Fairly Run-of-the-Mill UDRP Decision. Reuters reports in "Lance Armstrong wins cybersquatting case." From the article: "The Lance Armstrong Foundation, a Texas-based charity set up by the American cycling champion to raise funds for cancer research, on Tuesday won the right to evict cybersquatters from websites selling LIVESTRONG bracelets."

Freeeedom! Gotta love the last day of the fiscal year.

Sony Doesn't Play Well with Others. The Big Picture has an article about Sony DRM entitled "DRM Crippled CD: A bizarre tale in 4 parts." From the article: "As a music consumer, I find this ridiculous. Why I cannot use a legally purchased CD -- because Sony is miffed at Apple for creating the 2000's version of their Walkman -- is beyond absurd. I am very, very annoyed at this." Exam question: Would this constitute copyright misuse?

This is Just too Funny. See for yourself. Via The Trademark Blog. (Which raises the question: Marty - what's up with the generic name for your blog?)

Um, Fascinating? How Appealing has this post about a recent Fed. Circuit decision. I think this says it all: "Callicrate is the owner of several patents on methods and apparatuses for castrating large animals."

Microsoft Loses One. Reuters reports that "Court won't review Microsoft patent case." From the article: "Microsoft sought review of an appeals court ruling that allows the privately held firm Eolas Technologies Inc. and the University of California to seek royalties based on the foreign manufacture and sale of an infringing software-related product." The AP has more.

Who Knew? The BBC reports in "Strawberry smell trademark denied." From the article: "The court took a different view, and smell experts found that instead of just one aroma, strawberries can in fact have up to five different, distinct scents."

Must Be a Slow News Day. TTAB filings aren't ususually fertile fodder for news copy. The AP reports in "Hershey Co. Challenges Milkdudz Name." From the article: "The double meaning may be clever, but The Hershey Co., maker of Milk Duds candy, is trying to stop a California company from using a sound-alike name for a line of clothing designed to make breast-feeding easier."

Who Greenlighted This One? The Boston Globe reports in "Name game ends up in court as two Foley law firms do battle." From the article: "Foley Hoag, the prestigious law firm whose Boston roots date to 1943, filed a trademark infringement lawsuit in federal court yesterday against Foley & Lardner, a Milwaukee firm that opened a Boston office in January. The suit contends that Foley & Lardner's rebranding of itself as, simply, 'Foley' (branding and rebranding being trendy things for law firms to do these days) has caused confusion in the marketplace."

Not My Harry, too. E!Online reports in "'Harry,' Pulp & Radiohead's Wyrd World." From the article:

According to the lawyer for the Wyrd Sisters, the band was tipped off that Goblet used the moniker back in June, when Warners offered the trio $5,000 for name rights. The band, which has been together for 15 years, refused. Warners reportedly upped the offer to $50,000. No dice.
The group then launched their lawsuit, seeking $40 million in damages from Warner Bros., as well as Cocker, Greenwood and Selway. The real Wyrds are also asking that the film be blocked from release on Nov. 18.

Helpful For Those Of Us Researching the 19th Century Social Purity Movement. Not so helpful if you're interested in anything a bit more modern. The AP reports that "Microsoft to Start Online Book Searches." From the article: "The Redmond-based software giant said Tuesday that it will sidestep hot-button copyright issues for now by initially focusing mainly on books, academic materials and other publications that are in the public domain." Reuters has an additional report in "Microsoft joins Yahoo on digital library alliance."

Guess He's Not Trying to Make Friends. Reuters reports in "Justice won't stay RIM patent ruling." From the article: "Chief Justice John Roberts rejected a motion by Research In Motion Ltd to stay a lower court's patent infringement ruling while it considers whether to hear an appeal by RIM."

More Trouble on the Horizon for Apple? The New York Times reports in "Is Imitation Flattery, Theft or Just Coincidence?" From the article: "As such, Mr. Schwartz said, 'we're going to take all the steps we need to protect our rights.'" Via The Trademark Blog (complete with new look).

Someone Finally Sides with Google. Wired.com reports that "Writers Side With Google in Scrap." From the article: "Marco said she wanted to include excerpts of her book in the search tool, but her publisher, Simon & Schuster, refused to allow it. Adam Rothberg, a spokesman for Simon & Schuster, said many of its authors do participate in Google Print's opt-in program for publishers, and didn't know why Marco's book wasn't included."

