Monthly Archives: September 2014

Mark Lemley is our king

Posted on September 24, 2014 by rtushnet

But then, you knew that anyway.  Here, have a list of the most cited IP articles over the past ten years, compiled with diligent effort by Ted Sichelman.  http://tushnet.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

Posted in http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, my writings, patent, reading list, trade secrets, trademark | Leave a comment

Oh No They Didn’t infringe: Livejournal gets DMCA safe harbor

Posted on September 24, 2014 by rtushnet

Eric Goldman on Mavrix Photographs LLC v. LiveJournal, Inc., No. 8:13-cv-00517-CJC-JPR (C.D. Cal. Sept. 19, 2014): plaintiff refuses to send DMCA notices to host website, sues instead.  As Eric says, this is a great case for a fee-shift, since (1) … Continue reading →

Posted in dmca, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, secondary liability | Leave a comment

Ascertain this: All Natural liability class certified

Posted on September 24, 2014 by rtushnet

Lilly v. Jamba Juice Company, No. 13-cv-02998, 2014 WL 4652283 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 18, 2014) Earlier Jamba Juice proceeding.  Plaintiffs moved to certify a California class of purchasers of certain frozen Jamba Juice Smoothie Kit products using “All Natural” prominently … Continue reading →

Posted in california, class actions, consumer protection, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post | Leave a comment

Gratuitous promises: Uber class action continues

Posted on September 19, 2014 by rtushnet

Ehret v. Uber Technologies, Inc., No. C-14-0113 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 17, 2014)  Ehret’s putative nationwide class action alleged that Uber customers had been charged a 20% fee above the metered fare for each ride, misrepresented as a “gratuity” automatically added … Continue reading →

Posted in california, consumer protection, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post | Leave a comment

A hologram and a straight-up application of Dastar

Posted on September 19, 2014 by rtushnet

Pulse Entertainment Corp. v. David, No. CV 14-4732 (C.D. Cal. Sept. 17, 2014)  This case concerns a lifelike animation of Michael Jackson performing a previously unreleased song that appeared during the 2014 Billboard Music Awards and a related CNN interview … Continue reading →

Posted in commercial speech, dastar, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, trademark | Leave a comment

House hearing on 1201

Posted on September 18, 2014 by rtushnet

House Judiciary Hearing, Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property: 1201 Bonus Library Copyright Alliance statement. Rep. Marino: DMCA is important but there are concerns about misuses; fortunately courts have generally gotten it right to avoid anticompetitive behavior.  We … Continue reading →

Posted in dmca, drm, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post | Leave a comment

7th Circuit doesn’t like transformativeness or factor 1, still finds fair use

Posted on September 16, 2014 by rtushnet

Kienitz v. Sconnie Nation LLC, No. 13-3004 (7thCir. Sept. 15, 2014) Just the facts: While a student at the University of Wisconsin in 1969, Paul Soglin attended the first Mifflin Street Block Party, whose theme (according to Soglin) was “taking … Continue reading →

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Transformation by subtraction redux?

Posted on September 15, 2014 by rtushnet

First there was Garfield without Garfield.  Now there’s 3eanuts, turning Peanuts strips into raw expressions of angst and meaninglessness by subtracting the last, (partially) redemptive panel. HT Zach Schrag. http://tushnet.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

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Don’t mess with Texas whiskey?

Posted on September 15, 2014 by rtushnet

Interesting article about a bourbon whiskey plastered with Texan signifiers, but apparently bottled (rather than distilled) in Texas.  The article makes several interesting advertising law-related claims: (1) sophisticated readers who examined the label in detail would be able to divine … Continue reading →

Posted in advertising, geographic indications, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post | Leave a comment

google it: verb status doesn’t mean Google is generic

Posted on September 15, 2014 by rtushnet

Elliot v. Google Inc., No. CV–12–1072, 2014 WL 4447764 (D. Ariz. Sept. 10, 2014) Based on the evidence submitted here, Google seems to have thought long and hard about genericity, and prepared consumer surveys accordingly.  FWIW, my opinion has long … Continue reading →

Posted in http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, trademark | Leave a comment