Keyword Metatags are Back…Will Judicial Freakouts Continue?
By Eric Goldman Keyword metatags are back, and I couldn’t be less thrilled. Few Internet technologies have so thoroughly baffled judges as keyword metatags. From a technologists’ perspective, keyword metatags were a 1990s experiment by public search engines at improving…
Google Defeats Class Certification in Keyword Ad Lawsuit–FPX v. Google
By Eric Goldman FPX, LLC v. Google, Inc., 2011 WL 4783376 (E.D. Tex. Sept. 29, 2011) Google obtained a major victory in one of the most serious pending lawsuits against it challenging its AdWords keyword advertising program. Putative class action…
Q3 2011 Quick Links, Part 2 (Trademarks/Domain Names Edition)
By Eric Goldman * In the Betty Boop case (Fleischer Studios v. AVELA), the Ninth Circuit stepped back from some of its perplexing language about aesthetic functionality and the Dastar opinion, but the revised opinion remains confusing. Rebecca’s coverage. *…
Re-registration of Domain Name is not a “Registration” Under the ACPA — GoPets Ltd. v. Hise
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] GoPets Ltd. v. Hise, 08-56110; 08-56112 (9th Cir. Sept. 22, 2011) Although Eric is not a big fan of them, the Ninth Circuit has produced a slew of domain name opinions this year. GoPets Ltd. v….
Facebook’s Trademark Suit Against Teachbook Survives Motion to Dismiss
by Eric Goldman Facebook, Inc. v. Teachbook.com LLC, 2011 WL 4449686 (N.D. Ill. Sept. 26, 2011). Facebook has been helping many lawyers send their kids to private school with an expensive enforcement campaign to control the prefix “face” and suffix…
Court Declines to Dismiss or Transfer Lawsuit Over @OMGFacts Twitter Account — Deck v. Spartz, Inc.
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani] Deck v. Spartz, Inc., 11-Cv-1123 (E.D. CA.; Sept. 27, 2011) I posted about the lawsuit involving the @OMGFacts Twitter account some time ago. (“Thoughts on the Lawsuit Over the @OMGFacts Twitter Account.”) The account was created…
Ninth Circuit Upholds Web Host’s Liability for Counterfeiting Retailers–Louis Vuitton v. Akanoc
By Eric Goldman Louis Vuitton Malletier SA v. Akanoc Solutions, Inc., No. 10-15909 (9th Cir. Sept. 12, 2011). Prior blog posts: * Another Bad Ruling in Louis Vuitton v. Akanoc * Making Sense of the $32M Contributory Trademark Infringement Judgment…
Blogger Can Display County Seal in Blog Posts–Rothamel v. Fluvanna County
By Eric Goldman Rothamel v. Fluvanna County, Va., 2011 WL 3878313 (W.D. Va. Sept. 2, 2011) I don’t use images on this blog, but many bloggers include images to help illustrate their posts. It’s not uncommon, then, for bloggers to…
Marijuana Activist Can’t Change His Name to “NJWeedman.com” — In re Forchion
[Post by Venkat Balasubramani with additional comments by guest blogger Laura Heymann and Eric] [Eric’s note: this may be our first post with *three* different bloggers covering the same case! Venkat starts us off:] In re Robert Edward Forchion, Jr.,…
Pillow Pets Knockoff Enjoined from Keyword Advertising–CJ Products v Snuggly Plushez
By Eric Goldman CJ Products LLC v. Snuggly Plushez LLC, 2011 WL 3667750 (E.D.N.Y. Aug. 22, 2011) Pillow Pets are cuddly and soft, but if you make knockoff versions of them, be prepared to meet the sharp end of their…