Who Says Patent Law is Boring? Salon.com reports in "Rubber match" (subscription or day pass required). From the article: "But the story doesn't end there. Four years later, PTI renewed its legal quest, this time filing suit in Illinois against Church & Dwight, the consumer products conglomerate that sells Trojan condoms, which had by then concluded a deal with Reddy to sell a third condom, the Twisted Pleasure -- a condom that has two spirals winding around the main chamber. PTI also filed suit against Intellx in Michigan in March 2005, and in August 2005 the company lodged a complaint against all the parties involved before the International Trade Commission, a federal agency with jurisdiction over anything imported into the United States. (Excluding the ITC complaint, the other cases have all been stayed, pending the outcome of a new case in New Jersey, with the same Joseph Greenaway presiding.)"

Law School Exam Question: What is a Web Site's Liability for the Ads it Carries? Just came across an ad for this product on a political blog that I won't name here. Of course, the information on the legality of Absinthe contained on this web site is incorrect, as Customs prohibits the importation of Absinthe. So what duty does the unnamed political blog have for the content of the web site being advertised on the blog's site? (I note that the ad is not supplied by Google or another service that automatically serves up ads based on the keywords located on that site. Instead, its through the BlogAds service, which claims to allow you to decide which ads appear on your web site.) Does the statement on the ad submission form that "All ads are subject to publisher's approval. If the ad is rejected, your money will be refunded via Paypal." affect the analysis?

Save the Crackberry! Surely the PTO's initial determinations should be taken into consideration when deciding whether or not to issue an injunction that would effectively shut down the Blackberry service for all non-governmental workers.... Reuters reports that "RIM ruling risks US Blackberry shutdown." From the article: "He also noted that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recently finished reexamining eight NTP patents and issued initial rulings rejecting 100 percent of the claims."

Now That's a Bit of an Overstatement... E!Online reports in "War of Words over Cruise Site." From the article: "'You can't use somebody's trademark, regardless of what you're saying, if you haven't been given permission,' Kobrin said."

I'd Love to See Google's Litigation Budget. Requters reports that "Publishers throw book at Google, again." From the article: "Five major publishers filed suit against Google Inc. in Manhattan's federal court on Wednesday seeking to block plans to scan copyrighted works without permission." From across the pond, the AP reports in "Google Drops 'Gmail' Name in Britain" that "Google Inc. dropped the 'Gmail' tag from the logo and new account addresses of its free e-mail service in Britain on Wednesday, bowing to the demands of a small British company that claims the U.S. giant has infringed its trademark."

And the Guy's Name is Cashier... Reuters reports that "U.S. court orders music site to change its tune." From the article: "MP3DownloadCity led consumers to believe that they would not be sued if they paid $24.95 for the tutorial with claims like 'Rest assured that File-Sharing is 100 percent legal,' the FTC charged."

So Should I Have a Contest... for people to count the number of times I violate the rules from "Weblog Usability: The Top Ten Design Mistakes" on my front page?

Start Placing Your Bets... as to how long it will take the Dr. Seuss estate to pull down this mashup of Horton Hears a Who and The Tell-Tale Heart. Via BoingBoing.

I Guess They Won't Be Filing Suit in the Ninth Circuit. What with the Barbie cases and all. Donna reports in "Danger, Wil Wheaton." From the article: "'Your Web site depicts a plush Barney toy in a violent manner or position,' Matthew Carlin wrote Tuesday on behalf of Lyons Partnership, which owns the Barney trademark. 'We are writing to request that you remove this violent content toward Barney on your Web site.' [...]"

One Wonders Whether He Has Actual Use... The New York Times reports in "He Doesn't Make Coffee, but He Controls 'Starbucks' in Russia." From the article: "Starbucks registered its trademark in Russia in 1997, but did not open any coffee shops here. In 2002 Mr. Zuykov filed to cancel the chain's trademark because it had not been used in commerce, and registered it in the name of a Moscow company he represents as a lawyer."

Wal-Mart 2.0. Copyfight reports that "Anthropologie Sues Wal-Mart for Stealing Boho Chic." From the article: "In its complaint, Anthropologie claims that Wal-Mart 'has embarked upon a conscious strategy of copying the designs of others as part of its effort to build its 'cheap chic' line.'"

Watch Out for Their Privacy Policy. There's a new blog on the block, from right down the street. Daniel J. Solove of George Washington University School of Law has started a new privacy law group blog called Concurring Opinions.

Sounds Like We Need a Telecom-Like System. Reuters reports that "Dispute leads to Internet woes for thousands." From the article: "Like other large, wholesale Internet service providers, Cogent and Level 3 handed off traffic from one network to each other free of charge, until Level 3 said that it was handling too much Cogent traffic."

