Twitter Narrows, But Doesn’t Completely Avoid, a Dangerous Copyright Lawsuit–Concord Music v. X

Music publishers sued Twitter for users’ alleged copyright infringement. The court says that three aspects of the contributory copyright infringement claim survive Twitter’s motion to dismiss. Direct Copyright Infringement. The publishers argued that Twitter “transmitted” their works. The court says…

Fifth Circuit Once Again Disregards Supreme Court Precedent and Mangles Section 230--Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton

Fifth Circuit Once Again Disregards Supreme Court Precedent and Mangles Section 230–Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton

Texas passed a law (HB 1181) requiring pornographic websites to age-authenticate all users and then prevent minors from accessing online porn. If this sounds familiar, it’s because Congress passed functionally identical laws twice: the CDA in 1996 and the COPA…

"Ringless Voicemail" Vendor Wins Section 230 Defense Against FTC--US v. Stratics Networks

“Ringless Voicemail” Vendor Wins Section 230 Defense Against FTC–US v. Stratics Networks

[This is one of those opinions that is a slog to blog because the court’s statutory analysis made my head hurt. If this opinion confuses you, welcome to the club. FWIW, “Slog to Blog” would make a good band name.]…

Print-on-Demand Service Defeats Fish Illustrator's Copyright Claim--Tomelleri v. Sunfrog

Print-on-Demand Service Defeats Fish Illustrator’s Copyright Claim–Tomelleri v. Sunfrog

Tomelleri (who has appeared on this blog before) illustrates fishes (see court exhibit on the right). He sued a print-on-demand service (Sunfrog) over alleged IP violations of his illustrations. If that rings a bell, it’s because just yesterday I blogged…

Print-on-Demand Services Face More Legal Woes–Canvasfish v. Pixels

In the ongoing legal battles over print-on-demand services, RedBubble and (more recently) Printify have sometimes achieved favorable results by disaggregating all of the functions and acting solely as a marketing agent for the disaggregated vendors. These defense-favorable outcomes may work…

Comments on the NetChoice/Moody/Paxton SCOTUS Oral Arguments

Comments on the NetChoice/Moody/Paxton SCOTUS Oral Arguments

In 2021, Florida and Texas enacted “social media censorship” laws. These laws were never serious policy proposals; instead, the legislatures simply wanted to signal to voters that they hated “Big Tech.” The laws assembled a multitude of disparate policy ideas…

Internet Access Providers Can Be Contributorily Liable for Subscribers' Infringements--Sony Music v. Cox

Internet Access Providers Can Be Contributorily Liable for Subscribers’ Infringements–Sony Music v. Cox

As I’ve previously written, for many years after the DMCA passed, everyone assumed that 17 USC 512(a) completely shielded Internet access providers from liability for subscribers’ copyright infringements. Then, about a dozen years ago, the rightsowners coerced Internet access providers…

Snapchat Isn't Liable for Offline Sexual Abuse--VV v. Meta

Snapchat Isn’t Liable for Offline Sexual Abuse–VV v. Meta

According to the complaint, a 12-year-old girl made a Snapchat account, connected with sexual predators on Snapchat, met them offline, and was sexually abused. She sued Snapchat for her harms. Snapchat successfully defends on Section 230 grounds. The contested issue…

The European Union’s Digital Services Act: In Force from This Saturday, February 17, 2024, Including for U.S. Intermediaries (Guest Blog Post)

The European Union’s Digital Services Act: In Force from This Saturday, February 17, 2024, Including for U.S. Intermediaries (Guest Blog Post)

by guest blogger Prof. Marketa Trimble [Eric’s introductory note: I briefly addressed the DSA in this blog post, along with the attached meme. Otherwise, I generally try to avoid the DSA because it is so long, complicated, and mind-bending. To…

Boat Rental Marketplace Defeats Lawsuit Over Offline Boating Accident--In re Chaves

Boat Rental Marketplace Defeats Lawsuit Over Offline Boating Accident–In re Chaves

A rare case analyzing Section 230’s intersection with admiralty law. 🚢 The case involves GetMyBoat, an online marketplace for boat rentals. Listings are free, but GetMyBoat takes a cut of any booked transactions. A young woman, Lindsey Faith Partridge, used…