What's Your Favorite Pasta? The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eigth Circuit issued this opinion holding the phrase "America's Favorite Pasta" to be mere commercial puffery. Via How Appealing.

Around the World in 80 Clicks. Wired attempts to map the international IP landscape in "The Free & The Unfree."

Sounds Like a Case of Acquiescence to Me. Surely they no longer have protectable rights... The AP reports on Texas's efforts to recapture "Don't Mess with Texas" in "Don't Mess With Our Slogan, Texas Warns."

Talk About a Permanet Record. The AP discusses the permanence of text messaging in "Text Messages May Turn Up in Bryant Case."

Microsoft Patent Raises Hackles. Wired reports in "When Two Clicks Equal One Patent." What I find interesting about this is that the patent application, filed in July 2002, contained information from a prior application, filed in 1999. I assume the examiner would have considered whether there was an on-sale bar?

Would Anyone Actually Buy This? The Register reports on the latest DRM idea to be floated by the RIAA in "RIAA wants your fingerprints."

Here Comes the DRM. C-Net reports in "Labels to dampen CD burning?"

So You Want to Be a Star? Well, here's your chance. David E. Kelley has a new reality TV show in the works, as Reuters reports in "Real Lawyers to Compete in TV Series."

A Reason to Expand the Scope of the EFF's Patent Busting Project? Reuters reports that "Clear Channel Rivals Cry Foul Over Live Concert CDs."

A Sad Day For HLS. Reuters reports that "Watergate Prosecutor Archibald Cox Dies." The AP has this report.

That's One Way to Get Techies to Vote. Wired reports that Eurpoean computer programmers are "mobilizing for next month's European Parliament election in an effort to block plans by European governments to grant software patents more frequently." More in "Europe Braces for Patent Rules."

Make Me a Match... The AP reports that "EHarmony.com Patents Matchmaking Formula."

And What Are Your Kids Doing on the Internet? Silicon Valley.com reports that a a 41-year old sugar mill worker and single mother in Bird Island, Minnesota, is one of the targets of the RIAA's most recent spate of lawsuits in "Single mom overwhelmed by recording industry suit."

Maybe this will Mean Less Clutter in My InBox. From the article: "A man who sent 850 million junk e-mails through accounts he opened with stolen identities was sentenced to up to seven years in prison on Thursday." "Spammer sentenced to 7 years in prison."

What A Surprise. C-Net reports that "Porn spammers ignore new rule." Anyone who has ever tried to track down porn purveyors for trademark infringement could have predicted this outcome.

Your Tax Dollars at Work. C-Net reports that "'Pirate Act' raises civil rights concerns."

The Pool Opens Now. Guess how long until CBS sends a cease and desist letter to Republican Survivor.

Third Circuit Rules on Grounds for a Preliminary Injunction in Pharmaceutical Trademark Case. Law.com reports that the Third Circuit "rejected the novel argument that an injunction was needed to prevent the 'serious health risk' of a patient's receiving the wrong prescription," while nevertheless ordering the district court to grant an injunction to vindicate the "right of the public not to be deceived or confused," in "3rd Circuit Blocks Similar Names for Cholesterol Drugs."

Summer Reading. The Trademark Blog points towards a new article by Mark Lemley on IP.

Same Old Song. Reuters is reporting that "Record Industry Sues 493 More U.S. Music Swappers."

CEA Pushing Back on Digital Radio Broadcast Flag. BoingBoing has this discussion.

For the CC Naysayers. Chocolate and Vodka has an interesting discussion of the Creative Commons movement at "Something for Nothing: The Free Culture AudioBook Project." Via BoingBoing.

Your Daily SCO Fix. InfoWorld is reporting that "IBM seeks to force SCO's hand in lawsuit."

More Legal Woes for 321. The AP reports that "Injunction Issued Vs. DVD-Copying Maker."

It Will Be Interesting to See the PTO's Obviousness Determination. C-Net reports that "Apple seeks patent for see-through windows."

VeriSign Antitrust Claims Rejected. C-Net reports that "ICANN wins round in Internet suit."

Is Google Setting Itself Up to be the Next Netscape? The New York Times reports that "Google Moves Toward Clash With Microsoft."

Holding Them to Their Proof. Wired reports that "Sharman Presses for Evidence" in Australian Kazaa copyright infringement suit. ZDNet Australia has more information on Sharman's defence strategy here.

Pop-up Ads Back in Court. The AP reports that "L.L. Bean sues pop-up advertisers." For a good summary of the results of previous pop-up advertising cases, go here. Looks like the trend is in favor of finding trademark infringement.