Sounds Like a Good Outcome. The AP reports that "Court Rules in Favor of Anonymous Blogger." From the article: "In a 34-page opinion, the justices said a Superior Court judge should have required Smyrna town councilman Patrick Cahill to make a stronger case that he and his wife, Julia, had been defamed before ordering Comcast Cable Communications to disclose the identities of four anonymous posters to a blog site operated by Independent Newspapers Inc., publisher of the Delaware State News."

Who Files Patent Lawsuits in Kansas City? (No offense meant to those of you from Kansas City...) Reuters reports that "Sprint Nextel sues Vonage over VOIP patents." From the article: "Sprint Nextel, the third-largest U.S. wireless company, claimed Vonage and Voiceglo Holdings Inc., a unit of theglobe.com Inc. had infringed seven patents relating to voice over data packet technology developed by Sprint."

I'm Surprised Charlie Nesson Didn't Come Up With it First. The AP reports that "Online Lawsuits Fuel Debate in France." From the article: "Opponents of the government's plans have also seized on classaction.fr as evidence that a class action law would encourage the kind of 'excesses' that the United States is now trying to curb: ambulance-chasing lawyers, ruinous damages awards and spurious lawsuits used to blackmail companies into settlements."

Disturbing If True. Wired.com reports in "RIAA Takes Shotgun to Traders." From the article:

Andersen wrote to Rep. David Wu (D-Oregon) and offered to surrender her PC to the RIAA for inspection -- to no avail.
"(The RIAA) says 'We don't care enough about you that we are even going to check,'' said Lory R. Lybeck, Andersen's attorney from Lybeck Murphy of Mercer Island, Washington. "And if ... they have made a mistake, they are not going to apologize or investigate -- they are going to sue you again."

Because That's Certainly The Best Use of Our Law Enforcement Resources... Reuters reports that "Senators turning up heat on P2P pirates: "That failed to mollify Specter or Feinstein, who appeared to want her department to be much more active. 'Why not go after both levels?' Specter asked. 'Why not get tough? That's what Sen. Feinstein wants to do, and I think it's a good idea.'"

Looks Like the PTO Rejected the W3C's Attempt to Challenge the Java/Active-X Patent. Internetnews.com reports that "Eolas Patent Survives Re-Exam." From the article: "On Tuesday, the USPTO issued a 'Notice of Intent to Issue a Reexam Certificate' to Eolas Technology, the tiny University of California spin-off that received U.S. Patent No. 5,838,906 in 1998."

So if a Use Increases the Market for a Related Service..., but hurts the market for the copyrighted work (i.e., increases the ease with which people can use public transportation, but obviates the need for hard copy maps, which are given away for free), how does the fair use analysis come out? Wired.com reports that "IPod Maps Draw Legal Threats." From the article: "More than 9,000 people downloaded the map, which was viewable on either an iPod or an iPod nano, before Bright received a Sept. 14 letter from Lester Freundlich, a senior associate counsel at New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority, saying that Bright had infringed the MTA's copyright and that he needed a license to post the map and to authorize others to download it."

Sounds Like the Cayman Islands May be Getting New Residents. Reuters reports that "P2P music sites closing doors in legal fallout." From the article: "Popular file-sharing site WinMX.com ceased operating and the New York office of another, eDonkey.com, appeared to be closed, in the continuing legal fallout among underworld peer-to-peer music services, industry sources and users said on Wednesday."

More Ways to Dine Well and Help the Victims of Katrina. The Peacock Cafe is holding a benefit tonight for the Red Cross and Salvation Army. In exchange for a $75 donation (100% of which goes to either the Red Cross or Salvation Army), you get a three course meal (drinks are your responsibility).

Restaurants around the country are participating in Restaurants for Relief on Tuesday, September 27, 2005. Check the web page for participating restaurants.

The New Yugos. Reuters reports in "Bricklin will not use "Chery" name in US." From the article: "Visionary Vehicles founder Malcolm Bricklin said on Tuesday that he will not market cars from Chinese automaker Chery Automobile Co. in the United States under the Chery name because of objections from General Motors Corp. GM has threatened legal action if Bricklin uses the brand name 'Chery' to bring in Chinese-made cars and trucks to the U.S. market. The world's largest automaker says that 'Chery' sounds too similar to its 'Chevy' brand, short for Chevrolet."

Interesting Development. Reuters reports that "Baidu ordered to halt music downloading service." From the article: "The Baidu cases are believed to be different, since the search engine is providing links to sites that offer illegal downloads."

