As consumers have embraced mobile devices and communicating via text message, mobile marketing promotional campaigns have followed. As a result, sweepstakes have become popular mobile promotional tools because the chance of a prize motivates consumers to interact with the sponsor. However, because sweepstakes and contests are heavily regulated by states, mobile sweepstakes and contests must comply not only with mobile-messaging laws and regulations.

Features

One coverage issue poised to become significant is whether damage allegedly caused by genetically modified organisms is within the ambit of the absolute pollution exclusion currently in effect.

Historically, big corporations with multi-million dollar brands and the adult-entertainment industry have been on opposite sides of the fence over brand protection, with owners of famous brands like Nike, Starbucks and Lexus claiming any association of their marks with adult entertainment constitutes dilution by tarnishment. The adult-entertainment industry has very often met such claims as unfounded attempts to stifle its First Amendment right of free speech. Ironically, but legally predictably as far as protecting e-commerce interests, since the introduction of .XXX, both camps are united in a battle with ICANN and ICM to protect their brands from misappropriation.

Who's doing what; who's going where.

Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.

Highlights of the latest franchising cases from around the country.

Features

One of the difficult balancing acts encountered by all franchise systems is between the relatively static nature of the franchise agreement and the dynamic, impossible-to-predict changes that occur in the real world. At the 34th Annual ABA Forum on Franchising, two industry veterans with perspective as senior in-house counsel spoke about how in-house counsel can identify potentially "game-changing" developments and lead their organizations' response.

On Oct. 3, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a petition for certiorari in <i>KFC Corp. v. Iowa Department of Revenue</i>. As a result, the Court has given its silent blessing to extending the "economic nexus" theory to justify states' imposition of tax obligations on out-of-state franchisors with no physical presence there.