EFF Weighs in on Facebook v. Power Ventures — Facebook v. Power Ventures
[Post by Venkat] Facebook v. Power Ventures, Case No. 5:08-cv-05780 JW (N.D. Cal.) (Facebook Motion) (EFF Amicus Brief) Facebook and Power Ventures have been locked in a dispute over whether Power Ventures can access Facebook’s website and network outside of…
Beacon Class Action Lawyers Awarded $2.3MM in Fees — Lane v. Facebook
[Post by Venkat] Lane v. Facebook, Case No. 08-3845 RS (N.D. Cal.) (Order re Attorney Fees) The lawsuit over Facebook’s ill-fated Beacon program generated three lawsuits, a lot of wrangling by class action lawyers, and more than a few blog…
Steps Brand Owners Can Take to Deal With Brandjacking on Social Networks
[Post by Venkat] Winston & Strawn published an article titled [pdf] “Five Steps to Protect Your Trademarks in a Web 2.0 World.” The article sets out some steps brand owners can take to prevent or deal with infringement of their…
Twitter May Allow Competitors to Purchase Trademarks as Keywords for Sponsored Tweets
[Post by Venkat] via Reid Wilson (at the INTA Annual Meeting): Twitter’s GC on sponsored tweets: still working on the policy; may permit TM’s to be purchased by competitors as key words 4 sponsored twts.less than a minute ago via…
CAN-SPAM Plaintiff Slammed With $800K Attorney Fee Award — Asis Internet v. Optin Global
[Post by Venkat] Asis Internet Servs. v. Optin Global, Inc., et al., Case No. C-05-05124JCS (N.D. Cal. May 19, 2010) A federal court granted a request for attorney’s fees (in the amount of $806,978.84) against prolific CAN-SPAM plaintiff Asis Internet….
Web-based Email Bombardment Campaign Does Not Amount to a Violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act — Pulte Homes, Inc. v. LiUNA
[Post by Venkat] Pulte Homes, Inc. v. Laborers’ International Union of North America, et al. (E.D. Mich.) (May 12, 2010) Background: Pulte Homes, “the largest new home builder in the United States” terminated eight employees. Defendant Laborers’ International Union of…
MySpace Profile Evidence Inadmissible to Show Defendant Committed ‘Gangster Style’ Robbery — U.S. v. Phaknikone
[Post by Venkat] U.S. v. Phaknikone, Case No. 09-10084 (11th Cir.) (May 10, 2010) Defendant Phaknikone was convicted of seven counts of armed robbery, carrying a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, and having possession of a firearm…
4th Cir.: No Expectation of Privacy in Internet and Phone Subscriber Info — U.S. v. Bynum
[Post by Venkat] United States v. Bynum, Case No. 08-4207 (4th Cir.) (May 5, 2010) The FBI observed Marques Bynum’s activities in a Yahoo! chat room. Bynum had uploaded photos of children engaged in sex acts. The FBI served an…
Updates to the Outed Judge-Commenter’s Lawsuit Against the Plain Dealer — Saffold v. Plain Dealer
[Post by Venkat] I posted a while ago on the lawsuit brought by Judge Saffold against the Plain Dealer newspaper where she alleges the newspaper improperly outed her as a commenter in breach of its privacy policy. A few updates:…
Asis Internet Awarded $2.5mm on CAN-SPAM Claims — Asis Internet v. Rausch
[Post by Venkat] Asis Internet Servs. v. Rausch, Case No. 08-03186 EDL (N.D. Cal.) (May 03, 2010) Asis Internet was recently awarded summary judgment on its CAN-SPAM claims which it brought against a business known as “Find a Quote.” Although…