Anyone Starting a Pool to Guess How Quickly These Limitations are Circumvented? The AP reports that "Google's digital library tests law." From the article: "To prevent the wholesale file-sharing that is plaguing the entertainment industry, Google has set some limits in its library project: Users won't be able to easily print materials or read more than small portions of copyright works online."

It Really Is Napster 2.0. The AP reports that "File-Sharing Services Trying to Go Legit." From the article: "Grokster, which faces a copyright-infringement suit brought by Hollywood movie studios and recording companies, has been in talks to be acquired by Mashboxx, a company preparing to launch a licensed file-swapping service, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed people with knowledge of the talks."

The Only Guarantees In Life: Death, Taxes and Pirated Microsoft Products. Internetnews.com reports that "Microsoft Sues 8 Resellers Over Fakes." From the article: "The world's biggest software maker has filed suits in Arizona, California, Illinois, Minnesota and New York against the privately held companies who allegedly sold counterfeit copies of several different software products, such as Office 2000 Professional and Windows XP, Mary Jo Schrade, senior attorney at Microsoft, told internetnews.com."

They Get It. They Really Get It. Wired reports that "E-Tailers Get Apple Nastygrams." From the article: "'Although on the surface it looks like Apple is being overly heavy-handed with this approach, protection of its brand is important,' he said. 'Authorized Apple resellers, for example, have very clear guidelines to follow regarding the use of trademarks. It appears that this has not been the case for the rapidly growing number of web-based accessory e-tailers, particularly the gray market.'"

Slate Asks the Important Questions. Slate discusses the recently filed lawsuit regarding the Freedom Tower in "When Architects Plagiarize - It's not always bad." From the article: "Whatever the merits of the claim, the suit raises a broader issue, one that is particularly relevant in an age in which 'starchitect' buildings have become the norm: How important should artistic authorship be in the world of architecture?"

So Are These Links Manually Compiled, or the Result of Search Queries? Reuters reports that "Record labels sue Baidu for copyright infringement." From the article: "The four largest record companies have sued Baidu.com Inc. for copyright infringement, alleging the Chinese Internet search engine has been illegally providing links to free digital music downloads, according to a trade group the represents the music industry."

Anyone Know About Publicity Rights in the EU? The AP reports that "Tom Waits sues over alleged soundalike." From the article: "Andreas Schumacher, Waits' German lawyer, said the singer was approached numerous times about doing the ads last year, but declined, citing a policy of not doing commercials. He said the firm then hired a soundalike and the ads aired earlier this year in Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway."

Surprised That It Took This Long. In good news for technology companies everywhere, Law.com reports that "Lemelson Patents Ruled Unenforceable." From the article: "The Federal Circuit ruled Friday that Lemelson's 18- to 39-year delay in prosecuting patent claims relating to machine vision and bar-code technologies was unreasonable."

What a Surprise - Barbershop Opened Three Years Ago Next Week. E!Online reports that "Writer Wants Cut of 'Barbershop'." From the article: "Per his lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, James Davis, a 31-year-old aspiring filmmaker, says he came up with the idea for The Shop while he was working in a Atlanta barbershop. The suit claims Davis had circulated the script to several actors and production companies."

Interesting Resolution. Reuters reports that "GEICO, Google settle lawsuit." From the article: "'Terms of the settlement, although not disclosed, would suggest some sort of payment was made, but that a trial has been avoided,' Martin Pyykkonen, an analyst with brokerage Hoefer & Arnett. 'This mitigates the risk of further trademark lawsuits,' he said."

Ways to Help. ABA's Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief page.

Red Cross donation page.

Liberal Blogs for Hurricane Relief.

Best Buy is matching in-store donations.

Federated Department Stores, including the Hechts chain, are also matching donations.

The Kimpton Hotels Group will credit members' Kimpton InTouch account with a bonus credit equivalent to a one-night visit for any donation to the American Red Cross of $50 or more.

McDonalds will be matching donations to the Ronald McDonald House Charities, which will be directed toward relief efforts.

GM is matching employee contributions to the Red Cross, as are GE, Kimberly Clark and Ford.

DCist has information on local fundraisers in the DC-area, and the Washington Post has more.

The Richmond Times Dispatch has a listing of fundraisers in the Richmond, Virginia area.

Dine for America goes live on Thursday, September 8, 2005.

Share Our Strength is hosting a Hurricane Relief Benefit Taste Event in DC on October 17, 2005.

