Rights in Copies vs. Copyright
Prince’s entanglement with Radiohead, YouTube, and a video bootlegger leads to much debate over just what’s in copyright law and a YouTube nightmare scenario. By Ethan Ackerman Copyright bloggers were privileged to a few laughs recently when Prince’s music label,…
Vacation and Guest Bloggers
By Eric Goldman For the next two weeks, I will be enjoying a celebratory river-rafting trip on the Hulahula River in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. This is a supremely remote destination–it takes 4 airplanes to get there from the…
Keyword Metatags and Keyword-Triggered Ads Don’t Create Initial Interest Confusion–Designer Skin v. S&L Vitamins
By Eric Goldman Designer Skin, LLC v. S & L Vitamins, Inc., 2008 WL 2116646 (D. Ariz. May 20, 2008) An Arizona district court has ruled that the surreptitious use of trademarks doesn’t create a likelihood of initial interest confusion,…
Google Sued for Running Ads for “Fraudulent Mobile Subscription Services”–Goddard v. Google
By Eric Goldman Goddard v. Google, Inc., Case No. 108CV111658 (Cal. Super. Ct. complaint dated April 30, 2008). Google’s notice of removal to federal court C08 02738 (N.D. Cal. removal notice dated May 30, 2008). [warning: 1.5MB file. Google’s notice…
May 2008 Quick Links, Part 2
By Eric Goldman Copyright * Google says it isn’t settling the Viacom lawsuit (I don’t believe it). * Interesting juxtaposition: (1) Chronicle of Higher Education: How It Does It: The RIAA Explains How It Catches Alleged Music Pirates and (2)…
May 2008 Quick Links, Part 1 (Trademarks/Domain Names Edition)
By Eric Goldman * Syncsort Inc. v. Innovative Routines Intern., Inc., 2008 WL 1925304 (D.N.J. April 30, 2008). Including a third party trademark in a keyword metatag qualified as nominative use. (Along the same lines, see the Designer Skin case…
Citysearch Sued for Click Fraud–Lambotte v. IAC
By Eric Goldman Lambotte v. IAC/InterActiveCorp. (Cal. Superior Ct. complaint dated May 27, 2008) [warning: 1.9MB file] Ever since the Google and Yahoo click fraud settlements in 2006, it’s been fairly quiet on the click fraud front. See my most…
Connecticut Blogger Not Subject to Texas Jurisdiction–Healix Infusion v. Helix Health
By Eric Goldman Healix Infusion Therapy, Inc. v. Helix Health, LLC, 2008 WL 1883546 (S.D. Tex. Apr 25, 2008) I’ve mentioned before that I try to avoid blogging about Internet jurisdictional cases, but occasionally an interesting jurisdictional case comes along….
Search Engine Advertiser Litigation Updates
By Eric Goldman Recently, there were intermediate rulings in two long-standing cases by search engine advertisers against search engines. CLRB Hanson Industries, LLC v. Google Inc., 2008 WL 2079200 (N.D. Cal. May 14, 2008) This lawsuit involves the Google AdWords…
Lori Drew Prosecuted for CFAA Violations–Some Comments, and a Practice Pointer
By Eric Goldman Before I get started, let me first say that my heart goes out to Megan Meier’s family. They have suffered a devastating tragedy, and I cannot possibly fathom the pain they must feel. As a result, I…