Non-fungible tokens (or NFTs) are unique blockchain-based tokens that can represent almost anything, including physical assets. NFTs have been growing significantly in popularity in recent years because of this potential to...more
Efforts to regulate cross-device tracking have increased since we last addressed the topic in 2017, following the release of the FTC’s Staff Report. ...more
With the World Series upon us, here in Los Angeles, all eyes are on the Dodgers, who are in the hunt for their first championship trophy since 1988, a year best remembered for its epic mustaches and Kirk Gibson’s cinematic,...more
Worried about a company retaliating against you when you post a negative review on Yelp or TripAdvisor? Worry no longer because Congress has your back. Last week, Congress passed a law that will make it illegal for companies...more
Social media has become a must-have medium for most companies and celebrities. The medium provides an easy, inexpensive and instantaneous connection to customers and fans. However, as social media marketing continues to...more
Social media is quickly becoming the way that companies present and market themselves to the world. Companies are also realizing the value social media provides in an easy conduit to communicate with customers. But the same...more
We’ve previously written about the distinctions between hacking credit and other financial data in comparison to hacking private information. (See Ashley Madison and Coming to “Terms” with Data Protection.) The issue of how...more
4/25/2016
/ Ashley Madison ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Confidential Information ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Data Breach ,
Data Privacy ,
Hackers ,
Inadvertent Disclosure ,
Popular ,
Public Disclosure ,
Young Lawyers
In “The Case of Prince, a Dancing Baby and the DMCA Takedown Notice,” we discussed the potential impact of the Ninth Circuit decision in Lenz v. Universal Music Corp., 801 F.3d 1126 (2015), a.k.a. the “dancing baby case,” in...more
3/31/2016
/ Algorithms ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Digital Media ,
DMCA ,
Fair Use ,
Good Faith ,
Music Industry ,
Online Videos ,
Popular ,
Takedown Notices ,
Universal ,
YouTube
We recently wrote about a musician who got into some trouble with a court by using social media to flaunt images of hundred dollar bills after he had filed for bankruptcy. Now, an Atlanta-based rapper known as Rolls Royce...more
3/24/2016
/ Corporate Counsel ,
Dilution ,
Lanham Act ,
Music Industry ,
Popular ,
Rolls-Royce ,
Social Media ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademarks ,
Unfair Competition ,
Young Lawyers
At its heart, social media’s purpose is sharing content; however, fair use can only take one so far. A recent case serves as yet another reminder to exercise caution when reposting content, and that, in a litigious society,...more
“Be careful what you post.” This may be the most obvious of social media commandments. Yet, it’s also true that it’s difficult to control the degree of public access to photos and messages posted on a social media platform,...more
Recently, we noted vulnerability issues from use of the Internet of Things and how that has come to impact the health industry. Recent events continue to highlight this development. Since the start of the year, there have...more
A recently published patent application filed by Twitter provides a possible glimpse into the future of social media and selfies—and it’s a future arriving on the wings of that poster child of modern technology, the unmanned...more
1/28/2016
/ Corporate Counsel ,
DMCA ,
Drones ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Popular ,
Registration Requirement ,
Safe Harbors ,
Selfies ,
Social Media ,
Twitter ,
Unmanned Aircraft Systems ,
Young Lawyers
Hours. Days. Weeks. Months. When it comes to acting on copyright infringement takedown notices, just how fast is fast enough for social media platforms? Some recent (and not-so-recent) cases reveal how difficult the question...more
We have previously discussed how the use of the hashtag in trademarks is continuously evolving. As it turns out, the latest evolutionary wrinkle might have started to form this past March, thanks to one of pop culture’s more...more
In a recent federal district court case in the Northern District of California (Case No. 13-cv-04608-HSG), Pintrips Inc., a website-based travel planning service, effectively pinned to the mat the trademark claims brought...more
As user-generated content explodes over the Internet, intellectual property disputes over posting or uploading such content without the owner’s consent continue to escalate. As we touched on in a recent post, social media...more
11/5/2015
/ Copyright Infringement ,
Corporate Counsel ,
DMCA ,
Independent Contractors ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Internet ,
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) ,
News Stories ,
Online Platforms ,
Online Videos ,
Photographs ,
Popular ,
Safe Harbors ,
Social Media ,
Social Networks ,
Spam ,
Third-Party ,
Third-Party Liability ,
User-Generated Content ,
Websites ,
Young Lawyers
Brand companies have come to view user-generated content as often one of the most effective and authentic ways to advertise their products or services. This is known as “user-generated content marketing.” For example, with...more
10/27/2015
/ Advertising ,
COPPA ,
Copyright Ownership ,
Corporate Branding ,
Digital Media ,
Hashtags ,
Instagram ,
Minor Children ,
Online Advertisements ,
Online Platforms ,
Popular ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Privacy Laws ,
Right of Publicity ,
Selfies ,
Social Media ,
Social Networks ,
User-Generated Content ,
Websites
We often espouse the value of comprehensive, up-to-date terms of service (TOS) that consistently reflect your current business. And for good reason! Plaintiffs’ attorneys will scrutinize your TOS before helping your users sue...more
10/19/2015
/ Business Entities ,
Business Model ,
Class Action ,
Disclosure ,
Hyperlink ,
Online Advertisements ,
Popular ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Social Media ,
Social Networks ,
Terms of Service ,
Twitter
With live-streaming apps Periscope and Meerkat becoming increasingly popular, the introduction of a “live” element in the social media game is creating unique business and legal concerns. While most of the videos streamed on...more
10/15/2015
/ Cable Television Providers ,
Copyright Infringement ,
DMCA ,
HBO ,
Live Streaming ,
Popular ,
Privacy Concerns ,
Social Media ,
Social Networks ,
Takedown Notices ,
Television Programming ,
YouTube
Continuing the trend in recent years of injunctions becoming harder and harder to obtain, the Northern District of California denied a motion for a preliminary injunction where the defendant has allegedly copied the...more
Do you consider yourself famous? If the answer is no, then you have likely never been concerned with the invasion of your right of publicity. The right of publicity is the right of a person in his or her identity—name or...more
10/8/2015
/ Communications Decency Act ,
First Amendment ,
LinkedIn ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Name and Likeness ,
Popular ,
Preemption ,
Right of Publicity ,
Snapchat ,
Social Media ,
Twitter ,
Young Lawyers
Your social media content is not only susceptible to hacking; it’s also susceptible to disclosure requests from civil litigants (see our Sept. 14 blog post for more details) and even prosecutors without your consent if they...more
10/6/2015
/ Appeals ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Disclosure ,
Discovery ,
Discovery Rule ,
Facebook ,
Hackers ,
Instagram ,
Internet Privacy ,
Popular ,
Privacy Laws ,
Social Media ,
Social Networks ,
Stored Communications Act ,
Twitter
When Kim Kardashian speaks, the FDA listens. Or, more precisely, when Kardashian, who has 46.8 million followers on Instagram, posts an enthusiastic endorsement—and advertisement—on the social media platform for Diclegis, a...more
9/24/2015
/ Celebrity Endorsements ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Instagram ,
Kim Kardashian ,
Misleading Impressions ,
Online Advertisements ,
Online Platforms ,
Popular ,
Pregnancy ,
Prescription Drugs ,
Snapchat ,
Social Media ,
Twitter
You hire a web designer to create a website for your business. In the background, the designer uses stock photography to beautify the page. Stock photography comprises copyrighted images—often presented in searchable online...more