The Museum of the American Cocktail is sponsoring a nationwide "Save New Orleans Cocktail Hour" on Monday, September 12, 2005 from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Habitat for Humanity is accepting donations and volunteers to help rebuild the Gulf Coast.

Let Me Guess What the Defense Will Be... ... fair use? Reuters reports that "ABC News sued over use of bin Laden footage." From the article: "In a suit filed August 31 in U.S. District Court in Denver and made public this week, Essam Mohamed Aly Deraz seeks $10 million in damages and to bar ABC from further use of the still photos and video pictures that he took 'at great risk to his personal safety.'"

It's Roberts. Reuters reports that "Bush picks Roberts to succeed Rehnquist."

Piling it On. The AP reports in"Aussie Court: Kazaa File-Swapping Illegal." From the article: "In a ruling hailed as a resounding victory by the recording industry, a court Monday said that popular file-swapping network Kazaa breaches copyright in Australia and gave its owners two months to stamp out further piracy by its millions of users."

Rehnquist is Dead. CNN has more.

New DMCA Ruling from the Eighth Circuit. The AP reports that "Court KOs Online Game Bypass Program." From the article: "Thursday's ruling by a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals here upholds a lower court's finding that the trio violated the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act as well as software license agreements by helping people bypass Blizzard's system for playing multiplayer games like Diablo and StarCraft online."

Barbera Motors in Hot Water Again. Sounds like he's making enemies that he may not want to make... First 50 Cent, and now Snoop Dog have sued the Philadelphia-area car dealership. E!Online reports that "Snoop Sues Over 'Izzle' Flap." From the article: "According to Broadus' complaint, available online at the Smoking Gun, Barbera ran an ad in the Philadelphia Daily News on Aug. 22 that stated 'Is Bar-Bizzle the Sh-izzle? Boy I Gu-izzle' in an apparent attempt to lure street-savvy kids to his lot."

Corollary to 'Keep the Negatives': Keep the Masters. Reuters reports that "Kanye West sues Chicago DJ over unreleased songs." From the article: "West is suing for violation of his publicity, privacy and trademark rights among other claims. He asks the court to void the fraudulent recording agreement and award $100,000 in general damages and at least $200,000 in punitive damages."

This is News? Reuters reports that "Recording industry sues more U.S. file-swappers." 754 this time.

Another Bite at Apple. The AP reports that "Apple Comes Under New Patent Challenge." From the article: "Raising another legal threat to the iPod music player, Creative Technology Ltd. said it has been awarded a U.S. patent for a song-navigation technology it claims is used on Apple Computer Inc.'s market-leading devices." Reuters has this report.

Do Lil' Flip's Fans Even Remember Pac Man? Reuters reports that "Namco settles Pac-Man music suit against Sony." From the article: "Namco America Inc. and Sony BMG Music Entertainment said on Monday they settled a lawsuit in which Namco charged that a Sony BMG artist used sounds from its popular Pac-Man arcade game in violation of intellectual property laws."

Heavy Metal to Sell Chicken??? Reuters reports in "For Burger King and Slipknot, a game of chicken." From the article: "Burger King and CP+B actually beat Slipknot to the punch. On August 12, they filed a federal District Court action in the companies' home court of Florida against the band. It asks the court to declare that their use of a mock heavy metal band wearing chicken masks in a TV commercial does not violate any rights -- including publicity and trademark -- of Slipknot or its individual band members."

Is Anyone Surprised? Reuters reports that "Piracy crackdown spurs shift in online file-sharing." From the article: "Traffic in the popular file-sharing network BitTorrent has fallen in the wake of a crackdown on piracy, but file sharers have merely shifted to another network, eDonkey, new data released on Monday showed."

More on Perfect 10's Suit Against Google. Internetnews.com reports in "A Perfect Storm of Infringement." From the article: "Zada argues that Google should be held liable for helping searchers find sites that display stolen Perfect 10 images because, in many cases, those sites also show Google AdSense contextual ads. 'Google not only copies and displays Perfect 10 images itself,' the request for the injunction reads, 'but also links them to Infringing Sites with which Google has partnered and from which Google receives revenue through its AdSense advertising program.'"

I'm Surprised It Took So Long. Reuters reports that "Library sues over controversial Patriot Act." From the article: "Critical details of the lawsuit were blacked out on the ACLU's Web site in compliance with the gag order. The library is thought to be based in Connecticut since the lawsuit was filed there with the participation of the Connecticut branch of the ACLU."

