Finkel v. Facebook: Online Defamation Case Tests the Limits of Defamation Law

March 26th 2009

Recently we’ve seen an employer charged with defamation for making true disclosures that would hurt a former employee, and Medical Justice which seeks to prevent online defamation by prohibiting patients from participating in social media. Now, a New York teenager has sued Facebook and a handful of its users for discussing her in a private […]

Wieneke’s Law of Advertising: Death and Soft Drinks Don’t Mix

March 25th 2009

Though traffic accidents still rivet the attention of passers-by, most companys wouldn’t want to sponsor the carnage. Its bad for brand. That’s the basis of Wieneke’s First Law of Advertising: “Avoid associating your brand with death or terrible harm.” This seems like obvious advice, but during just the first quarter of the most recent Super […]

UK Gov’t to Intercept Social Networking Communications, Too

March 24th 2009

According to the EU Data Retention Directive, ISPs in the EU are required to store customer internet traffic for up to 12 months. Predictably, the UK government wants to go even further with its “Interception Modernisation Programme” or IMP. IMP will monitor all web communications of UK citizens using deep-packet inspection. The information will be […]

Gold Farming: 400,000 Asian Workers Play “Dull” Video Games to Pad Americans’ Scores

March 23rd 2009

It’s called gold farming: video-game players perform routine tasks to gain points or abilities for other players. Such games often require the sacrifice of time to performing repetitive actions necessary to advance levels. So, what’s a time-strapped player to do?  Outsource part of playing the game. Here’s a link to such a service. Rowenna Davis […]

“Medical Justice” Gags Prospective Patients from Posting

March 20th 2009

Imagine if everything you discussed with your physician was required to be kept private. Not just information about you, the patient, but that information about your treatment by the physician had to be kept private too. The blog e-patients describes how the firm Medical Justice is helping doctors avoid consumer ratings, and the prospect of defamatory […]

1st Circuit Denies Rehearing Staples v. Noonan, Truthful Defamation Stands in Massachusetts

March 19th 2009

The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has denied a petition to rehear the case that found that truthful statements in email can constitute defamation if they are made with malice. See our earlier post on Noonan v. Staples. The appeals court held that Staples failed to adequately raise the constitutional issue: Staples now […]

UK Seeks Restriction of Internet Use Rights Throughout EU

March 18th 2009

The UK government wants to remove users’ rights to internet access, including applications and services, for people within the EU. This move comes in the form of amendments to the Telecoms Package being distributed at the EU seat of power in Brussels. The amendment replaces “user’s rights” with the “principle” that users can be told not […]

Video Search Services Score Investment, Vie to Protect Video Assets

March 17th 2009

Video distribution sites such as YouTube, Metacafe, and DailyMotion host video files that can infringe the rights of content owners and brand holders. Until now, if you’ve needed to protect video assets, its been tough because video files are easily reformatted, edited, and distributed with changed metatags. Now, a tier of start-ups are competing both to […]

I’m Just Saying: Can the Seven Dwarves of Menopause Not Be Infringement?

March 16th 2009

The Disney images of the Seven Dwarves are now being associated with the symptoms of menopause. The ghost of Walt Disney can’t be psyched about this.

AP Slaps Shepard Fairey Back

March 13th 2009

The Associated Press struck back as it countersued Shepard Fairey this week. The AP claims Fairey’s usage of an AP photo was uncredited and uncompensated, and violates copyright law. They added that it’s also a threat to journalism. The AP is seeking profits and damages. Apparently, Fairey used several companies to market the derivative work, […]