My OECD Position Paper Lauding 47 USC 230 (OECD Project on Internet Intermediaries, Part 1)
By Eric Goldman Last week, I participated in an OECD expert workshop on Internet intermediary liability in Paris. I will blog more about the OECD project and my trip to Paris shortly. In preparation for the event, I was asked…
Craigslist Loses 230 Defense to Promissory Estoppel Claim–Scott P. v. Craigslist
By Eric Goldman Scott P. v. Craigslist, Inc., CGC-10-496687 (Cal. Superior Ct. June 2, 2010). The CMLP page with source materials. In a situation not dissimilar to the venerable Zeran case, starting in March 2009, Scott P. was criminally victimized…
Google Can’t Shake Cybersquatting Claim–Vulcan Golf v. Google
By Eric Goldman Vulcan Golf, LLC v. Google Inc., 1:07-cv-03371 (N.D. Ill. June 9, 2010). My 2007 blog post when the complaint was filed. My 2008 blog post on the denial of a motion to dismiss. My 2008 blog post…
Another Trademark Owner Apparently Gives Up Lawsuit Against Google–Parts Geek v. US Auto Parts
By Eric Goldman Parts Geek LLC v. U.S. Auto Parts Network, Inc., 5:10-cv-01713-JF (N.D. Cal. voluntary dismissal May 5, 2010) In April, Google successfully transferred the Parts Geek keyword advertising lawsuit from New Jersey to its home court in Northern…
Contributory Copyright Infringement Claim May Need Direct Infringer as a Defendant to Succeed–Miller v. Facebook
By Eric Goldman Miller v. Facebook, Inc., 2010 WL 2198204 (N.D. Cal. May 28, 2010) This is my third time blogging about this case (Jan. 2010 post; April 2010 post). The facts as alleged by the plaintiff have always been…
Life May Be “Rad,” But This Trademark Lawsuit Isn’t–Williams v. CafePress.com
By Eric Goldman Williams v. Life’s Rad, 2010 U.S.Dist. LEXIS 46763 (N.D. Cal. May 12, 2010) This lawsuit bummed me out. The trademark at issue–the surfing-inspired “Life’s Rad”–is supposed to lift people up, but it’s hard to maintain a sunny…
FTC Busts Check-Issuing Website for Unfair Practices–FTC v. Qchex
By Eric Goldman Federal Trade Commission v. Neovi, Inc., 09-55093 (9th Cir. May 14, 2010) Qchex allowed registered users to create and send checks via a website. Initially, users could submit bank account information and payee information, and Qchex would…
LimeWire Smacked Down for Inducing Copyright Infringement–Arista Records v. Lime Group
By Eric Goldman Arista Records LLC v. Lime Group LLC, 2010 WL 1914816 (S.D.N.Y. May 11, 2010) This is one of the rare cases where the news reports mostly got it right. Plain and simple, the record labels won a…
Internet Access Provider & Blocklist Publishers Denied 230(c)(2) Immunity for Anti-Spam Efforts
By Eric Goldman Smith v. Trusted Universal Standards in Electronic Transactions, Inc., 2010 WL 1799456 (D.N.J. May 4, 2010) It’s usually a drag to read opinions in pro se lawsuits. Most of the time, the litigant gets flattened mercilessly. Occasionally,…
Brazil’s Proposed Internet Regulation–an Update (That’s Actually Good News) (Guest Blog Post)
by Guest Blogger Marcel Leonardi Some fantastic news: in response to the waves of criticism toward the proposed notice and takedown regime that might have curbed online speech in Brazil – see my prior blog post – the Brazilian Ministry…