Took Them Long Enough. The New York Times finally gets around to reporting that "Schwarzenegger Files Suit Against Bobblehead Maker." Of course, I told you this weeks ago.

Alphabet Soup. Last month it was the definitive guide to the SCO litigation. This week, IP Meme takes on Narrowing The DMCA with this caveat.

Happy Anniversary, Marty. The Trademark Blog marks its third year.

I'd Be Interested to See the Outcome of His Claims Against MTV... The AP reports that "Eminem Suit Against Apple, MTV to Proceed."

Never Give Up, Never Surrender. Reuters reports that "Calif. Judge Won't Step Down in Pooh Case Ruling."

Minor League Dust-up. Reuters reports that "ESPN Sued Over Minor League Baseball Scores."

Time to Polish Up Those Resumes. Law.com reports on the last great start-up hiring boom in "Knockin' on Google's Door."

Worth A Read. From the current issue of the Los Angeles Lawyer: "Code Breaking," "Fan Websites and Copyright Enforcement," and "Clearance and Copyright." Via Bag and Baggage.

Appeal Rejected in Rodney King Tape Case The AP reports that "Supreme Court Won't Hear Copyright Case."

See What the Academics Are Saying. The Legal Theory Blog points towards Carrier on Curbing Intellectual Property.

Terry Fisher Steps Into the Fray. Good to see the Berkman-ites are still at it. Wired reports on Fisher's proposal in "New Spin on the Music Business."

Stop By If You're Going to be in the Area... BoingBoing reports on "Copyright reform conference in Vienna this June."

Some Light Reading BoingBoing has a write-up about U. Va. law professor Timothy Wu's most recent paper, "Copyright's Communications Policy."

Is it Over Yet? Reuters reports that "Disney Foes in Pooh Case Want New Calif. Trial." The AP has further reporting here.

Lessig Before Congress. The AP reports that "Groups Seek Legal Copying of DVDs." C-Net has a report here.

Interesting Decision on Preliminary Injunctions in Copyright Infringement Cases. Law.com reports on the decision in "2nd Circuit Took a Look, Cleared the Way for Poet's Book."

I Wonder if MTV Could Show This in the U.S.? BoingBoing reports on "MTV's new mashup bootleg TV show 'MTV Mash'."

Glancing at the Headline Must Have Given Steve Jobs a Heart Attack. C-Net reports that "Apple patented by Microsoft."

This Has to be a First... Naming a PC chip after a city in Alabama. (Fun fact: My mom graduated from Dothan High School.) C-Net reports that "Intel launches Dothan, new naming scheme."

I Predict that There's a Legal Defense Fund in His Future... The AP reports on a "Copyright Arrest in Japan."

If You're Going to Risk Jail, at Least Do it for a Better Movie than The Alamo... The Hollywood Reporter reports that "California movie pirate sent to jail."

Nothing to See Here... Just checking to see if the new "Comments" feature works. (c:

Just When You Thought It Was Over... Reuters is reporting that "Disney Foes in Pooh Suit Want Judge Ousted for Bias."

I Guess They Didn't Cease and Desist. The AP reports that Schwarzenegger suing Ohio bobblehead co."

They Sell These in the Hallmark Down the Street... E!Online reports on "Arnold the Anti-Bobblehead."

More SCO... C-Net reports on recent developments in "DaimlerChrysler: Dismiss SCO suit."

One to Watch. Law.com reports that "9th Circuit to Rehear Internet Jurisdiction Case."

Worth Checking Out. BoingBoing points out an interesting paper in "Copyright, Technology, and The New Surveillance."

One to Watch. The AP reports that "ACLU battles FBI over ISP customer data."

Musical Trademark Spat. The AP is reporting that "Singers Claim Nelly Copied 'Vokal' Label."

There Are Just So Many Things Wrong with the Whole Scenario... Not the least of which is that I hope he can't truly get a patent on the idea... Reuters reports that "Uri Geller Aims to Stop ABC Baby-Adoption TV Show." You can read more about the controversy generated by the promo here. BoingBoing has some interesting information on the status of Geller's patent application here.

Cool. Reuters reports that "Free Wireless Internet Planned for Washington Mall."

It's Déjà Vu All Over Again. The AP reports that "Music Industry Sues More Computer Users."

MSNBC Confirms What We Already Knew. "U.S. patent office swamped by backlog."

This Has to be a First... The headline says it all: "Jetstar Virtual Airline Sues Qantas Over Trademark Infringement."

