Legal & Govt. Issues, Items 1 to 50

"Legal & Govt. Issues" includes 58 items
This page contains items 1 to 50

1. The Gripe Stuff: Site Is Immune From Libel For User Posts, by Wendy Davis, Media Post, 12-30-2009 Davis reports a federal appellate court upheld a district court decision giving a "gripe site" immunity from liability for libel.
2. P4P Remodels File Sharing, by Erika Jonietz, Technology Review, 11-17-2009 Jonietz reports that the Internet Engineering Task Force, which develops Internet standards, is building "provider portal for peer-to-peer" (P4P) into standard Internet protocols. Could speed up download times for file sharers by 30-100%.
3. Product Placement, by Joan Anderman, The Boston Globe, 12-1-2009 How does an average reader distinguish between credible news and paid content? Anderman describes blogger reaction with rule by U.S. Federal Trade Commission requiring disclosure when they receive free merchandise or payment for writing about an item.
4. France to Vote on New Internet Piracy Bill, by , ECN Magazine, 9-15-2009 Bill has attracted attention beyond France, both from music and film industries struggling to keep up official revenue and from privacy advocates who say it threatens civil liberties, targets downloads rather than increasingly popular online "streaming."
5. FTC Stops U.S. Online Retailer from Posing as a UK-Based Site, by Mike Sachoff, WebProNews, 8-7-2009 The defendants deceptively used websites ending in ".uk" that tricked consumers in the U.K. into purchasing good that carried no manufacturer warranties, misled them about their rights to return items, Sacchoff writes.
6. Could The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Act Undermine The 'Internet Economy'?, by Wendy Davis, Media Post, 7-20-2009 Discusses Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), requiring Internet service providers to monitor users' communications, disclose information about subscribers, and implement "3 strikes" policies to disconnect users who allegedly share pirated files.
7. 16 Things Every Website Absolutely, Positively Needs To Know About Website Legal Compliance, by Chip Cooper, SiteReference, 7-20-2009 Lists 16 high-risk activities that indicate the need for website legal compliance: collection of personal information or credit card information, security risks to personal information, allowing 3rd party access to your server, serving 3rd party cookies, Google AdSense ads, affiliates, competitors' trademarks, etc.
8. Government IT: The Top 10 Worst Internet Proposed Laws in the U.S., by Roy Mark, eWeek, 6-21-2009 To highlight some of the really bad boys of Internet regulation, the advocacy group NetChoice has created the iAWFUL (Internet Advocates Watchlist for Ugly Laws) list. Slide show.
9. Deciding What Information Is Fair to Use, by Reid Goldsborough, Information Today, 7-1-2009 The same laws that protect intellectual property elsewhere can get you in trouble for appropriating someone else’s words, images, music, video, and so on, writes Goldsborough, explaining copyright laws and "fair" use.
10. Content Wants to Be Pirated, by Daisy Whitney, OMMA, Piracy of TV shows is growing faster on the Web than illegal sharing of movies and music is, Whitney reports.
11. Copyright Meets a New Foe: The Real-Time Web, by Liz Gannes, Business Week, 5-21-2009 The way online video copyright functions is based on a reading of the 10-year-old Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which may seem inadequate to address the issues that arise from the furious rate Internet users are sharing content.
12. Writing with Libel in Mind: A Guide for Non-Profits and Bloggers, by Paul Alan Levy, Public Citizen, 4-2-2009 This online guide is a must-read for bloggers, especially those who can't afford libel suits. Defines "libel review." Then discusses what constitutes libel, sources that support defamatory statements, and dealing with the subject of a report or investigation, plus protocols for libel reviews and a list of resources.
13. The AP's Desperate Attempt To Outlaw Search Engine Links, by Richard Ord, WebProNews, 4-14-2009 The AP believes the concept of fair use is primitive and counter to their desire to prevent their demise in an ad supported Internet content economy, Ord reports. Discusses how an AP win could kill "fair use" and change the Internet as we know it.
14. Pirate Bay File-Share Case Ends in Guilty Verdict, by , eWeek, 4-17-2009 A Swedish court handed down a guilty verdict and a year in prison to all four defendants in a copyright test case involving The Pirate Bay, one of the world's biggest free file-sharing Websites.
15. What It Means to Copyright a Website, by Alyssa Gregory, SitePoint, 3-11-2009 The vast majority of websites have a copyright notice in the footer. Most designers do this as routine on all websites they design. But what exactly does it mean and what protection does it provide? Gregory answers some common questions.
