Internet Law Commons^™

Big Brother's Shadow: Decline In Reported Use Of Electronic Surveillance By Canadian Federal Law Enforcement, Nicholas Koutros, Julien Demers

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

Despite popular perception of increased government surveillance, particularly since 9/11, a longitudinal study of the Annual Reports on the Use of Electronic Surveillance, published by Public Safety Canada between 1973 and 2011, demonstrates the opposite trend. This article first outlines this decline to situate the use of electronic surveillance by federal law enforcement. The second section of the article advances legal, political, and practical influences which are likely contributing to the diminished use of wiretapping by police. The purpose of this article is to present quantitative evidence to better inform the ongoing debate around extending “lawful access” regimes in Canada. …

Protection From The Protectors: Does The Competition Act Provide An Answer To The Misuse Of Technological Protection Measures?, Keith D. Rose

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

McOrmond suggested that this linkage of authorized content and devices may fall within the definition of tied selling:

If you are a competitor of the members of the DVD CCA, or for any reason cannot sign on to their contractual obligations, you will not receive the keys to encode your own content or decode content. It should be reviewed by the Competition Bureau to determine whether such contractual obligations should be allowed. Tying the ability to access content encoded with DVD CCA keys requiring a DVD CCA-approved access device seems like a text- book example of “tied selling” under section …

Streaming While Teaching: The Legality Of Using Person Streaming Video Accounts For The Classroom, Jonathan I. Ezor

Scholarly Works

Educators are constantly seeking new sources of relevant material to illustrate doctrinal and practice topics. With the growing understanding of students’ different learning styles, as well as the expansion of high-speed network connections and large displays in the classroom, streaming video has begun gaining popularity as an educational tool. Films, television programs, and real-time and archived legislative and court sessions may provide examples (both positive and negative) to enhance pedagogy. One increasingly common source for streaming content is a commercial video provider such as Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu. Even where such providers do not offer educational or institutional services, educators …

The Destruction Of An Empire: Will Viacom End Youtube's Reign?, Adam Shatzkes

Touro Law Review

In a pre-Napster world Congress sought to promote theadvancement and development of the Internet. To facilitate this expansion, Congress enacted the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA"), which protects internet service providers from copyright infringement liability. Due, in part, to the DMCA, the Internet has expanded beyond Congress' expectations. With the growth of the Internet, however, inequities have been created. YouTube epitomizes these inequities and Viacom's suit highlights the injustices that have been created. The ease with which copyrighted materials are published on the Internet has made it impossible for copyright owners to adequately protect their works. It is time for …

Do Students Turn Over Their Rights When They Turn In Their Papers? A Case Study Of Turnitin.Com, Stephen Sharon

Touro Law Review

Turnitin is a rapidly growing online anti-plagiarism service subscribed to by thousands of schools in the United States. Though the pursuit of honesty and integrity are at the heart of our academic institutions and the Turnitin anti-plagiarism service, there is a fatal flaw in its execution. This comment examines the copyright and fair use arguments presented by four Virginia students asserting that Turnitin violated their intellectual property rights. This comment goes beyond the facts of the four Virginia students to explore the root issues of a service that collects and distributes the copyrighted works submitted to it by hundreds of …

Beware Of The Highwayman On The Information Superhighway: A Balanced Proposal To Protect Copyrights Within The National Information Infrastructure, Chandra Gehri Spencer

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Internet-Based Fans: Why The Entertainment Industries Cannot Depend On Traditional Copyright Protections , Thomas C. Inkel

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Why Copyright Falls Behind The Requirement For Protecting Graphic User Interfaces: Case Studies On Limitations Of Copyright Protection For Guis In China, Ling Jin, Yihong Ying

IP Theory

No abstract provided.

Who Are You? Difficulties In Obtaining Trademark Protection For Domain Names, Luke M. Rona

Washington Journal of Law, Technology & Arts

Three appellate decisions illustrate the difficulty of acquiring trademark protection for domain names that include a top-level domain (“TLD”), such as “.com.” Courts have characterized these marks as generic or merely descriptive, which carries implications for the party seeking registration: generic marks cannot be protected, while descriptive marks can, assuming they possess a secondary meaning that makes the mark distinctive. Generic and descriptive domain names often indicate the services a company provides, with the addition of the “.com” TLD to indicate online services. One key test of genericness is whether the public identifies the mark with a service generally or …

Understanding The Internet As A Human Right, Michael Karanicolas

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

Around the world, fundamental human rights have undergone a dramatic conceptual shift as a result of the spread of the Internet. The right to freedom of expression, once largely limited to printing, has exploded in a digital world that provides users with an unprecedented megaphone to broadcast their views. The right to political participation and the right to free assembly have similarly been reborn in an age of instant communication, allowing activists to mobilise hundreds of thousands of followers with a single email, text or tweet. Although these are the most notable examples, the Internet has also had a transformative …

Harvesting The "Forbidden Fruit" Of Biotechnology Research: Genetic Engineering, International Law And The Patentability Of Higher Life Forms In Canada, Eugene C. Lim

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

As the frontiers of science are constantly redefined by the emergence of new technology, patent law often has to struggle to keep pace with the changing conception of what constitutes a protectable “invention”. A key challenge facing patent law in the age of biotechnology lies in ascertaining the extent to which genetically engineered life forms should be protected. A major concern relates to whether such life forms should be excluded from patentability on grounds of ordre public, ethics and morality.

