Request for Help: Fill Out a Short Survey on Entrepreneurs’ Handling of Patent Demands
By Eric Goldman While we may have some voyeuristic fun watching a high-profile patent trial like Apple v. Samsung, patent litigation isn’t always a “sport of kings.” To shed some light on these less-publicized aspects of patent enforcement, my colleague…
Court Declines to Dismiss Video Privacy Protection Act Claims against Hulu
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] In re Hulu Privacy Litigation, C 11-03764 LB (N.D. Cal.; Aug. 10, 2012) Hulu is facing a putative class action alleging that Hulu improperly disclosed the video viewing choices of its users without obtaining consent. Hulu…
Using Links as Citations Helps Gizmodo Defeat a Defamation Claim–Redmond v. Gawker Media
By Eric Goldman Redmond v. Gawker Media LLC, 2012 WL 3243507 (Cal. App. Ct. August 10, 2012) Gizmodo.com published an article, Smoke & Mirrors: The Greatest Scam in Tech, about Redmond’s venture, Peep Telephony. In addition to using the word…
Breastfeeding Mom Can Sue Video Producer Despite Signing a Blanket Release–Sahoury v. Meredith
By Eric Goldman Sahoury v. Meredith Corp., 2:11-cv-05180-KSH-PS (D. N.J. Aug. 2, 2012) Sahoury consented to being video-recorded while breastfeeding for inclusion in an instructional video. She claims that the video producers orally agreed to two conditions: (1) the instructional…
Judge Alsup Tries to Out the Shills in Oracle v. Google
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani, with comments from Eric] Oracle v. Google, Case No. C 10-03561 WHA (N.D. Cal.; Aug. 7, 2012) Judge Alsup recently issued an order in Oracle v. Google, voicing concerns that the parties or counsel may have…
Craigslist’s Latest Moves Show It Cares More About Its Market Position Than Delivering Value to Its Users (Forbes Cross-Post)
By Eric Goldman Craigslist is resorting to increasingly desperate measures to control its users’ classified ad listings. Last month, Craigslist sued 3Taps and Padmapper for scraping and repackaging its classified ads. Since then, it has extracted greater IP rights from its…
Ex-Employee’s Access/Misuse of Employer Files States CFAA Claim — Weingand v. Harland Financial
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with comments by Eric] Weingand v. Harland Financial Solutions, C 11 3109 EMC (N.D. Cal.; June 19, 2012) Weingand involves claims brought by an employee, and proposed counterclaims brought by the employer against the employee. Nor…
EA Faces Uphill Battle in Its Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Against Zynga (Partial Forbes Cross-Post)
By Eric Goldman [Eric’s note: I am still experimenting with how to write for different audiences. Below is the first draft of a post I wrote for my Forbes Tertium Quid blog. You’ll see it’s written for a lay audience,…
Online Marketplace Isn’t Liable for Bad Conduct by Merchants It Certifies–Englert v. Alibaba
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Englert v. Alibaba, 11CV1560 RWS (E.D. Miss.; Apr. 27, 2012) Englert and other plaintiffs purchased products found on alibaba.com. The products included “ExtenZe male enhancement, Vimax,VigRX Plus, Energy Wristband (Power Balance), and Razor Blades Fusion Power.”…
Now Available: My Internet Law Syllabus and Reader for Fall 2012
By Eric Goldman I posted my syllabus and my course reader (a $7.50 download at Gumroad) for Fall 2012. If you teach Internet Law (or hope to), email me if you’d like a free copy of the reader plus my…