Since the passage of Section 230 of the Communication Decency Act (“CDA”), the majority of federal circuits have interpreted the CDA to establish broad federal immunity to causes of action that would treat service providers...more
In the past month, there have been some notable developments surrounding Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (“CDA” or “Section 230”) beyond the ongoing debate in Congress over the potential for legislative reform....more
Happy Silver Anniversary to Section 230 of Communications Decency Act (“CDA” or “Section 230”), which was signed into law by President Bill Clinton in February 1996. At that time, Congress enacted CDA Section 230 in response...more
3/18/2021
/ Communications Decency Act ,
Google ,
Illegal Gambling ,
Immunity ,
Loot Boxes ,
Mobile Apps ,
Section 230 ,
Social Media ,
State Law Claims ,
User-Generated Content ,
Video Games ,
Virtual Currency
The appetite for acquisitions and investment in online businesses has never been stronger, with many of the most attractive online opportunities being businesses that host, manage and leverage user-generated content. These...more
11/3/2020
/ Communications Decency Act ,
Congressional Review Act ,
FCC ,
Immunity ,
Investors ,
Online Platforms ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Section 230 ,
Social Media ,
User-Generated Content ,
Website Owner Liability
UPDATE: On the afternoon of May 28, 2020, the President signed the executive order concerning CDA Section 230. A copy/link to the order has not yet been posted on the White House’s website.
According to news reports,...more
In an interview with the editorial board of the New York Times, published today, former Vice President Joe Biden advocated for repeal of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA). As readers of this blog may know,...more
In the swirl of scrutiny surrounding the big Silicon Valley tech companies and with some in Congress declaiming that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) should be curtailed, 2019 has quietly been an important...more
8/29/2019
/ Automated Systems ,
Communications Decency Act ,
Dismissals ,
Illegal Drugs ,
Immunity ,
Narcotics ,
Section 230 ,
Third-Party ,
User-Generated Content ,
Website Owner Liability ,
Websites
In the past few months, there have been a number of notable decisions affirming broad immunity under the Communications Decency Act (CDA), 47 U.S.C. §230(c), for online providers that host third party content. The beat goes...more
6/24/2019
/ Communications Decency Act ,
Data Collection ,
Dismissals ,
Immunity ,
Section 230 ,
Third-Party ,
Tortious Interference ,
Unfair Competition ,
User-Generated Content ,
Website Owner Liability ,
Websites
Three recent court decisions affirmed the robust immunity under the Communications Decency Act (CDA), 47 U.S.C. §230(c), for online providers that host third-party content: the Second Circuit’s decision in Herrick v. Grindr...more
5/29/2019
/ Communications Decency Act ,
Dismissals ,
Good Samaritans ,
Immunity ,
Section 230 ,
Third-Party ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
User-Generated Content ,
Website Owner Liability ,
Websites ,
WI Supreme Court
In a brief, unpublished opinion, the Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of right of publicity and privacy claims against a host of self-publishing platforms and service providers for distributing an erotic (and purported...more
The controversial consumer gripe site, RipoffReport.com, is at it again. The First Circuit recently affirmed a lower court’s ruling that RipoffReport.com was entitled to immunity under Section 230 of the Communications...more
10/25/2017
/ Attorney's Fees ,
Browsewrap Agreement ,
Communications Decency Act ,
Copyright ,
Copyright Infringement ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Defamation ,
Novell ,
Section 230 ,
Terms of Use ,
The Copyright Act ,
Third-Party Service Provider ,
User-Generated Content ,
Websites
Title II of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) offers safe harbors for qualifying service providers to limit their liability for claims of copyright infringement. To benefit from the Section 512(c) safe harbor, a...more
We live in a world that has rapidly redefined and blurred the roles of the “creator” of content, as compared to the roles of the “publisher” and “distributor” of such content. A recent case touches on some of the important...more
4/4/2016
/ Amazon ,
Barnes and Noble ,
Distributors ,
e-Books ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Invasion of Privacy ,
Online Platforms ,
Publishers ,
Right of Publicity ,
Right to Privacy ,
Terms and Conditions ,
User Agreements ,
User-Generated Content
Courts continue to struggle with the application of CDA immunity to shield service provider defendants from liability in extreme cases. In this case, the Washington Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, affirmed the lower court’s...more
It’s a problem that has vexed website owners since the days of the dot-com boom – how to make certain user-generated content available to users or subscribers, but also prevent competitors and other unauthorized parties from...more
It is a common practice for Web site providers who accept submissions of user-generated content to include a license provision in their “Terms of Use” to obtain rights to use the content....more