Doing business over the Internet is increasingly automated. In the past, Web sites used "terms of use" agreements which include an Internet mechanism to affirm consent to be bound by the agreement (click-wrap). Increasingly, browse-wrap agreements are replacing click-wrap agreements.
A Webcasting service that provides users with individualized Internet radio stations is not required to pay licensing fees to copyright holders of the songs the service plays, the Second U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.
Web sites, social networks and other interactive service providers facilitate the display and exchange of a staggering amount of user-generated information, much of it idle chatter, meaningful commentary and helpful information, though some of it defamatory and offensive speech. Without certain protections, a site owner could face liability, and such a threat conceivably would have a chilling effect on the vibrant exchange of ideas on the Web.
The Second Circuit's recent decision in Rescuecom Corp. v. Google, Inc. is but one more step in a long-standing battle that's likely to continue for some time; it's been five years already, and the court merely ruled on a technicality that allows the case to run longer still. Most Google users and advertisers are blissfully unaware of what's going on, and even many involved in Internet commerce don't understand the implications.
CLAIMS OVER PHOTOS, PERFORMANCE IN DVD
COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT/SAMPLED RECORDING
Internet gambling proponents suffered a major setback when a federal appeals court refused to strike down a 2006 law in which Congress banned all Internet gambling transactions that would be illegal in the gambler's state.
The New York Supreme Court, New York County, denied a motion to dismiss a complaint by a personal manager who seeks unpaid commissions from artists he managed.
The Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, affirmed a quantum meruit award based on contract-negotiation representation that attorney Todd Musburger provided to talk show personality Gary Meier.
Although alien tort claims are still relatively novel, long-standing principles of insurance law, and judicial precedents established based on more familiar fact patterns, should provide helpful guidance to companies facing these claims.