16. Seeing the light, by Paul Demery, Internet Retailer, 2-1-2009 In the aftermath of the Target court settlement with the National Federation for the Blind, online retailers are paying more attention to the issue of serving disabled consumers.
17. Copyright, Blogging and Content Theft, by Darren Rowse, ProBlogger, 2-7-2009 Rowse discovers search results showing that dozens of his posts are copied as they are, without any modification, without a backlink to the original post and often outranking his original posts, describes copyright other measures to take.
18. Digital Pirates Winning Battle With Studios, by Brian Stelter and Brad Stone, New York Times, 2-4-2009 Because of widely available broadband access and a new wave of streaming sites, it has become surprisingly easy to watch pirated video online, say Stelter and Stone.
19. Linked Out, by Wendy Davis, Slate, 2-12-2009 Davis describes a case that threatens the right of Web sites to link freely, warning that Web sites could then be forced to use different linking protocols for every company they write about.
20. 5 Lesser-Known Benefits to Creative Commons, by Jonathan Bailey, The Blog Herald, 1-5-2009 Presents less-promoted ways that choosing a Creative Commons license can help you, your site and your content, even as you surrender some of your rights in a particular work.
21. Back to Basics: H.264 Licensing Terms, by Tim Siglin, Streaming Media, 12-12-2008 One almost-universal truism in the world of streaming media is that licensing particular technologies can be a confusing and somewhat byzantine process, says Siglin. Reviews MPEG-4 and H.264 licensing.
22. Retailers Threaten To Sue Sites For Posting Circulars, by Wendy Davis, Media Post, 11-18-2008 Wal-Mart, Macy's and KB Toys are among the companies that have sent cease-and-desist letters to BlackFriday.info, complaining that the site published sales circulars
23. Auction Websites Hang in Legal Limbo, by David Kravets, Wired, 12-4-2008 Describes legal case being brought by Tiffany against online auction site, eBay, claiming eBay is liable for contributory trademark infringement because it refuses to police its site for infringing materials.
24. New Law Allows Website Hosts to Just Say No to Drugs, by A.J. Perez, USA Today, 10-24-2008 Reports on new standards for online pharmacies, including the requirement that a patient has to see a doctor and needs a prescription for a controlled substance. Online pharmacies also will have to register with the Drug Enforcement Administration.
25. Google Settles with Authors, by Hardy Green, Business Week, 10-29-2008 After more than 2 years of negotiation, Google (GOOG) has settled lawsuits filed by the Authors Guild and 5 publisher members of the Association of American Publishers against a Google program that has scanned millions of library books.
26. Fake User Profiles: Free Speech or Defamation?, by Chris Gatewood, SitePoint, 11-7-2008 You’ve built a social networking web site, but you’ve received a request to remove content that one of your users has posted. Where do you stand? And who is legally responsible for that content? Gatewood reviews issues of free speech and defamation.
27. Copyright Law for Ecommerce Merchants, by Peter LaSorsa, Practical eCommerce, 10-14-2008 Explains elements of copyright law, errors websites can make that expose them to liability, legal penalties for violating copyright law, and the 4 factors considered in "fair use" of copyrighted material.
28. Contentonomics: E-Commerce Best Way To Make Money Online, by Paul McDougall, Information Week, 10-8-2008 The best way for Internet content providers to monetize traffic is by becoming a hub for e-commerce transactions related to their subject matter, according to David Meister, now executive chairman of Wine.TV.
29. Absurd Links Lawsuit Could Unravel Web, by Wendy Davis, The Daily Online Examiner, 10-7-2008 The law firm Jones Day is continuing to burden the court system with a trademark infringement lawsuit that should have been laughed out of court the day it was filed, writes Davis. At issue is one publisher's links to another site.
30. A New Frontier: Branding Tech Terms on the Web, by Steve Lohr, CRM Daily, 9-9-2008 To marketers large and small, the Web is a wide open frontier, an unlimited billboard with boundless branding opportunities. Companies want to slap a brand on still vaguely defined products and services such as cloud computing, Lohr reports.
31. Streams of Thought: The Patent Wars, by Tim Siglin, Streaming Media, 8-8-2008 Siglin discusses the 3 ways for companies to create market share as content delivery networks (CDNs) commoditize and as streaming grows up: disrupt, enhance, and defend. Reviews the patent disputes involved.
32. A New Frontier: Branding Tech Terms on the Web, by Steve Lohr, CRM Daily, 9-9-2008 Lohr reports legal experts saying that trademark issues may take on a higher profile, fueled by the escalating value of brands in general and trademark holders increasingly trying to assert their rights, especially on the Internet.
