Making Sense of the $32M Contributory Trademark Infringement Judgment Against a Web Host–Louis Vuitton v. Akanoc
By Eric Goldman Louis Vuitton Malletier SA v. Akanoc Solutions, Inc., 5:07-CV-03952 (N.D. Cal. jury verdict returned Aug. 28, 2009). My blog post of the December 2008 ruling on summary judgment motions in the case. Last month, a jury returned…
Veoh Gets Yet Another Terrific 512 Defense Win–UMG v. Veoh
By Eric Goldman UMG Recordings, Inc. v. Veoh Networks, Inc., 2:07-cv-05744-AHM-AJW (C.D. Cal. Sept. 11, 2009) What’s the difference between the market leader and an also-ran? When the also-ran wins its third big legal victory in a row, the first…
Yahoo’s Search Results Snippets Aren’t False Endorsement–Stayart v. Yahoo
By Eric Goldman Stayart v. Yahoo! Inc., 2009 WL 2840478 (E.D. Wis. Aug. 28, 2009) Earlier this year, I blogged about Beverly Stayart’s quixotic lawsuit against Yahoo and others for showing search results snippets that contained her name adjacent to…
Employer Isn’t Liable for Employee Misuse of the Internet–Maypark v. Securitas
By Eric Goldman Maypark v. Securitas Security Services USA, Inc., 2009 WL 2750994 (Wis. App. Ct. Sept. 1, 2009) As part of my efforts to keep up with new cyberlaw developments, I read a lot of cases involving yucky facts….
Yahoo Subpoenas Expedia in American Airlines Lawsuit
By Eric Goldman Yahoo and American Airlines are still tussling over Yahoo’s sale of American Airlines’ trademarks as keyword triggers (see background at 1, 2, 3). According to Yahoo, American Airlines is arguing that online travel agencies such as Expedia…
Online Retailer Isn’t Liable for User Comments–Cornelius v. DeLuca
By Eric Goldman Cornelius v. DeLuca, 2009 WL 2568044 (E.D. Mo. Aug. 18, 2009) DeLuca runs bodybuilding.com, a fitness website and online retailer. The plaintiffs sell dietary supplements (“syntrax,” whatever that is). The plaintiffs allege that their competitors posted shill…
Private High School Not Liable for Cyberbullying–DC v. Harvard-Westlake
By Eric Goldman D.C. v. Harvard-Westlake School, 2009 WL 2500343 (Cal. App. Ct. Aug. 14, 2009) Harvard-Westlake is a highly-regarded private school in the Los Angeles basin with an impressive alumni roster and a lot of very affluent parents. I’ve…
Flowbee Latest Trademark Owner to Sue Google–Flowbee v. Google
By Eric Goldman Flowbee International, Inc. v. Google, Inc., 2:09-cv-00199 (S.D Tex. complaint filed Aug. 13, 2009) [NB: the complaint is split into 2 PDFs totaling 8+ MB] After the Jurin and Ascentive lawsuits against Google dissolved, the Google lawsuit…
2009 Cyberspace Law Syllabus and Some Comments
By Eric Goldman I have posted my syllabus for this semester’s Cyberspace Law course. This blog post describes the changes from my 2008 course reader. For more on my pedagogical approaches to the course, see my Teaching Cyberlaw article. Trademark…
Google Goes on Offensive in AdWords Trademark Lawsuit–Google v. John Beck Amazing Profits
By Eric Goldman Google, Inc v. John Beck Amazing Profits, LLC, C09 03459 (N.D. Cal. complaint filed July 27, 2009). [Warning: 1.4MB file] The Justia page. A couple of interesting developments in John Beck Amazing Profits v. Google, the putative…