MapleStory Enforcement Action Leads to Ridiculously Large Anti-Circumvention Damages–Nexon v. Kumar
By Eric Goldman Nexon America Inc. v. Kumar, 2012 WL 1116328 (C.D. Cal. April 3, 2012) It can be disconcerting when UGC websites turn into IP enforcement plaintiffs. Perhaps the biggest offender has been Craigslist, which has brought numerous ill-advised…
“Social Media and Trademark Law” Talk Notes
By Eric Goldman Today, I gave a talk at Suffolk University’s event “Social Networking Sites: Law, Policy and Practical Strategies” on Social Media and Trademark Law. My talk notes: _____ 1. Overview A. Trademark doctrine is inherently elastic * Schizophrenia…
Fourth Circuit’s Rosetta Stone v. Google Opinion Pushes Back Resolution of Keyword Advertising Legality Another 5-10 Years
By Eric Goldman Rosetta Stone Ltd. v. Google, Inc.,, 2012 WL 1155143 (4th Cir. April 9, 2012). I’m listed in the caption as a limited intervenor in the efforts led by Paul Levy to crack open the redacted material from…
AdKnowledge Denied 47 USC 230 Immunity (Again)–Chang v. Wozo
By Eric Goldman Chang v. Wozo LLC, 2012 WL 1067643 (D. Mass. March 28, 2012) This case is a cross between Swift v. Zynga and Goddard v. Google. Tatto runs a website, Wozo, that sells art posters. It created a…
Second Circuit Ruling in Viacom v. YouTube Is a Bummer for Google and the UGC Community
By Eric Goldman Viacom International, Inc., v. YouTube, Inc., 10-3270-cv, 2012 WL 1130851 (2d Cir. April 5, 2012). The companion case is the Football Association Premier League Ltd. v. YouTube, 10-3342-cv Overview After five years in the courts, the Viacom…
Tough Mudder Gets Its Hands Dirty in Trade Dress Fight (Guest Blog Post)
By Guest Blogger Tsan Abrahamson of Cobalt Law [Eric’s introduction: Tsan and I go back two decades to when we were both JD/MBA students at UCLA; then we worked together at Cooley in the second half of the 1990s before…
Data Security Breach Settlement Class of 130M Individuals Has 11 Claimants (at a Cost of $160k Per)–In re Heartland Payment Systems
By Eric Goldman In re Heartland Payment Systems, Inc. Customer Data Security Breach Litigation, 2012 WL 948365 (S.D. Tex. March 20, 2012). The settlement website. [Note: I know that many big-scale class action lawsuits have similarly mockable numbers. But I…
Brief Brand Reference in TV Ad Constitutes Trademark Dilution–Louis Vuitton v. Hyundai
By Eric Goldman Louis Vuitton Malletier, S.A. v. Hyundai Motor America, 2012 WL 1022247 (S.D.N.Y., March 22, 2012). The ad in question (also embedded below). The first amended complaint. Introduction Back in 2007, we held a major academic symposium on…
What Do Soymilk and Nutella Have to Do With an Online Harassment Case?–Taylor v. Texas
By Eric Goldman Taylor v. State, 2012 WL 955383 (Tex. App. Ct. March 22, 2012) In service of you, the reader, I read a lot of cases to find the ones worth blogging. Inevitably, some of those cases are gross….
Lawsuit Against Avvo for Lawyer’s Profile Dismissed as SLAPP–Davis v. Avvo
By Eric Goldman Davis v. Avvo, 2:11-cv-01571-RSM (W.D. Wash. March 28, 2012). Avvo’s post when the lawsuit was initially filed. Florida lawyer Larry Joe Davis, Jr. claimed that his Avvo profile misrepresented his practice. He sued Avvo in Florida for…