In July 2013, the Department of Commerce’s (“DOC”) Internet Policy Task Force released a green paper called Copyright Right Policy, Creativity, and Innovation in the Digital Economy. This paper sought public comment on a number of specific challenges in copyright law brought about by the digital revolution, with copyrightable works now being easy to access, …
On January 8, 2014, the Environmental Protection Agaency (EPA) submitted to the Federal Register its proposed rule on New Source Performance Standards (NSPS), which would require all new coal-fired power plants to employ Carbon Capture technology to reduce their emissions. The move has met extreme opposition from industry groups. EPA’s NSPS program applies specific technology …
The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution protects “persons, houses, papers, and effects” from unreasonable search or seizure. While the amendment’s protections may seem straightforward, Americans will not know until this summer whether information stored on their cell phones counts as a paper or effect for the purposes of the amendment’s protection against searches. The Supreme …
On January 17, 2014, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that bloggers have the same first amendment protections as journalists when sued for defamation. The case, Obsidian Finance v. Fox, was brought by Kevin Padrick, a bankruptcy trustee at Obsidian Finance Group, and Obsidian against blogger Crystal Cox after Cox wrote …
When you start having to key in your length iTunes password for every, individual purchase, you now know who to blame. Following the conclusion of a three year investigation into Apple’s billing practices, the Federal Trade Commission announced yesterday that Apple will be paying at least $32.5 million to settle complaints over children racking …
The more we learn about human genomics and the effects of an individual’s DNA on their future health, the more possibilities “personalized medicine” seems to have as the future in modern diagnostic and treatment procedures. However, it sometimes also appears that for every advance in medical technology that could increase the efficacy of personalized …
As the Consumer Electronics Show wrapped up this past weekend, the technology community began to analyze the most recent trends and developments. One product which made a somewhat surprising showing was the new age of 3-D printers. After having just eight 3-D printing exhibitors at the show in 2013, there were 28 exhibitors present this …
“There is no discernable silver lining to this opinion,” ACLU attorney Catherine Clump concluded when a Federal Judge dismissed an ACLU challenge to the Department of Homeland Security’s (“DHS”) discretionary policy of searching and seizing electronic media at the border. The civil liberties organization filed their challenge in the Eastern District of New York …
Tuesday, January 14, 2014, by Christina Wheaton On January 9, 2014, a Colorado man filed a class action lawsuit against Facebook in San Jose, California. Facebook users are able to create Facebook pages on the social network, often for companies or individuals, which may be “Liked” by other Facebook users. In his complaint, Anthony Ditirro …
Tuesday, November 26, 2013, by Samuel Williams Online retail giant Amazon.com, Inc. faces threats on a daily basis. Threats from its competitors, from the state of the economy and even from its own workers. In 2012 an employee working at an Amazon distribution facility in southern California stole 726 iPod touch players and 49 laptops …