The proliferation of digital media and communications networks has made it easy for individuals or businesses to take an image or video of a person and use it for their own purposes. This can often mean that a person may find that his/her name or likeness is being used, often for commercial purposes, without authorization. In recent years, such persons…
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IP and Technology
From the Daily Record: Beyond PowerPoint in the Courtroom
Originally published by the Daily Record on July 31, 2009 (republished with permission.) The evolution of courtroom technology is under way, and it will be computerized. The fuzziness of blown-up images and charts on poster board, long the standbys of trial work, can be sharpened with illustrations and three-dimensional graphics. The rigidity of a PowerPoint presentation can be exchanged for…
Whitehouse.gov Adopts Creative Commons License
The Obama Administration wasted no time in signaling that its new era of openness and transparency extends to its presence on the Web. A redesigned Whitehouse.gov was launched at 12:01 p.m. on January 20th. With the stipulation that all third-party content on the site is licensed under a Creative Commons “Attribution License,” the Administration also signaled its recognition of the…
Case Note: Tiffany, Inc. v. eBay, Inc. – U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
I. Introduction Trademark rights holders are keeping close watch on the ongoing litigation between world-famous jeweler Tiffany[i] and the online auction site eBay, Inc. (“eBay”). This litigation arose as a result of the large volume of sales of counterfeit Tiffany goods on eBay’s website. The market for counterfeit merchandise has seen rapid growth over recent years, due in part to the…
U.S. Court of Appeals Affirms $5.1M Copyright Infringement Judgment in Favor of Software Developer
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently affirmed the Judgment of the District Court for the District of Maryland in favor of Juan Pizzorno for $5.1 million in copyright infringement damages. The Judgment had been entered against Defendants L-Soft International, Inc. and Eric Thomas, jointly and severally. Pizzorno is a software developer who created a mailing…
Court Enters $5.1 M Judgment In Favor of Software Developer for Copyright Infringement Damages
The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, Southern Division, entered a Judgment on May 24, 2007, in favor of Juan Pizzorno, a software developer, for $5.1 million in copyright infringement damages. The Judgment was entered against Defendants L-Soft International, Inc. and Eric Thomas, jointly and severally. It is based on a jury verdict returned after a two week…
What’s Yours Is Mine: Protection And Security Of Data In A Digital World
As businesses and individuals have, whether they like it or not, grown increasingly more dependent on the use of electronic data networks to communicate and transmit data and information, the ability to control the flow of such data and information has grown increasingly more valuable and more critical. To individuals, for example, the ability to protect one’s personal privacy and…
Mere Accessibility of Internet Website Insufficient to Give Rise to Jurisdiction in A Specific State
On or about September 10, 2002, an action was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland against A. Diamond Production, Inc., d/b/a The Futon Shop (“The Futon Shop”), a California corporation, alleging, among other things, breach of contract and copyright infringement. The Complaint was later amended to include allegations of unfair competition. the Futon Shop was…
Blogs and the Law: Things to Consider
Advances in Internet technology have spawned a litany of self-published authors, most of them appearing in the blogosphere. A blog (short for “weblog,” a web-based log) is a media platform, typically hosted on a website, where an individual may post writings, pictures, videos, music, and other content. Using blogs, ordinary individuals are able to quickly and easily communicate with the…
E-Commerce: Re-shaping the Landscape of Consumer Privacy
I. Introduction: The Internet and E-Commerce The Internet is no infant, given its genesis in the electronic communication networks of government researchers and educational institutions in the late sixties and early seventies. No longer is the Internet just a way to send electronic messages and computer files to friends and colleagues, as it was at its inception. With the introduction…