Another Advertiser Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Google–Woods v. Google
By Eric Goldman Woods v. Google Inc., 5:11-cv-01263-HRL (N.D. Cal. complaint filed March 15, 2011) Since Google settled its click fraud lawsuits in 2006 and the CLRB Hanson case in 2009, it’s been a little quiet on the advertiser-vs.-Google class…
Yelp Beats “Implied Extortion”/”Pay-to-Play” Lawsuit in Round #1–Levitt v. Yelp
By Eric Goldman Levitt v. Yelp, 3:10-cv-01321-MHP (N.D. Cal. Mar. 22, 2011). See the motion to dismiss, the opposition and the reply. This ruling deals with the Second Amended Complaint. Levitt’s initial complaint. Cats & Dogs Animal Hospital’s first amended…
Employee’s Twitter and Facebook Impersonation Claims Against Employer Move Forward — Maremont v. Fredman Design Group
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Maremont v. Susan Fredman Design Group, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26441 (N.D. Ill.; March 15, 2011) As alleged in the complaint, Fredman is a prominent interior designer who runs the Susan Fredman Design Group (SFDG). SFDG…
FTC Online Endorsement Guidelines Strike Again – FTC Dings Legacy Learning Over Allegedly Misleading Affiliate Reviews
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with some comments by Eric] In re Legacy Learning Systems, Inc., FTC File No. 102 3055 [FTC Release] [Complaint (pdf)] An FTC press release notes that the FTC settled with Legacy Learning over allegations that Legacy…
Important Ninth Circuit Ruling on Keyword Advertising, Plus Recaps of the Past 4 Months of Keyword Ad Decisions
By Eric Goldman Network Automation, Inc. v. Advanced System Concepts, Inc., 2011 WL 815806 (9th Cir. March 8, 2011) [warning: this blog post is nearly 5,000 words] Introduction We’ve had surprisingly few appellate decisions involving keyword advertising generally, and almost…
Jan.-Feb. 2011 Quick Links, Part 2
By Eric Goldman Search Engines Google’s search algorithm has been very much in the news the past 2 months! * Google’s announcements: – “Google search and search engine spam” – Matt Cutts explains Google penalties in a video. – “Microsoft’s…
Savvy Louisiana Ruling on Metatags–Southern Snow v. Snowizard
By Eric Goldman Southern Snow Mfg. Inc. v. Sno Wizards Holdings, Inc., 2011 WL 601639 (E.D. La. Feb. 16, 2011) Have I ever mentioned how much I hate metatags cases? They have led to some godawful rulings. But surprisingly, today’s…
California Supreme Court Rules That a ZIP Code is Personal Identification Information — Pineda v. Williams-Sonoma
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Pineda v. Williams-Sonoma, S178241 (Cal. Supreme Court; Feb. 10, 2011) Plaintiff made a purchase at Williams-Sonoma and when she went to pay, the cashier asked for plaintiff’s ZIP code. Thinking she was required to provide it…
Yellow Pages Companies Challenge Seattle Opt-out Ordinance on First Amendment Grounds
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Dex Media West, Inc., et al. v. City of Seattle, et al., Case No. 10-cv-01857 (W.D. Wash. complaint filed Nov. 15, 2010) In what many will probably characterize as a dinosaur’s last gasp litigation strike, two…
Free-to-Consumers Ad-Supported Website Isn’t Illegally Priced–Cammarata v. Bright Imperial
By Eric Goldman Cammarata v. Bright Imperial Ltd., 2011 WL 227943 (Cal. App. Ct. Jan. 26, 2011). The complaint. The trial court ruling. If you can’t compete with free, can you litigate it away? Kevin Cammarata ran subscription-based porn sites…