Permission is required when a living human being’s likeness is used in a video game. But is permission from that person’s tattoo artist or a company claiming to have purchased the copyright for the tattoo design, required to digitally recreate the tattoo? Solid Oak Sketches LLC (“Solid Oak”), a Delaware-based tattoo company, is suing Take-Two …
Imagine if you had a great idea for a new bicycle rental business that allows customers to rent bicycles through a smartphone app. While you can develop the software, you do not have the money to buy the hardware, bicycles and bicycle racks. Historically you would have to find investors, or take some sort of …
Lawyers, and the practice of law, have played a key role throughout history and continue to do so today. For centuries, lawyers have had a fairly consistent process of analyzing the law and offering their services to others. Over the past several years, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and venture capitalists have created digital technology to change …
There are many hot-button issues being discussed in the series of presidential debates, as Americans are concerned about who is going to shape the future of the country. One issue, in particular, is that the next president will have a considerable influence over net neutrality rules. Net neutrality is the concept that every website gets …
Cell phone security raises various issues in the tech and legal world. On one hand, police officers and other law enforcement organizations would like to be able to access the data on cell phones belonging to criminals or victims if the cell phone has been seized as evidence of a crime. However, enabling police officers …
Without a doubt, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (“TPP”) is a very big deal. It is arguably “one of the most ambitious free trade agreements ever signed.” The TPP is a pact amongst twelve counties that aims to deepen economic ties by reducing and removing tariffs and by forging compromises on a wide range of trade related …
It seems as if DeVry University’s Pinocchio nose just grew a little bit longer. The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and the Department of Education filed a complaint against the for-profit university controlled by DeVry Education Group Inc. for allegedly posting misleading advertisements on YouTube and Twitter. In a society where simply having a college degree …
In the United States, 53 million people pay for cable, 2.7 million jobs (direct and indirect) are a result of the cable industry, and the average American adult watches approximately 32 hours of TV a week. Watching TV is an American pastime, but it comes with a cost. 99 percent of pay-TV subscribers rent their …
The first month of 2016 has already seen two very high-profile trademark disputes, both in the area of online videos. Recently it has come to light that Sony has tried to trademark the phrase “Let’s Play” for video game footage. For anyone unaware, “Let’s Play” has been in use by video creators for years and …
Imagine never losing the ability to drive due to illness, age, or disability. Think of a world where all cars drive the same, regardless of the risk-averse or risk-seeking personality of the individual in the car. Google has made this a reality with its self-driving car. Google currently has self-driving Lexus SUVs and new …
