News Briefs
November 26, 2008
The latest news from the franchising world.
Court Watch
November 26, 2008
CA Court Rules Jury Trial Waiver Was Not Conspicuous
Appellate Court Says Waiver Enforceable, Notwithstanding Statute
November 26, 2008
Many state franchise or distributor statutes contain provisions that purport to limit the enforceability of waivers or releases signed by dealers or franchisees. The restrictions on waivers are often justified on claimed "inequality of power" between the manufacturer or distributor and franchisee. One court recently struck a blow in favor of manufacturers and distributors in upholding a waiver even though part of the statute expressly referenced restrictions on certain waivers.
Franchisors Must Prepare for Pending Introduction of New Top-Level Domains
November 26, 2008
In only a few short months, franchisors must choose whether to register a top-level domain (TLD) that corresponds with the franchisor's trademark or company name. Similar to current TLDs .com, .net, and .org, new TLDs like .hilton, .coke, or .merrilllynch will be available. A franchisor's choice must balance potentially significant commercial, advertising, and security opportunities with substantial financial and technological investment.
Peer-to-Peer May Share Some Nightmares
November 25, 2008
Unknown to corporate America, the popular peer-to-peer file-sharing networks that allow music and movies to be shared could be sharing something else with the public: company secrets and personal data.
Search Engine Optimization Raises Bar for Law Firm Web Sites
November 25, 2008
Search engines compete with each other on their ability to guide users to relevant content. The search engines, therefore, reward those Web pages that provide useful content to their consumers with high rankings. To understand how to get the most out of search engine optimization, it is important to learn how search engines catalogue and evaluate trillions of Web pages to determine which one is most relevant to a given search query.
The Trouble with Anonymous Bloggers
November 25, 2008
cyberspace enables anyone willing to spring for a domain name and pay an Internet service provider $15 a month to become a "publisher." And even better for these latter-day Horace Greeleys, they can corral a limitless number of "reporters" without paying one red cent. Small wonder that blogging has become a force of mainstream media. Indeed, blog owners basically need only to grant anonymity to those who post to their Web sites.
Google: Done Paying Valley's Legal Bills
November 25, 2008
For most of the decade, Silicon Valley technology startups have assumed that Google would pay their legal bills. Not literally, mind you, but rather by taking on the big, high-profile cases about fair use, interoperability and other digital intellectual property issues that would set precedents upon which all disruptive innovators could rely. Well, Google just put the Valley on notice that the free ride is over, which means more legal burdens for smaller technology companies that previously depended on Google clearing a path for them.
