Copyright Filing Fee Increase

Thu, 06 Jul 2006 17:13:55 GMT

The below link announces changes to the fee structure for copyright registration at the U.S. Copyright Office. http://www.copyright.gov/reports/fees2006.html

Microsoft Spyware?

Thu, 06 Jul 2006 12:53:12 GMT

For those of you too lazy or scared to sign up for automatic Windows updates, you may have had a point all along. Two separate lawsuits recently challened Microsoft's automatic download of its Windows Genuine Advantage applet, as a "high priority" download. The first suit, the Complaint for which can be found at...

New Hollander Article on Legal Risks of Blogs

Thu, 29 Jun 2006 21:08:34 GMT

I've posted a new article on the website relating to the legal risks of publishing blogs. You can check it out at http://www.hollanderco.com/articles/blog-intro.php

Google Sued for Spidering School Records

Tue, 27 Jun 2006 01:25:03 GMT

In a case that appears to be the first of its kind, a North Carolina county court enjoined Google to remove all records concerning the Catawba County Schools Board of Education from its server and index, according to an article in the online edition of the Winston-Salem Journal. What's remarkable about the case, brought by the School Board, is that the information that showed up on Google, namely, the names, Social Security numbers and test scores of 619 students, was supposedly stored on...

Internet Heavy Hitters Petition for Federal Privacy Law

Thu, 22 Jun 2006 02:59:41 GMT

The Wall Street Journal has written on a newly formed Consumer Privacy Legislative Forum, counting among its members such technology heavyweights as Ebay, Google and Microsoft. What's the glue holding these rivals together? Privacy. Your privacy. The forum is lobbying Congress to do what individuals have asked it to do for years, namely, enact a federal privacy policy.

More Trouble For Vonage

Wed, 21 Jun 2006 23:17:37 GMT

CNET News reports that the FCC recently appoved a plan to assess Internet Phone Taxes, dedicated for use by the Universal Service Fund, against all VOIP carriers that connect to the public switched phone network, rather than on a peer to peer basis, like SKYPE. The approval expands the tax base from more traditional telecom services, like land lines, pay phones, wireless and DSL, to Vonage like...

How Much Would You Pay for Sex?

Wed, 25 Jan 2006 17:52:21 GMT

After years of being the poster child for domain name litigation, Gary Kremen has finally sold the sex.com domain name to a group of anonymous purchasers for $12,000,000. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11003872/

Breakthrough Issue on Registrability of a taste

Tue, 29 Nov 2005 23:49:27 GMT

Can a product's taste be the subject of a trademark application on the theory that it serves as an identifying and branding aspect of the product, distinguishing it from competitors and acting as a source identifier? That's what the US Trade mark Trial and Appeals Board will decide in an appeal of the USPTO's rejection of the trademark application for the orange taste that disguises the real taste of a liquid anti-depressant. Talk about depressing news! The applicant,...

Proposed Legislation Assists in IT Training Costs

Wed, 23 Nov 2005 21:58:13 GMT

Today's news brings word of proposed legislation in the House of Representatives designed to assist in training to further worker IT skills. As described, "The Technology Retraining and Investment Now Act for the 21st Century, or TRAIN Act, would allow workers or employers to take a tax credit of up to half of a qualified $4000 IT training program. The bill would allow a tax credit of up to $2500 for small businesses and businesses or workers in rural or economically depressed...

Famous Domain Name Thief to Remain in Jail Pending Disclosure

Wed, 16 Nov 2005 22:01:34 GMT

In the latest step in a case that seems like it's been around forever, the original domain name thief that made registrars nervous about their own liability for wrongly transferred domain names, Stephen Michael Cohen, remains in a U.S. jail pending full disclosure of the alleged millions of dollars he gained from stealing the infamous sex.com domain name from Gary Kremen, its rightful owner and later founder of...

Intellectual Property