webinar Recordings Available!
There's been a lot of buzz about cloud computing.  Much of it touts cloud computing as a way for companies to save money in lean times.  But what are the risks associated with its adoption?  What's the best way to vet cloud providers?  How do you train employees to use cloud services wisely?  Is the current state of the law as unclear as many commentators contend?  Order a recording of our May 6 webinar featuring legal experts from Sun Microsystems, Salesforce.com, GE Capital, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, who examined the benefits and risks of cloud computing from both the legal and practical perspectives.  Learn More  Order Now

Join the Broadband Policy Summit on LinkedIn
Participate in Summit conversations all year long and stay tuned about BPS VI by joining our new Group on LinkedIn.  Join now.

View all Events & Conferences