33. SEC Web Guidelines Vex Press Release Services, by , Information Week, 8-8-2008 A decision that may allow U.S. companies to use their Web sites to release market-sensitive information could hurt firms that distribute press releases and give some investors an edge over others.
34. eBay win in Tiffany case is a victory for e-commerce, legal experts say, by , Internet Retailer, 7-15-2008 A federal judge has ruled that eBay Inc. is not legally liable for sales of counterfeit Tiffany items on eBay. A judge found that Tiffany bore the ultimate responsibility for monitoring violations of its trademark, in this case counterfeit items.
35. Bloggers: Big Media Is Watching, by Peter Burrows, Business Week, 6-25-2008 As content recognition software gets more sophisticated, Burrows says to expect more copyright-related battles online.
36. Viacom vs. YouTube: Beyond Privacy, by Catherine Holahan, Business Week, 7-3-2008 Holahan reports that the legal tide may be turning against many of the most popular companies on the Web. They may have to change their business practices to proactively screen out user submissions that could violate laws.
37. http://www.cioinsight.com/c/a/Opinion/Avoiding-Web-Rocks-and-Shoals/?kc=CIOMINEPNL052308, by Larry Downes, CIO Insight, 5-20-2008 Can your company be held responsible for illegal activities committed by users of your Web site? Downes explains a new ruling that could hold Web operators liable for postings that others make on their sites.
38. Do-it-yourself Copyright Protection Online, by Robert Niles, Online Journalism Review, 5-21-2008 If others are stealing your content online, there are simple ways that you can find them, and then shut them down. Niles describes the steps you can take to protect yourself.
39. How to Make Sure Your Email Is Legal, by Spencer Kollas, iMedia Connection, 6-17-2008 Kollas describes the 4 main topics that new regulations address, how they will affect the way you do business via email.
40. Merchants Ban Affiliates Based on New York Tax, by Janet Meiners, Marketing Pilgrim, 5-28-2008 Due to New York State's law that collects sales taxes from merchants who have affiliate marketers based in New York, merchants have begun kicking out these New York-based affiliates, angering both affiliates and merchants.
41. Top Ten Tips To Manage New York Sales Tax, by John Dozier, Dozier Internet Law, 5-23-2008 Discusses various approaches to complying with New York State's new law requiring collection of sales tax for any business that has affiliates in NY. Suggests knowing your exposure, establishing a "hold back" for affiliate commissions to cover any tax liability, amending your affiliate contract and privacy policies.
42. A Fool for a Client, by Gonzalo E. Mon, OMMA, 5-1-2008 Running promotions that involve consumer-generated content seems ideal. Users spend time engaging while creating the content, but companies may be held liable for the actions of consumers, as well as their own actions. Mon tells how to reduce risks.
43. What Can You (Legally) Take From the Web?, by Kirk Teska, IEEE Spectrum, 4-1-2008 Web sites and bloggers beware: copyright law applies to you too, as Teska explains.
44. Hey, Isn't That . . ., by Monica Hesse, Washington Post, 1-9-2008 In an increasingly user-generated world where the public is the artist, sometimes it's big companies that are caught corporate photonapping.
45. YouTube's Legal Issues Grow, by Ashley Jones, EContent, 11-6-2007 Reports that YouTube has found itself facing a whole new group of legal issues beyond copyright, which may force the site to take control over its content.
46. How Big Media's Copyright Campaigns Threaten Internet Free Expression, by Cory Doctorow, Information Week, 11-5-2007 Big media companies' efforts to extend copyright are hurting creators' abilities to find audiences for their work, argues Doctorow.
47. A DMCA Fix Needed To Eliminate Online Copyright Loophole, by Jared Bernstein, EContent, 7-24-2007 Bernstein reports that the courts have begun to send a message to service providers: Now you have technology available to help avoid infringement, so you need to take a more proactive role in filtering copyrighted content.
48. DailyMotion Engages Copyright Detection Tool, by Kristina Knight, BizReport, 7-31-2007 One of the hurdles with online video has been the threat of copyright infringement. YouTube has suffered many complaints citing copyright infringement. Knight reports on a new tool that detects copyrighted videos to prevent publication.
49. The Net Gets Real on Copyrights, by Catherine Holahan, Business Week, 7-23-2007 Holahan reports that the Harry Potter ending is the latest example of how Web sites are more willing to take down copyrighted material and identify infringers
50. Paid Search, Trademark Legalities and Liability -- Oh My!, by Tony Wright, Search Engine Watch, 4-23-2007 Discusses the legal implications of bidding on trademarked words. The most common legal theories used in PPC cases are trademark infringement and typosquatting.