Men’s Journal Beats Lawsuit Alleging Violation of California’s “Shine the Light” Privacy Statute — Boorstein v. Men’s Journal
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with comments from Eric] Boorstein v. Men’s Journal LLC, 12-771 DSF (Ex) (C.D. Cal.; June 14, 2012) California’s Shine the Light (STL) statute is a little unusual in that it mandates that businesses make specific disclosures…
Recap of the Fourth Trademark Scholars Roundtable at DePaul University
By Eric Goldman In April, Graeme Dinwoodie and Mark Janis once again convened a roundtable of trademark law scholars to geek it out on trademark law. Group photo. This year’s theme was “trademark boundaries,” i.e., how trademark law abuts against…
Trademark Registrant Isn’t Required to Shut Down Competitive Keyword Advertisers–STK v. Backrack
By Eric Goldman STK LLC v. Backrack, Inc., Cancellation No. 92049332, 2012 WL 2024459 (TTAB May 21, 2012). The TTAB designated this opinion “non-precedential,” which they do with the vast majority of their opinions. Deborah Gerhardt, Leah Chan Grinvald and…
Backpage Gets TRO Against Washington Law Attempting to Bypass Section 230–Backpage v. McKenna
By Eric Goldman Backpage.com, LLC v. McKenna, 2:12-cv-00954-RSM (W.D. Wash. June 5, 2012). The complaint. Backpage’s TRO motion. As part of states’ ongoing crusade against online prostitution ads, earlier this year Washington enacted SB 6251, captioned “Regulating advertising of commercial…
Franchisor Really, Really Unhappy With Franchisee’s Co-Promotion With a Topless Bar–Capriotti’s v Taylor
By Eric Goldman Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop, Inc. v. Taylor Family Holdings, Inc., 2012 WL 1448514 (D. Del. April 25, 2012). The complaint and exhibits A-D, E-H and I-O. Some background. Capriotti’s is a franchised fast-food sandwich chain, with its signature…
Facebook Beats Class Certification in Click Fraud Case
By Eric Goldman In re Facebook, Inc., PPC Advertising Litigation, 2012 WL 1253182 (N.D.Cal. April 13, 2012) I don’t know what I like less: click fraud, or bogus lawsuits over click fraud. This three-year-old case (see my initial blog post…
Terminating an NFL Player’s Endorsement Agreement for Polemic Tweets May Be Contract Breach–Mendenhall v. Hanes
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani, with comments from Eric] Mendenhall v. Hanesbrands, 2012 WL 1230743 (M.D.N.C.; Apr. 12, 2012) This case has it all: Twitter, a pro football player, terrorism, Osama bin Laden and contract law geekiness! Background: Rashard Mendenhall plays…
“Social Media and Trademark Law” Talk Notes
By Eric Goldman Today, I gave a talk at Suffolk University’s event “Social Networking Sites: Law, Policy and Practical Strategies” on Social Media and Trademark Law. My talk notes: _____ 1. Overview A. Trademark doctrine is inherently elastic * Schizophrenia…
Parents’ Lawsuit Against Apple for In-App Purchases by Minor Children Moves Forward — In re Apple In-App Purchase Litigation
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] In re Apple In-App Purchase Litigation, 5:11-CV-1758 (N.D. Cal.; Mar. 31, 2012) Facebook recently dealt with a class action over sponsored stories where minors asserted violations of their publicity rights. The court enforced the Facebook terms…
AdKnowledge Denied 47 USC 230 Immunity (Again)–Chang v. Wozo
By Eric Goldman Chang v. Wozo LLC, 2012 WL 1067643 (D. Mass. March 28, 2012) This case is a cross between Swift v. Zynga and Goddard v. Google. Tatto runs a website, Wozo, that sells art posters. It created a…