This article critically explores the extent to which patent law in Canada protects this “forbidden fruit” of biotechnological innovation, and …

The Limitations Of Regulatory Oversight On Online Video, Jennifer Simpson

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

Discussion in this paper focuses on the factors, attributes, and elements of telecom and broadcast regulation in Canada. Part I of this study briefly outlines the history of online video regulation in Canada to date. In Part II speculation as to how online video might be regulated, based on prior decisions of the CRTC, is presented. Part III considers the challenges of applying the Broadcasting Act to new media entities in order to create a regulatory framework for online video. Part IV looks at judicial decisions related to broadcast law that may be used to define the nature of the …

A Delicate Balance: Defining The Line Between Open Civil Proceedings And The Protection Of Children In The Online Digital Era, Courtney Retter, Shaheen Shariff

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

He thought of the telescreen with its never-sleeping ear. They could spy upon you night and day, but if you kept your head you could still outwit them. [. . .] They could lay bare in the utmost detail everything that you had done or said or thought; but the inner heart, whose workings were mysterious even to yourself, remained impregnable.

— George Orwell, 1984

On Thursday September 27, 2012, a few months after our paper was written, the Supreme Court of Canada solidified the rights of children victimized by cyberbullying in the landmark decision of AB (Litigation Guardian of) …

The Progress Of Science And The Useful Arts: Misadventures In Canadian Law On Patent-Eligible Subject Matter, Ken Bousfield

Canadian Journal of Law and Technology

Patent-Eligible Subject-Matter in Canada

The law of patent-eligible subject-matter in Canada has become badly muddled. There has been repeated confusion of subject-matter issues with non-subject matter issues such as novelty, obviousness, and utility. There has also been repeated confusion within the following group of issues pertaining to whether subject-matter is patent-eligible: whether a claim is for a mere idea or aggregation or for a patentable invention; whether claimed subject-matter falls within science and the useful arts; and whether claimed subject-matter falls within the statutory classes listed in the definition of “invention”. Echoes of older UK-based cases, relating to statutory provisions …

International Dispute Settlement At The Trademark-Domain Name Interface, Laurence R. Helfer

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.

Freedom Of Speech Through The Looking Glass: Reflections On The Governance Of Political Discourse In China, The United States, And The European Union, Emily Alice Chesbrough

Scripps Senior Theses

Freedom of speech is a right guaranteed by the US, the EU, and China; however, just because a right is guaranteed does not mean the government cannot manipulate the right to achieve its ends. Freedom of speech is commonly associated with the power of language; citizens speak in order to take control of those governing them, in order to assert their desires. In reality, freedom of speech is far more beneficial for governments, who can use this dissent to better control a population. In order to control the population, though, the governments must first control the dissenting speech, the discourse, …

The Creative Commons: A Supplement To Copyright In Today’S Technological Culture, Frank Polcino

Pace Intellectual Property, Sports & Entertainment Law Forum

In his article “The Creative Commons: A Supplement to Copyright in Today’s Technological Culture”, Frank Polcino discusses the relatively new licensing approach for copyrightable works, which originated from a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable corporation called Creative Commons.

Social Media In Sports: Can Professional Sports League Commissioners Punish 'Twackle Dummies'?, Daniel J. Friedman

Pace Intellectual Property, Sports & Entertainment Law Forum

Daniel J. Friedman writes an article discussing the rise and popularity in social media use by professional athletes. He then discusses some of the new problems that have arisen due to social media misuse and the power of the Commissioner to restrict and punish the players for misuse. The article culminates with a case study hypothetical related to content based social media misuse and whether the Commissioners of professional sports league can punish a player for the content of their social media messages.

Combating Online Trademark And Copyright Infringement: Ice And Doj Domain Name Seizures New Tools In The Government’S Efforts To Combat Online Ip Infringement, Tanya Dunbar

Pace Intellectual Property, Sports & Entertainment Law Forum

The ICE seizures and proposed legislations to codify ICE-style seizures have led many to question the legitimacy of ICE’s seizures and decry the bills as censorship. Tanya Dunbar’s article explores the reasons for the government’s actions, the seizure mechanism the government employs, and the controversy surrounding domain name seizures. Where possible, the Ms. Dunbar offers solutions to some of the controversial issues that may arise.

Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panels And The Webcasting Controversy: The Antithesis Of Good Alternative Dispute Resolution, Jeremy Delibero

Pepperdine Dispute Resolution Law Journal

Music is becoming increasingly synonymous with big business and corporate influence. The advent of Internet radio and streaming webcasts are simply one example of this shift. Organizations such as the Radio Industry Association of America ("RIAA") have discovered a new way to receive royalties from the performance of musical works, and have fought vigorously to obtain favorable rates to achieve the maximum profit. On the other hand, small webcasters have fought equally hard to avoid these large rates. Although arguments for each side are equally persuasive, neither is persuasive enough to force a compromise. In attempting to solve these disputes, …

From Betamax To Youtube: How Sony Corporation Of America V. Universal City Studios, Inc. Could Still Be A Standard For New Technology, Veronica Corsaro

Federal Communications Law Journal

Internet technological innovations, particularly the development of Peer-to-Peer ("P2P") networks and the proliferation of user-generated content sites, have introduced considerable challenges for the application of copyright law and infringement liability. The response from the courts and Congress has been mixed, with severe legal curtails being applied to P2P technology while usergenerated content sites have been afforded a level of protection against infringement claims as part of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's section 512 "safe harbor" provisions. However, these provisions have raised concerns about the issue of secondary copyright liability, a matter that has still been left undefined. This Note will …

Check-In, Attendees Of The Symposium

NJTIP Annual Symposium

Check-in for the Northwestern Journal of Technology and Intellectual Property's 7th Annual Symposium

The Future Of Free Expression In A Digital Age, Jack M. Balkin

Pepperdine Law Review

In the twenty-first century, at the very moment that our economic and social lives are increasingly dominated by information technology and information flows, the judge-made doctrines of the First Amendment seem increasingly irrelevant to the key free speech battles of the future. The most important decisions affecting the future of freedom of speech will not occur in constitutional law; they will be decisions about technological design, legislative and administrative regulations, the formation of new business models, and the collective activities of end-users. Moreover, the values of freedom of expression will become subsumed within a larger set of concerns that I …

Transnational Copyright: Misalignments Between Regulation, Business Models And User Practice, Leonhard Dobusch, Sigrid Quack

Transnational Business Governance Interactions Working Papers

In this paper we analyse discursive struggles over what is referred to as legal and illegal user practices in the internet as an outcome of regulatory uncertainty. The latter, in turn, is examined in the context of a multi-layered transnational copyright regime characterised by three features: the absence of an universally recognized single authority in charge of law-making, fragmented and partially contradicting forms of regulation of global, national and sectoral scope, and considerable indeterminacy of rule interpretation and application arising from the variety and distinctiveness of local usage contexts. We argue that notions of legality and illegality are used strategically …

Digital Originality, Edward Lee

All Faculty Scholarship

This Article examines the doctrine of originality in U.S. copyright law and proposes a reconfigured, three-part test that can better analyze issues of first impression involving works created with new digital technologies. The proposed test, encapsulated by the concept of digital originality, provides much needed guidance to courts to address the increasing complexities of digital creations in the twenty-first century.

Session Iv: Technology And The Future Of Privacy, 29 J. Marshall J. Computer & Info. L. 379 (2012), David E. Sorkin, Ann Bartow, Robert S. Gurwin, Doris E. Long

UIC John Marshall Journal of Information Technology & Privacy Law

No abstract provided.

Fostering Web 2.0 Innovation: The Role Of The Judicial Interpretation Of The Dmca Safe Harbor, Secondary Liability And Fair Use, 12 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 70 (2012), Susanna Monseau

UIC Review of Intellectual Property Law

Web 2.0 has generated a surplus of creativity, encouraging innovation of new technologies and further creative expansion of the internet. Social media platforms have demonstrated a significant growth during this time and have been used to create and disseminate a wealth of information and cultural material. While it is important that copyright owners receive legal protection of the content they create, it is necessary not to simultaneously stifle the creativity of end-users. Copyright owners have more power in bargaining for their rights, and their rights are well established through statutory protections. However, internet innovators and end-users, who may have a …

The Google Police: How The Indictment Of The Pirate Bay Presents A New Solution To Internet Piracy, Bernard A. Mantel

University of Miami Business Law Review

No abstract provided.

Patent Litigation And The Internet, John R. Allison, Emerson H. Tiller, Samantha Zyontz, Tristan Bligh

Faculty Scholarship

Patent infringement litigation has not only increased dramatically in frequency over the past few decades,¹ but also has also seen striking growth in both stakes and cost.² Although a relatively rich literature has added much to our understanding of the nature, causes, and consequences of patent litigation during the past two decades,³ many interesting questions remain inadequately addressed. The nuances of and trends in patent litigation in different technology fields and industries, for example, are still understudied.⁴ Litigation of patents on new technologies has likewise received a dearth of attention. Here we seek to help begin …

Fighting The First Sale Doctrine: Strategies For A Struggling Film Industry, Sage Vanden Heuvel

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The first sale doctrine, codified at 17 U.S.C. § 109, grants the owners of a copy of a copyrighted work the right to sell, rent, or lease that copy without permission from the copyright owner. This doctrine, first endorsed by the Supreme Court in Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus, was established at a time when the owner of a good necessarily had to forego possession in order to sell or lease the item to another.[...] The changes in technology and industry over the past two decades threaten to upend this balance. In today's digital world, an owner of a copy of …