Balough
September 8, 2014
The Bing Image Widget had a short fling on the Internet before a copyright infringement lawsuit by Getty Images caused Microsoft to take the widget down. The widget, which was released on August 22, 2014, allows website publishers to embed a panel on their websites that displays digital images supplied by Microsoft through its Bing […]
Balough
June 17, 2014
A Cincinnati BenGals cheerleader cannot sue a website that hosted allegedly defamatory posts about her, even though the website edited and added comments about the posts, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals found. The appellate court reversed the trial court’s finding that the website was not immune under the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA) […]
Balough
April 9, 2014
The operators of jerk.com may be the real jerks—and may be violating federal law—according to charges levied by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in an administrative complaint. The FTC accused Jerk, LLC, the operator of jerk.com, with harvesting personal information from Facebook to create profiles labeling people as a “jerk” or “not a jerk,” and enabling […]
Balough
December 23, 2013
A 92-question and answer guide is available from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to help businesses and parents understand the new rule for the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which go into effect July 1, 2013. The rule, adopted in December 2012, expands the types of information about children under 13 that require parental […]
Balough
December 22, 2013
Websites will no longer be able to collect geolocation information or display photos or videos of children under 13 without parental consent under new rules adopted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The new rules amended the original rules adopted in 2000, which implemented the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The amendments expand the […]
Balough
December 22, 2013
Facial recognition applications now link faces with other databases, allowing companies to identify anonymous individuals and obtain their personal information without the consumer ever knowing, thus raising privacy concerns. In an effort to give companies guidance and protect consumer privacy, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a pamphlet with Best Practices for Common Uses of Facial […]
Balough
December 22, 2013
The operator of websites for several music stars who appeal to tweens illegally collected information from children under 13 and agreed to a fine of $1 million. The websites for Justin Bieber, Rihanna, Demi Lovato, and Selena Gomez violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting the names, addresses, email addresses, birth dates, […]
Balough
December 22, 2013
An online social bookmarking service that allows users to provide links to copyrighted materials behind a pay wall is not a contributory infringer, the Seventh Circuit found. myVidster.com’s users bookmark videos on the Internet that are displayed as thumbnails on the website. When a user clicks on the thumbnail, the video is played but the […]
Balough
December 17, 2013
The identity of a person who commented anonymously about an article already published on newspaper website is not protected by Indiana’s Shield Law, the state’s appellate court found. The poster’s identity was sought by a former president of the Junior Achievement of Central Indiana, Inc., (JA) who alleged that he was defamed by the comment appearing […]
Balough
December 16, 2013
A federal court has told Snuggly Plushez to stuff its Google AdWords campaign that uses its rivals Pillow Pets trademark. Snuggly Plushez makes a plush toy in the shape of an animal that unfolds into a flat pillow—the same product that its competitor CJ Products markets under the “Pillow Pet” name and other trademarks. CJ Products […]
