Q3 2014 Quick Links, Part 1 (RTBF, Reviews, IP & More)
Right to Be Forgotten * U.S. Attitudes Toward the ‘Right to Be Forgotten’: 1. Sixty-one percent of Americans believe some version of the right to be forgotten is necessary. 2. Thirty-nine percent want a European-style blanket right to be forgotten,…
A Seismic Ruling On Pre-1972 Sound Recordings and State Copyright Law–Flo & Eddie v. Sirius XM Radio (Guest Blog Post)
By Tyler Ochoa [Eric’s intro: in Tyler’s cover email to me, he told me the ruling was “huge, as in 1906-San-Francisco-earthquake huge. It literally could result in undoing 75 years of copyright history.”] A federal court in California has held…
LiveJournal Wins 512(c) Safe Harbor Ruling For Celebrity Gossip Blog–Mavrix v. LiveJournal
This case involves a LiveJournal blog called “Oh No They Didn’t!” (ONTD) that republishes reader submissions about celebrity gossip. There are nine moderators of the blog, including one–Brian Delzer–who became a LiveJournal employee. Unsurprisingly given the blog’s subject, readers submitted…
9th Circuit Creates Problematic “Failure To Warn” Exception to Section 230 Immunity–Doe 14 v. Internet Brands
Doe sued Internet Brands, Inc., the owner of Model Mayhem, alleging that two unrelated individuals drugged and assaulted her (and recorded her for a pornographic video). It’s unclear precisely how the assailants used Model Mayhem, but the court merely says…
Ninth Circuit Says Yelp Doesn’t Extort Businesses–Levitt v. Yelp (Forbes Cross-Post)
For years, Yelp has been dogged by allegations that it manipulates user reviews to coerce businesses to advertise with it. While businesses aren’t likely to stop grumbling about these concerns any time soon, a federal appellate court emphatically shut the…
Internet Law Professors Ask California Supreme Court To Review Pharmaceutical Liability Case
Hardin v. PDX is a quirky case that flew under the radar a bit. The case was brought by Hardin, a victim injured by bad drug interactions. She claims that she would have avoided the interaction if she had been…
Blogspot Gets Section 230 Win In 11th Circuit–Dowbenko v. Google
Another Section 230 case with a pro se plaintiff. Dowbenko claimed that that the “Encyclopedia of American Loons” website, located at http://americanloons.blogspot.com, contained a copyrighted photo of him and defamed him. The court says: Mr. Dowbenko’s defamation claim is preempted…
Section 230 Applies to Amazon Book Reviews–Joseph v. Amazon
As I’ve recently mentioned, many recent Section 230 rulings involve pro se plaintiffs because most lawyers have wizened up to Section 230’s immunity. In this case, Dr. Joseph, a pro se plaintiff, brings a long list of gripes about Amazon…
Online Marketplaces Facilitating Gun Sales Don’t Kill People. People Kill People (Forbes Cross-Post)
We’re seeing increasing attempts to hold online marketplaces responsible for illegal user transactions on their site. A recent federal appellate ruling rejected one such lawsuit involving an online gun marketplace transaction that led to a murder. What Happened After his…
Primer on European Union’s Right To Be Forgotten (Excerpt from My Internet Law Casebook) + Bonus Linkwrap
I haven’t yet written about the ECJ Right to Be Forgotten ruling directly, though I’ve already referenced it on the blog a few times. The ruling itself came out during a business trip when I was tied up, so I…