Displaying items by tag: Legal

Remember the original trial for the “criminal” copyright infringement case against The Pirate Bay (TPB) and some of the shady things that went on behind the scenes? Well now we find that the copyright industry is doing it again, this time with the legal proceedings that just arranged for all links, proxies and any other references to The Pirate Bay banned in the Netherlands. This is actually popping up right after we talked about the methods the industry will go to just to maintain control.

Well, well, well; it looks like Apple has been caught altering the data that Siri returns to their users when asked specific questions. Last week it was reported that when users asked Siri “What is the best smartphone” it replied with the answer The Nokia Lumia 900. Now Apple has previously stated that the information from Siri all comes from WolframAlpha “computational knowledge engine” (pronounce that search engine) and they have no power to alter the data that Siri sends.

We missed this one on the 8th, but it is an important step for privacy right and the ability of the government to ask for everything they want. We had told you not that long ago how prosecutors were demanding information from Blogs, Twitter and other Social Media about people involved in the Occupy movement. This demand raised quite a storm as most felt it was an outlandish request (well actually prosecuting people for protesting is ridiculous as well) considering what they were after.

In another installment of our “and that is why you fail” byline we come to the small dispute between Google and Oracle. On the table is not if Google use Java APIs or not, but the basic question of “are Java APIs free to use for development?” This issue is a huge one as a Google loss could set precedent for Oracle to go after ANYONE that is using the Java API without paying royalties to Oracle for their use.

There was something of a victory for MegaUpload and in many ways supporters of a free and open internet. The judge presiding over the case has stated that the case may never actual go to trial because the FBI and those backing their actions made a tiny, little, blunder that has turned out to not be so tiny. In their effort to send a message the FBI and other agencies in the US government have taken a very firm stance on the situation a stance which could eventually come back to haunt them.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the patent waters Samsung and Apple are back at it again. This is only days after the two company’s CEOs have agreed to sit down to try and work things out. We would love to be present for that meeting though. Still it does not look like these two mobile giants will be getting along anytime soon. What makes the situation even more interesting is that Samsung is a major supplier of parts for many of Apple’s products (and helped to make the SoC that is inside Apple’s iDevices).

Tim Cook’s recent visit to China has made more than a few headlines especially considering their position they are in right now. Not only do they have the world looking at them over issues at with Foxconn facilities, but they are also in a rather ugly legal battle with ProView over who actually owns the trademark name iPad. On the surface Cook’s visit is to discuss growth and expansion in China (which actually only means more money to Foxconn and the Chinese government). However, Cook is also more than likely there to try and squash the upstart ProView and a level higher than the Chinese court system.

Facebook has not always been on the side of user privacy. In fact they have gotten into hot water about many of the features that they want to, and indeed have implemented. These are features like auto-tagging and facial recognition, the use of user pictures for their targeted ads. Storing user information after the user deletes it and even keeping deleted profiles after the user leaves Facebook. Now in what could be a PR move (and probably is) or could really be their concern over a new issue Facebook is telling users not to disclose their Facebook account passwords to employers, potential employers or during interviews.

Although this is not “News” any longer we thought that we would touch on something that has been happening in the Apple/Motorola Mobility/Google legal war. As we mentioned a while ago Apple had demanded that Google (the soon to be owner of Motorola Mobility) had over all documentation on Android Development as part of the patent lawsuit that they have with Motorola Mobility. The law suit pre-dates Google’s bid for the company and seemed out of place with the current fight.

We have always been a supporter of certain Internet freedoms as well as individual privacy (no surprise there huh). Bills like PIPA and SOPA showed us a glaring issue with the existing level of knowledge currently held by the people that make our laws (and not just in the US). This is not a big shocker to most people either. It is fairly common knowledge that our law makers get into office based on little more than a popularity contest that is held every few years. Once in office they are like the gullible kid in school that gets talked into things, by the “cool kids”, but in this case the cool kids are lobbyists and are not looking for a laugh they are looking to improve their control and profit.