Features
Stephen Treglia
The aspect of the Internet euphemistically described as "the cloud" has created a seemingly bountiful opportunity for the unscrupulous to acquire the means to attack innocent and vulnerable victims remotely and anonymously. And unlike the fictional portrayal of the apocalyptical children's tale of Chicken Little and his "The sky is falling!" warning, the current digital version is hardly a flight of fantasy.
Steven Salkin
On Dec. 15 and 16, just as Congress was preparing to go dark until after the New Year, The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary held hearings on SOPA. And what seemed destined to be a long drawn-out fight by a few in attendance who were in opposition of passing the Bill against Committee Chairman and sponsor Lamar Smith (R-TX) and its many supporters, took a bizarre and sudden turn as Day 2 restarted after lunch ' and maybe more importantly, as Representatives' flights home for recess were in danger of being missed.
Features
Richard E. Peirce
What happens when a U.S. company's trademark is misused on the Internet outside of the United States? Short of litigating in that country, is all hope lost in addressing the problem? With the Internet and its global reach, even minor abuses are easily found and can cause real problems for a brand owner. Given the obvious jurisdictional roadblocks that exist in litigating in the U.S. against a foreign person or entity, there are some practical tactics that could prove useful in addressing and preventing this type of problematic behavior.
Features
Stan Soocher
Judge Denies Recusal Request in Marley Family Royalties Dispute Against UMG<br>UK Judgment Against U.S. Videogame Distributor Is Valid in Virginia
Features
Victor Li
StarGreetz, a new Los Angeles media company that lets customers send personalized celebrity videos and marketing messages over sites like Facebook and Twitter, might sound like just another Internet start-up hoping to capitalize on the public's obsession with Hollywood and social networking. But the company isn't a couple of star-dazed programmers fiddling around in a garage: StarGreetz's founders and backers are former senior executives at Warner Brothers, 20th Century Fox and Disney; its lawyers hail from Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe. Make that former lawyers, at least in a crucial case over the origins of the StarGreetz venture. In December, a Los Angeles state court judge granted a motion by plaintiff StarClipz in a trade secrets and breach of contract suit against StarGreetz to disqualify Orrick from representing the company.
Features
Stan Soocher
FILM PRODUCTION LOSSES/ISSUE PRECLUSION<br>NON-COMPETITION CLAUSES/TV STATION ACQUISITIONS
Alan L. Friel
The convergence of media and technology continues to change the way we communicate, consume media and engage in commercial transactions. Marketers have been among the greatest digital media innovators and the medium has evolved as largely advertiser supported. That business model is under attack by consumer groups that argue that marketers are unfairly invading consumers' privacy and confusing consumers as to the nature and origin of commercial messages.
Features
Stan Soocher
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, denied a Texas-based concert promoter's motion to dismiss a suit by an Argentinian promoter over a planned M'tley Cre concert.
James Millar
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Benjamin Loveland
Intellectual property ' and thus entertainment industry ' licensors are perpetually concerned about whether their licensees could use the bankruptcy process to assign their license rights to third parties, especially to third parties to whom the licensor would not want to grant a license, at least not on the existing license terms. This concern can be particularly acute for trademark licensors, who want to protect their trademarks against undesired uses and keep the trademark license rights "personal" to their licensees.
Features
Jonathan Bick
e-Mail and privacy are cornerstones of online commerce that successful e-commerce firms spend significant capital to operate properly, efficiently and legally. e-Commerce counsel should bear in mind, however, that the e-mail-content protection that some parties may enjoy against government and private access does not extend to certain entities that process e-mail.