1977? Interesting that it Was 10 Years After Gilligan's Island Went Off the Air... Reuters reports that "ABC, Touchstone sued over 'Lost'." From the article: "Spinner claims that he was hired by Sid and Marty Krofft Prods. in 1977 to write, produce and develop a script for a TV program to be produced by ABC that was titled 'Lost.' It was about a group of airplane crash survivors who struggle to survive in a jungle where they encounter strange creatures and dangerous characters."

I Wonder If They Would Have Sued Veruca Salt? E! Online reports in "Archie v. the Veronicas." From the article: "In any case, Archie Comics is convinced that a band traipsing the globe under the name of the Veronicas will 'damag[e] the Veronica character's image to her legion of fans.'"

D'oh! The AP reports that "Apple, Microsoft Duel Over iPod Patent." From the article: "Given the intense rivalry between Apple Computer Inc. and Microsoft Corp., this recent revelation had a comedic tinge: Apple took too long to file a patent on part of its blockbuster iPod music players, so Microsoft beat Apple to it."

My Hometown. BoingBoing reports in "iBook stampede." From the article: "A near riot broke out when a crowd of 5,500 to 11,000 people rushed through a gate to buy used iBooks being sold by the school district for $50. Only 1,000 iBook were being sold, and people were in a rush to get to the sales counter first."

Dell on the Hot Seat. Reuters reports that "DVD software maker Intervideo sues Dell on patents." From the article: "InterVideo alleges Dell violated its U.S. Patent No. 6,765,788 that covers the integration of certain PC and electronic device functions. The company's software allows a DVD disk to automatically start playing a movie when a user inserts a disk into a computer running an InterVideo program."

I Guess I Shouldn't Call This Blawg the IP Olympics... The AP reports that "USOC Forces 'Ferret Olympics' Name Change." From the article: "In July, a Minnesota rock band changed its name from the Olympic Hopefuls to the Hopefuls but was allowed to keep its signature track suits. The ImprovOlympic, a comedy club in Chicago, also opted to change its name, to I.O., rather than fight a threatened trademark infringement lawsuit."

Music Industry Has a New Villain Du Jour. The AP reports that "Music Industry Worried About CD Burning." From the article: "Music copied onto blank recordable CDs is becoming a bigger threat to the bottom line of record stores and music labels than online file-sharing, the head of the recording industry's trade group said Friday."

Sounds To Me Like The Concern Should Be The Number of Boxes He Used. Wired reports that "Furniture Causes FedEx Fits." From the article: "But that feel-good message seems to be lost on FedEx. The company claims that Avila is infringing on its trademark and its copyright. The day after Avila launched the site in June, FedEx asked him to take it down, claiming he had violated the DMCA." Looking at the photos, however, it looks like he took quite a few FedEx boxes to make this furniture. I know that Maryland has a rule against taking excessive quantities of "free" items. (It was passed in the wake of a problem with a certain student group attempting to stealing all of the copies of my college's newspaper over what the student group considered to be an offensive cartoon. Thus, there may be certain elements of the crime that are not met here. However, I don't think it's unreasonable for FedEx to decline to fund everybody's home decorating activities.)

Surely They're Not Trying to Prevent Use of the "Concept." Writers with no IP background covering IP stories is one of my pet peeves... E!Online reports that "Simon Sued Over Big 'Idea'." From the article: "But if Walker and Golden have their way, those episodes will never hit the airwaves. Among other damages, their lawsuit seeks immediate injunctive relief, preventing ABC from using the series' name or concept."

Do You Think Soverain's Attorneys Were Working on Contingency? Reuters reports that "Amazon.com settles patent lawsuit for $40 million." From the article: "Amazon.com Inc. on Thursday said it will pay $40 million in the third quarter to settle a patent infringement lawsuit with Soverain Software LLC."

Who Knew Pesticide Labels Were So Involved? Law.com reports in "Federal Judge Calls Foul in Race to Courthouse." From the article: "Insecticide labels are often hefty documents -- sometimes coming in the form of a 10-page booklet -- and are strictly controlled by federal law. Every label must be approved by the Environmental Protection Agency before a product hits the shelves. FMC claims it spent more than 13 years and nearly $400,000 in the process of developing the label for bifenthrin products."

Sounds Like the Keystone Kops are Running Our Schools. The AP reports that "Students Charged With Computer Trespass." From the article: "At least one student viewed pornography. Some students also turned off the remote monitoring function and turned the tables on their elders - using it to view administrators' own computer screens."

Two Words: Password Protection. CNN reports in"Stealing your neighbor's Internet? Experts urge caution." From the article: "According to Geraty, using your neighbor's wireless is specifically prohibited in the California penal code. 'It's not yours and you're taking it,' he says."

