The supposedly private yet very public execution of Saddam Hussein has given us the first big cyberlaw story of 2007. The story can be tackled from a wide range of angles: Who owns the video? Can (and should) it be banned? Is there any law that could be applied to Read more…
Happy new Year to all regular (and non-regular) readers. I’ve been overwhelmed by the steady numbers that the blog has been getting. Sometime in the last two days we’ve managed to reach the 30,000 hit mark, and last December was the most viewed month since I started counting, with more Read more…
I’ve just read an excellent article about cinematic depiction of computer use in The Guardian. This is a topic of endless derision from techies and geeks all over the world. The article mentions that the balance can be tricky. In one hand we have the most realistic depiction of computers Read more…
I’m generally not into New Year’s resolutions, but I believe that this year I will promise to write less snowclones. A snowclone, according to Wikipedia, “is a neologism used to describe a type of formula-based cliché which uses an old idiom in a new context. The term emphasizes the use Read more…
Several recording companies have sued Russian site AllofMP3.com for copyright infringement. The site is not precisely a P2P sharing network, it is more analogous to “legal” download sites where users purchase individual songs and albums at amazingly low prizes. The problem is that the site does not pay royalties to Read more…
(via IPKat). Halliburton has lost its appeal on its case against Smith international with regards to software for designing drill bits. The software patent involved in Halliburton v Smith protected a software simulation program for designing the drill bits. Halliburton sued Smith, claimed it held patents in both the drill Read more…
The latest issue of SCRIPTed is now online. In this issue: Editorial: Alastair Kent, “Patients and IP – Should we care?” Special Issue on Privacy: Lilian Edwards, “Introduction to the Special Issue” When personal data, behavior and virtual identities become a commodity: Would a property rights approach matter?, Corien Prins Read more…
Continuing the series of stories from Costa Rica, the Costa Rican govenrment has started to implement a series of measures to reduce the digital divide between the information haves and have-nots. Starting in February, the government will be offering computer and internet connections at affordable prices. For as little as Read more…
The Commission on International Affairs of the Costa Rican legislature has approved CAFTA amidst strong opposition from students, intellectuals and union leaders. The vote in the commission was 6-3 in favour of sending the agreement to the plenary for it to be voted. As mentioned earlier, some of the less Read more…
(via Patentingart list) It is true that to many of us IP is a source of income, but is it a matter of life and death? One man in Chicago thought so. Truck driver and sometimes inventor Joe Jackson murdered patent lawyer Michael McKenna and two other people at the Read more…