All You Ever Wanted to Know About the SCO Litigation. Bag and Baggage has this month's installment of IP Meme.

They Take Their Bourbon Seriously Out in Kentucky... The Louisville Courier-Journal reports that "Ridgewood 1792 ordered off shelves."

Bowie Gets It The AP reports in "Bowie: Please remix my songs."

Was this Even a Close Call? Reuters reports that "Rap Star Eminem Wins Cybersquatting Case at U.N."

Wonder if Four Non-Blondes Will Sue? Since it's VH1, the goods/services are arguably related... "VH1 Prefers 'Non-Blondes'."

Chip Makers in Court. Reuters reports that "Intel, Top Rival Set for Supreme Court Showdown."

Bad Faith and Fair Use. How Appealing (at its new home) reports that "Three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit tackles whether a secondary user's bad faith affects availability of the "fair use" defense in a copyright infringement action."

Can Linux Users Heave a Sigh of Relief? eWeek.com reports on "The End of SCO?"

EFF: Caped IP Crusader. Wired reports that "EFF to Fight Dubious Patents."

Mattel Finally Wins One. How Appealing has this report about a recent Second Circuit decision in a copyright infringement case brought by Mattel against Radio City Entertainment.

More Lessig Reviews. SFGate.com has an op-ed entitled "Confessions of a copyright warrior / The Bono factor: Is a dead musician's legacy interfering with free speech?" Love the Google-served ads along the side...

Insurance for Linux Users. Reuters reports that "Start-Up Says Linux Copyright Abuse-Free."

Boston to House Mega-firms? It always struck me as odd how few of the major Boston firms had a strong presence outside of the Hub. This appears to be changing. Law.com reports that "Wilmer Cutler, Hale and Dorr Said to Be in Merger Talks."

ISP Fights to Get Servers Back. The AP reports that "Seized Web Servers Raise Freedom Concerns."

Get Your Freebie On. The Fourth Circuit recently upheld a lower court ruling that the term FREEBIE is generic.

TTAB Holds REALTOR Not Generic. The Washington Post reports that "Trademark Panel Rules in Favor of Realtors."

Sucks to be Screech. BoingBoing reports on a recent UDRP decision in "Dustindiamondsucks.com."

IMers in New Hampshire Take Note. Security Focus has information on a recent New Hampshire ruling in "Chat, Copy, Paste, Prison."

Surely Her Contract Covered This. CNN reports in "Trademark challenger: Fired up over 'The Apprentice'."

New Silicon Valley Gold Rush. Reuters reports that "Patent Payoffs Fuel Rush of New Start-Ups."

How Did I Miss This? The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that a judge has ruled that an aggregator of information on boat sales did not infringe the copyrights of a site they scraped for information in "Judge: Copyright Doesn't Cover All Sites." Of course, as the end of the article notes, they would still probably have a problem if their actions violated the sites' TOS. Via techdirt.

Careful How You Investigate Copyright Infringements. Law.com reports that "Microsoft, Business Partner Concocted 'Scheme' to Protect Copyrights."

It's Time to Pass the ABA Multijurisdictional Practice Commission's Recommendations Already. Law.com reports that "Ga. Lawyers Indicted for Advising N.C. College."

Another Book to Check Out. Salon excerpts The Anarchist in the Library here.

Salon Reviews Lessig. "The mouse who would be king."

More Trademark Trouble for Apple. Reuters reports that "Apple Computer Loses Bid to Hear Beatles Case in US."

Did They Actually Have Use in the U.S.? Reuters reports that "Google's Gmail Headache Grows with Trademark Claim."

Chalk One Up for Microsoft BoingBoing reports that "Lindows to change name, bows to Microsoft pressure."

After the Statue Cover-up, I Guess it was Only a Matter of Time... The Baltimore Sun reports that "Administration wages war on pornography."

Reading the Economic Tea Leaves The New York Times reports on "Patents as Economic Indicator." Is it too much to ask for the New York Times to figure out the difference between patents and trademarks?

Questioning the RIAA's Assertions The New York Times reports in "A Heretical View of File Sharing."

Interesting Explanation of Reverse Confusion The Trademark Blog has this report on a recent Seventh Circuit decision by Judge Posner considering the question of reverse confusion.

A Lot of Hot Air? Law.com reports that "Lawyers Fired Up Over 'You're Fired'."

If at First You Don't Succeed Wired reports that "Florida Court Sends RIAA Away."

Tee Hee BoingBoing reports that "EFF acquires Department of Justice."

But How Did it Taste? Reuters is reporting that "Schwarzenegger Has No Taste for Governator Ale."