I Didn't Know that the Notion of a "Divine Feminine" Was So Original. Reuters reports that "N.Y. court rules Brown didn't copy 'Da Vinci Code'." From the article: "He alleged that Brown copied the basic premise of 'Daughter of God,' including notions of a 'divine feminine' and the transition from a female to a male-dominated church under Roman Emperor Constantine."

I Can See It Now... ...Sony engineers behind bars. Wired reports that "Europe Follows Grokster's Lead." From the article: "A directive being pushed by the European Commission would, among other things, criminalize 'attempting, aiding or abetting and inciting' acts of copyright infringement. The EU parliament will take up the proposal later this year."

Maybe They Can Just Wait... ... until 2028, when the works fall into the public domain. E!Online reports that "Legal Duel Over 'Zorro'." From the article: "In the suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, Sobrini claims it alone owns the exclusive rights to the 1919 Johnston McCulley serial, The Curse of Capistrano, from which the classic Zorro character is drawn. Sony, the suit claims, controls the rights to later stories."

More Developments in Blackberry Case. Reuters reports that "U.S. court scales back patent ruling against RIM." From the article: "The appeals court overturned the lower court's finding that RIM had infringed NTP Inc.'s 'method' patents, but reaffirmed the infringement of patents of the e-mail 'system.'"

How'd They Go This Long? Reuters reports that "Music labels file online piracy lawsuits in UK." From the article: "Record companies in Britain are filing their first ever lawsuits against five people accused of illicitly sharing music online, after settling out of court with dozens of others."

Got to Wonder What that Opinion Letter Said. The AP reports that "Microsoft Vista May Face Trademark Trouble." From the article: "Yet the CEO of Vista Inc., a business software and services company in Redmond, is already complaining that people have contacted his sales department with inquiries about Windows Vista."

I Wonder If This Ruling Will Have Implications for Criminal Lawyers? Law.com reports that "'Sports Illustrated' Ruling Pressures Media Attorneys." From the article: "Written by 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Edward E. Carnes, the ruling would compel attorneys defending SI's parent company, Time Inc., to tell the court if writer Don Yaeger's sources lie under oath to shield either their identities or the degree to which they contributed to Yaeger's story."

First They Threaten My Crackberry, Then My Wayback Machine? No! William Patry has a post about a recent complaint filed against Archive.org entitled "The Way Back Machine and Robots.txt." The complaint sounds to me like the result of sour grapes: "Back to the Healthcare Advocates case. The complaint in the earlier suit against Health Advocate, Inc. was filed in June 26, 2003. Healthcare Advocates [Plaintiff in the current case] had been operating a website, www.healthcareadvocates.com since 1998. In July 8, 2003, the robots.txt instructions were inserted. The next day, it is alleged, defendant's law firm tried to access archived Healthcare Advocates website material. In the court's July 8, 2004 opinion, an allegation is recited that between July 8, 2003 and July 15, 2003, 849 attempts were made to access the archived information, of which about 112 attempts were successful. Presumably, all of the material was pre-July 8, 2003 information." More on the case here.

Kozmo's Back! Well, kinda. Having been lucky enough to be living in Boston during Kozmo's heyday, though, I'm happy to see Wired reporting that "Diapers Revive Dead Dot-Com." From the article: "Most dads would simply suck it up and take perpetual trips to the grocery store. Instead, Siragusa decided to start a new web-based delivery service that would bring the baby goods -- and the occasional DVD, pint of ice cream or tube of toothpaste -- to him within an hour."

Are Other Schools Having Special Casting Calls for "The Apprentice"? Or is it just Hopkins?

What Do These Companies Know About You? internetnews.com reports that "EPIC Fighting Online Phone Record Sales." From the article: "According to the complaint, BestPeopleSearch offers detailed phone call records and the addresses on file for holders of post office boxes and private mailboxes. EPIC said the availability of this personal information is regulated, and the "private eye" service shouldn't be able to obtain it or sell it to others. For example, the Drivers Privacy Protection Act guards the personal information in motor vehicle records."

I Wonder Whose Job it is to Continuously Hit "Reload" on the NAA Opinion Page to Find These Things? (And yes, I know someone who does that with the Fed. Circuit page...) The AP reports that "Google Wins 'Typosquatting' Dispute." From the article: "In a decision made earlier this week, arbitrator Paul A. Dorf, endorsed Google's contention that the misspelled addresses were part of a sinister plot to infect computers with programs — known as 'malware' — that can lead to recurring system crashes, wipe out valuable data or provide a window into highly sensitive information."

