Challenge to Santa Monica’s “Anti-Airbnb” Law Dismissed–Homeaway v. Santa Monica
Numerous cities have passed “anti-Airbnb” laws, including Santa Monica. Santa Monica’s regulation, like San Francisco’s, regulated the provision of “booking services” to unlicensed vendors. Airbnb and HomeAway challenged Santa Monica’s regulation. In March, citing the Airbnb v. SF ruling, the…
Court Dismisses Privacy Claims Against Email Subscription Management Tool–Cooper v. UnrollMe
UnrollMe provides a service allowing users to opt-out of unwanted emails. It does this by getting its users’ email account login credentials, which allows UnrollMe to access users’ email inboxes. This lawsuit alleges that UnrollMe sold users’ data. (🚨 Irony level:…
Appeals Court Curbs FTC’s Enforcement of Security Standards–LabMD v. FTC
This is an FTC enforcement action against LabMD. A LabMD billing manager installed a peer-to-peer file-sharing application called LimeWire and designated the “my documents” folder on her computer for sharing. This folder contained a 1,718 page file with names, dates…
Redfin Must Defend Copyright Suit Over Property Photos–Stross v. Redfin
Stross is a photographer who licenses his photographs to real estate agents. He licensed the photos through ACTRIS, a multiple listing service that compiles listings into a database for use by brokers and realtors. ACTRIS users who upload their photos…
Wisconsin Appeals Court Blows Open Big Holes in Section 230–Daniel v. Armslist
Congress eviscerated Section 230 via the Worst of Both World FOSTA, but defendants have been doing well with Section 230 defenses over the past year-plus. Then, last week, a Wisconsin appeals court issued a published opinion that massively screws up…
Airbnb Defeats Race Discrimination Claims–Harrington v. Airbnb
This is a class action lawsuit against Airbnb over racial discrimination. The lead plaintiff has never been an Airbnb member but requested to join if Airbnb ceased “implementation of its policies that discriminate against African-Americans and that allow hosts to…
2H 2017 & Q1 2018 Quick Links, Part 5: Marketing, Advertising, Retailing
Marketing/Advertising * Washington Post: See the cool kids lined up outside that new restaurant? This app pays them to stand there. * AdWeek: Burger King Dug Up a Bunch of Tweets From People Complaining About Wendy’s and Turned Them Into…
VRBO’s Anti-Fraud Guarantee Doesn’t Support Claim Over Fraudulent Listing–Hiam v. HomeAway
A vacationer found a listing of interest on VRBO (owned by HomeAway). After back-and-forth negotiations with the lister, he sent $46k for a week’s rental. The property proved to be fictional, so the vacationer got fleeced. VRBO investigated and, oddly,…
‘Worst of Both Worlds’ FOSTA Signed Into Law, Completing Section 230’s Evisceration
This morning, President Trump signed H.R. 1865, the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017 (FOSTA), into law. The bill signing was anticipated, but that doesn’t make the outcome any less terrible. Today, Washington DC regulators…
Researchers’ Challenge to CFAA Moves Forward–Sandvig v. Sessions
This is a lawsuit brought by four professors and a media organization (First Look, publisher of the Intercept). Plaintiffs study real estate, finance, and employment transactions and seek to highlight the discriminatory effects of algorithms. To do so, they create…