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…
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.”…
CA Court Confirms that Pineda v Williams-Sonoma (the Zip-Code-as-PII Case) Applies Retrospectively — Dardarian v. OfficeMax
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Dardarian v. OfficeMax North America, Inc., 11-CV-0947-YGR (N.D. Cal.; Jun. 25, 2012) The Song-Beverly Act is a California statute that prohibits retailers from requesting personal identification information in connection with credit card transactions. In Pineda v….
H1 2012 Quick Links, Part 4 (Search Engines, eBay, Social Networking Sites)
By Eric Goldman [Note: if you click on any of the Scribd links below and get a warning that you’re accessing adult content, ignore that. In only the latest of Scribd’s f-ups, it has deployed a massively overinclusive adult content…
Confirmatory Opt-Out Text Message Doesn’t Violate TCPA – Ibey v. Taco Bell
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Ibey v. Taco Bell Corp., 12 CV 0583 (HVG) (S.D. Cal.; June 18, 2012) Plaintiff responded to an invitation to complete a survey about Taco Bell and “voluntarily sent a text message . . . to…
Men’s Journal Beats Lawsuit Alleging Violation of California’s “Shine the Light” Privacy Statute — Boorstein v. Men’s Journal
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with comments from Eric] Boorstein v. Men’s Journal LLC, 12-771 DSF (Ex) (C.D. Cal.; June 14, 2012) California’s Shine the Light (STL) statute is a little unusual in that it mandates that businesses make specific disclosures…
Judge Koh Whittles Down iPhone App Privacy Lawsuit – In re iPhone Application Litig.
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] In re iPhone Application Litig., 11-MD-02250-LHK (N.D. Cal.; June 12, 2012) Plaintiffs brought a putative class action against Apple and several “mobile industry defendants.” The basic allegations are that apps available for free in the app…
Photographer’s Suit Against Client for Republishing Photos on Facebook Proceeds – Davis v. Tampa Bay Arena
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with comments by Eric] Davis v. Tampa Bay Arena, Ltd., 2012 WL 2116136 (M.D. Fla.; June 11, 2012) This seems like a run-of-the-mill dispute between a photographer and client, but I think it contains some helpful…
Court Refuses to Dismiss Claims Against Alleged Twitter-Bot Spammer–Twitter v. Skootle
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Twitter, Inc. v. Skootle Corp., et al., 2012 WL 2375486 (N.D. Cal.; June 22, 2012) Twitter sued several alleged spammers, including (1) those who provided software for the use of automated account creation and tweeting, and…
Bank Can’t Use Facebook for Service of Process — Fortunato v. Chase Bank
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Fortunato v. Chase Bank USA, N.A., 2012 WL 2086950 (S.D.N.Y.; June 7, 2012) [pdf] Fortunato was an apparent victim of identify theft–her estranged daughter allegedly opened up a Chase credit card in her name and racked…