Unfortunately, Most of Mine Would be Ignoring Me. Wired reports in "See If You're a Good Friend." From the article: "The Social Fabric features a display of avatars on a mobile device's screen, representing individuals in a group of friends or acquaintances. The avatars use body language to show how recently you've contacted each person: Regularly contacted friends appear alert and look directly at you. Less frequent contacts might slouch and turn to the side, and infrequent contacts could have their backs turned."

This is Just Cool. Why didn't I hear about this before? Wired reports in "GPS Monopoly: Collect Over $200." From the article: "Players start out buying properties and placing apartments and hotels on them, much like the classic game. The twist: Rent payments are determined by the traffic patterns of 18 real cabs, tracked by satellite. Players collect or pay rent depending on where the cabs go, with the high tally winning at the end of each day."

Better Be Careful not to Log on to Your Neighbor's WiFi. Or that neighborly spat could turn ugly. The AP reports that "Man charged with stealing Wi-Fi signal." From the article: "The practice is so new that the Florida Department of Law Enforcement doesn't even keep statistics, according to the St. Petersburg Times, which reported Smith's arrest this week."

That Sound You're Hearing... ... is probably European patent firms lamenting the loss of a potential revenue source. The AP reports that "Europe Parliament Nixes Software Patent Law." From the article: "But lawmakers said the measure would stifle enterprise and did not promote innovation, and that human knowledge can't be patented. The move kills the legislation since the EU head office, which had drafted it, does not plan to set forth a new version."

Betamax 2.0. Reuters reports that "TV technology at edge of legal frontier." From the article: "New to the shelves of Best Buy and CompUSA this month is Slingbox, a brick-sized device that enables viewers to route the live television signal coming into their homes to a portable device anywhere on the globe via broadband connection. Slingbox costs $250 and has no subsequent subscription fee; several stores sold out on the first day."

Sounds Like it Really May Be Throwing the Baby Out with the Bathwater. Reuters reports that "EU executive says would not resubmit patent bill." From the article: "'Should you decide to reject the common position, the Commission will not submit a new proposal,' Almunia told the EU assembly on the eve of a bitterly contested vote on draft legislation pitting big software companies, who want better protection, against campaigners for free, open-source software."

I Guess You'd Call That the Silver Lining. Reuters reports that "Rock museum settles suit with Jewish rock Web site." From the article: "The Cleveland museum's own lawsuit 'listed all the Jews who were in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,' said Goldberg. 'And thanks to their lawsuit, we discovered people we didn't even know who were Jewish, like the Flamingos, for instance. Who knew?'"

Throwing the Baby Out With the Bath Water? Reuters reports that "Tech firms want Europe patent software law pulled." From the article: "European high-tech leaders said on Monday they would prefer the European Parliament to scrap a controversial software patent law rather than confuse it with dozens of amendments when it votes later this week."

Legal Maneuvering Starts in AMD/Intel Case. Reuters reports that "AMD says motion granted in Intel suit." From the article: "The motion sought a judicial order permitting it to move forward to preserve relevant evidence possessed by specified third parties. Its lawyers will now engage in discussions with about 30 third parties, the statement said."

How About Letting Everyone Sign Up? I wonder if there are any penalties for signing yourself up as a child.... The AP reports that "Parents Can Sign Up Kids to Not Get E-Mail." From the article: "Starting Friday, parents can sign up for what Michigan officials say is the nation's first registry aimed at keeping spammers from sending children inappropriate e-mail. The new law bans sending messages to children related to such things as pornography, illegal or prescription drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gambling, firearms or fireworks. Parents and schools will be able to register children's e-mail addresses."

Swedes Fight Back. The AP reports that "Swedes Undeterred by Online Piracy Ban." From the article: "Antipiratbyran and similar organizations in other countries have been tracking file-sharers online and sent out warning letters to people who make illegal material available from their computers. .... More than 4,000 people reported Antipiratbyran to the Swedish Data Inspection Board, claiming the agency misused personal information by collecting IP addresses and online aliases. The inspection board agreed, and the lobbying group has stopped sending out warning letters to file-sharers."

How's the Weather Up There in Canada? Reuters reports that "Supreme Court Justice O'Connor to retire." From the article: "Her resignation will allow Bush to make his first appointment to the nine-member high court. It also could trigger a fierce confirmation fight in the Senate between Republicans and Democrats, and could threaten a shaky truce over judicial nominations."