Section 230 Protects Amazon from Manufacturer’s Ad Copy–Brodie v. Amazon
This case involves a product called “Better Than Pasta,” which contains konjac as an ingredient. Konjac can swell as it moves through the intestines, causing potentially serious injuries. As a result, some countries ban konjac products or require warning labels….
The Case Against Holding Amazon Liable for Third-Party Merchants’ Sales in its Marketplace (WSJ Cross-Post)
[In February 2020, I participated in a Wall Street Journal “debate” on the question: “Should Amazon Be Responsible When Its Vendors’ Products Turn Out to Be Unsafe?” The proponent was Ted Janger from Brooklyn Law School. I was the opponent….
Court Upholds Gaming App’s Clickthrough TOS–Ball v. Skillz
Skillz’s app 21 Blitz allowed players to play blackjack against each other. To sign up for the app, players had to navigate the following screen: The linked TOS contained a prominent arbitration clause. Two plaintiffs sued Skillz for locking them…
Court Enjoins Trump Administration’s Attempt to Kick TikTok Out of App Stores–TikTok v. Trump
As I recently explained, the Trump administration’s efforts to suppress TikTok do not benefit the American public one bit. Fortunately, the Trump administration’s efforts to “MAGA” frequently fail when challenged in court, as is the case here. This case addresses…
Amazon Is Strictly Liable for Marketplace Items, Reinforcing That Online Marketplaces Are Doomed–Bolger v. Amazon
This is another one of my overlong angsty posts about the death of Section 230. Today’s angst is about the liability regime for online marketplace transactions, the inevitable demise of online marketplaces, and how we’ll all end up poorer when…
Another Roundup of Online Contract Formation Cases
Time for another roundup of online contract formation cases. HomeAdvisor, Inc. v. Waddell, 2020 WL 2988565 (Tex. Ct. App. June 4, 2020) The court finds this a valid contract formation process: The court explains: the submittal page was uncluttered, with…
Infringing Polish Website Isn’t Subject to Personal Jurisdiction in the United States–AMA v. Wanat
AMA Multimedia sued Marcin Wanat, Maciej Madon, and MW Media, a Poland-based partnership. AMA was only able to serve Wanat, so he’s the only defendant in the lawsuit. He moved to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction in the United…
Court Orders Rightsowner to Withdraw DMCA Takedown Notices Sent to Amazon–Beyond Blond v. Heldman
This case involves an Amazon seller, the plaintiff, who packages and republishes public domain cartoon videos, like Bugs Bunny, Popeye, and Mighty Mouse. The defendant is a rightsowner who claims that the Amazon seller infringes its rights. On that basis,…
While Our Country Is Engulfed By Urgent Must-Solve Problems, Congress Is Working Hard to Burn Down Section 230
This post will be unusually blunt about my disenchantment with the state of our country, a topic I don’t normally discuss on the blog. Some of you will not like this post. I expect my next post will feel more…
Repeated Amazon Purchases Sufficient to Impute Notice of Arbitration Clause
We blogged Nicosia v. Amazon in 2015 and 2016. (See “The “Browsewrap”/”Clickwrap” Distinction Is Falling Apart”; “Anarchy Has Ensued In Courts’ Handling of Online Contract Formation (Round Up Post).”) A recent Second Circuit ruling in favor of Amazon, while unpublished,…