March 2010 Quick Links

By Eric Goldman Internet Exceptionalism * Stern v. Sony Corp., CV 09-7710 PA (C.D. Cal. Feb. 8 2010) “to the extent Plaintiff is suing Sony as a manufacturer of video games, and the provider of online services, Sony is not…

Unregulating Online Harassment Essay

By Eric Goldman I posted a very short essay to SSRN called Unregulating Online Harassment. This essay recaps and expands some of my remarks from the Denver University “Cyber Civil Rights” Symposium last November. I previously posted a lengthy recap…

Another Court Finds that TCPA Applies to Text Messages — Lozano v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.

[Post by Venkat] Lozano v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp., Case No. Civ. 09-cv-6344 (N.D. Ill) [scribd] A court in Illinois rejected a motion to dismiss filed by defendants in a class action brought on behalf of plaintiffs who received…

YouTube Uploader Can’t Sue Sender of Mistaken Takedown Notice–Cabell v. Zimmerman

By Eric Goldman Cabell v. Zimmerman, 2010 WL 996007 (S.D.N.Y. Mar 12, 2010) A few other folks have written about this case already, but it’s worth noting a couple of points. Cabell posted a video, Pretty Faces, to YouTube. Actors’…

Craigslist Wins $1.3M Default Judgment Against Autoposting Facilitator — craigslist v. Naturemarket

[Post by Venkat] craigslist, Inc. v. Naturemarket, Inc., Case No. C 08-05065 PJH (MEJ) (N.D. Cal. March 5, 2010) [scribd] (report and recommendation adopted on February 5, 2010) Craigslist obtained a 1.3 million dollar default judgment against defendants Naturemarket, Inc….

Google Gets Favorable ECJ Opinion, But Will It Prove to Be a Hollow Victory?

By Eric Goldman The European Court of Justice issued its long-anticipated decision in the three Google AdWords cases (C-236/08, C-237-08 and C-238/08) referred to it by the French Cour de Cassation. The ruling only answers the questions posed to it…

Plaintiff Wins $7,000 Following Bench Trial on Claims Under California Anti-Spam Statute — Balsam v. Trancos

[Post by Venkat] Balsam v. Trancos, Inc., Cal Sup. Ct. Case No. (Civ.) 471791; March 10, 2010 [scribd] Although spam lawsuits have not gone particularly well for individual (non-ISP) plaintiffs, Dan Balsam recently took a case to trial in San…

Search Engine Legal Developments to Watch in 2010

By Eric Goldman I recently spoke on a panel about search engines and the law at SMX West. I previewed four major trends in search engine law to watch in 2010: 1) Competition issues. Antitrust/competition law has become a big…

Another Bad Ruling in Louis Vuitton v. Akanoc

By Eric Goldman Louis Vuitton Malletier, S.A. v. Akanoc Solutions, Inc., 5:07-cv-03952-JW (N.D. Cal. March 19, 2010) I have not seen a definitive statement of facts in this case, so synthesizing various cryptic statements by the court, here’s my understanding…

Viacom v. YouTube Summary Judgment Motions Highlights

By Eric Goldman Who doesn’t enjoy a good old-fashioned mud-slingin’ showdown? That’s exactly what we’ve got on our hands in the dueling summary judgment motions from Viacom and YouTube in the long-running copyright infringement case (see my initial post from…