On May 11, 2022, the Fifth Circuit reinstated Texas state law HB 20 which allows private parties to sue tech platforms with 50M+ MAUs for their censorship of user-generated content based on “the viewpoint of a user or another person”. On May 13, technology lobbying groups NetChoice and the Computer...
E. TV Networks has filed copyright infringement claims in federal district court against Google and sixteen YouTube users. The targeted users sent DMCA counter-notices to YouTube following E. TV’s requested takedowns of videos containing copyrighted material from performances by rapper Chief Keef...
The Berklett Cybersecurity Project of the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University has just released a new report on the so-called “going dark problem” that is fueling law enforcement demands for access to encrypted information. The report, “Don’t Panic: Making Progress on the...
On December 1, a federal court in Virginia entered partial summary judgment for music publisher BMG in BMG Rights Management v. Cox Communications, a closely watched case on the applicability of the DMCA safe harbors to a broadband Internet access provider. BMG sued Cox for...
The controversy over the so called “right to be forgotten” recently surfaced in Mexico. A few months ago, the Mexican National Institute for the Access to Information (INAI) ordered Google Mexico to remove embarrassing—but true—search results about a prominent businessman. Free speech advocates...
Welcome news today from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. By a vote of 11 to 1, the court overturned its injunction against the controversial video called Innocence of Muslims that it had ordered off YouTube back in February 2014.
Here's the background. Actress Cindy Lee Garcia was cast...
Last week, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) released its 2015 Digital Music Report—an annual state of the industry update for digital recorded music. Included in the report, along with year-over-year information about industry initiatives, revenue sources, and...
Recently, a jury found Mr. Ross Ulbricht guilty of running the black market website Silk Road. Many observers claim that the government's theory expanded liability for third parties like Mr. Ulbricht online. As I mention in a recent GizMoto interview, the government's theory of liability wasn't new...
The Sony incident reminds us again about the fragile yet constantly shifting state of cybersecurity and Internet policy. Clearly the international political ramifications of this incident, who actually did it, and Sony's potential culpability remain unknown. However, the purpose of this commentary...