Q3 2011 Quick Links, Part 2 (Trademarks/Domain Names Edition)
By Eric Goldman * In the Betty Boop case (Fleischer Studios v. AVELA), the Ninth Circuit stepped back from some of its perplexing language about aesthetic functionality and the Dastar opinion, but the revised opinion remains confusing. Rebecca’s coverage. *…
Recommended Books on Business Decision-Making Using Intellectual Property?
By Eric Goldman I posted the following to the IPProfs email list: I teach the IP Survey course principally as a business law course, i.e., companies are trying to make business decisions, and IP doctrines can help (or hinder) those…
GoDaddy Mismanages Its User Agreements–Crabb v. GoDaddy
By Eric Goldman Crabb v. GoDaddy.com, Inc., 2:10-cv-00940-NVW (D. Ariz. Sept. 27, 2011) As online user agreements become longer and more byzantine, it’s become common for a “master” user agreement to incorporate numerous other documents by reference. For example, stylistically,…
Q3 2011 Quick Links, Part 1 (Copyright Edition)
By Eric Goldman * The Golan v. Holder SCOTUS oral arguments are today. My colleague Tyler Ochoa has been actively monitoring the case: – his essay previewing the case and the issues it raises – an amicus brief on whether…
Article on Bypassing Geographic Content Restrictions Using Borrowed IP Addresses
By Eric Goldman Marketa Trimble (UNLV Law) has posted a full copy of her article, The Future of Cybertravel: Legal Implications of the Evasion of Geolocation. I’ve highlighted this article before, such as in my coverage of the Internet Law…
New Essay on 47 USC 230(c)(2)
By Eric Goldman I have posted a new essay, Online User Account Termination and 47 U.S.C. ยง230(c)(2), to SSRN. I wrote this essay as a contribution to a virtual world symposium at UC Irvine, and it will be published in…
Facebook’s Trademark Suit Against Teachbook Survives Motion to Dismiss
by Eric Goldman Facebook, Inc. v. Teachbook.com LLC, 2011 WL 4449686 (N.D. Ill. Sept. 26, 2011). Facebook has been helping many lawyers send their kids to private school with an expensive enforcement campaign to control the prefix “face” and suffix…
Colorado Judge Drills Righthaven and Awards Attorneys’ Fees–Righthaven v. Wolf
By Eric Goldman Righthaven LLC v. Wolf, 1:11-cv-00830-JLK (D. Colo. Sept. 27, 2011) Another judge, this time in Colorado, issued another stinging rebuke to Righthaven. This time it was Judge Kane in Colorado, and his decision will lead to the…
Stock Trading Message Board Protected by 47 USC 230–Deer Consumer Products v. Little
By Eric Goldman Deer Consumer Products v. Little, Index No. 650823/11 (NY Sup. Ct. Aug. 31, 2011) SeekingAlpha is a message board for stock traders. This is their second appearance on the blog. In Desai v. Clark, a SeekingAlpha author…
Failure to Delete Third Party Comments Supports a Malice Finding in Defamation Case–Tanner v. Ebbole
By Eric Goldman Tanner v. Ebbole, 2011 WL 4425540 (Ala. Civ. App. Ct. Sept. 23, 2011) Competitive animosity can be found in every industry, but it sometimes amazes me just how sharp it can. Today’s case involves competing tattoo shops…