Google Protected by 17 USC 512(d) for Links to Infringing Content; Perfect 10’s Takedown Notices Were Mostly Insufficient
By Eric Goldman Perfect 10, Inc. v. Google, Inc., 2:04-cv-09484-AHM-SH (C.D. Cal. July 26, 2010) In 2007, the Ninth Circuit issued an important but befuddling ruling in Perfect 10 v. Amazon and Google. That ruling addressed Perfect 10’s prima facie…
Online Video Publisher Learns Why You Should Register Your Copyrights Early–LTVN v. Odeh
By Eric Goldman LTVN Holdings, LLC v. Odeh, 2010 WL 2612690 (D.Md. June 25, 2010). The 2009 ruling on jurisdiction in this case. Kramer is a litigator. He formed an organization that publishes educational videos about legal topics and provides…
Copyright Statutory Damages Award Violates Constitutional Due Process–Sony v. Tenenbaum
By Eric Goldman Sony BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, 2010 WL 2705499 (D. Mass. July 9, 2010) I have largely skipped blogging the Sony v. Tenenbaum lawsuit because (1) it was well-discussed elsewhere, and (2) for the most part, it…
Q2 2010 Quick Links Part 2
By Eric Goldman Marketing and Advertising * Good talk from FTC Chair Leibowitz: “we have great hopes for self-regulation….So long as self-regulation is making forward progress, the FTC is not interested in regulating” behavioral targeting. * NYT on teaching middle…
Scribd Can’t Shake Copyright and Publicity Rights Lawsuit on Motion to Dismiss–Williams v. Scribd
By Eric Goldman Williams v. Scribd, 3:09-cv-01836-LAB -BGS (S.D. Cal. June 23, 2010). Larry Williams has written several books on commodities trading (their titles suggest they fit into the “Make Money Fast” genre). He alleges that rogue Scribd users, including…
YouTube Gets Decisive Win in Viacom/FAPL Case
By Eric Goldman Viacom International, Inc., v. YouTube, Inc., 2010 WL 2532404 (SDNY June 23, 2010). The Viacom v. YouTube case has been noteworthy for numerous reasons. It involves the cherished Internet brands YouTube and Google, it’s been going on…
Contributory Copyright Infringement Claim May Need Direct Infringer as a Defendant to Succeed–Miller v. Facebook
By Eric Goldman Miller v. Facebook, Inc., 2010 WL 2198204 (N.D. Cal. May 28, 2010) This is my third time blogging about this case (Jan. 2010 post; April 2010 post). The facts as alleged by the plaintiff have always been…
April-May 2010 Quick Links Part 1 (IP Edition)
By Eric Goldman [Note: I just got back from the Netherlands, where I had extremely limited Internet connectivity, so sorry for my absence in the last week (although you were in good hands with Venkat). I will be posting more…
Life May Be “Rad,” But This Trademark Lawsuit Isn’t–Williams v. CafePress.com
By Eric Goldman Williams v. Life’s Rad, 2010 U.S.Dist. LEXIS 46763 (N.D. Cal. May 12, 2010) This lawsuit bummed me out. The trademark at issue–the surfing-inspired “Life’s Rad”–is supposed to lift people up, but it’s hard to maintain a sunny…
LimeWire Smacked Down for Inducing Copyright Infringement–Arista Records v. Lime Group
By Eric Goldman Arista Records LLC v. Lime Group LLC, 2010 WL 1914816 (S.D.N.Y. May 11, 2010) This is one of the rare cases where the news reports mostly got it right. Plain and simple, the record labels won a…