You May Be Exhausted Over Standard Essential Patents (And Not Even Know It)
A Valuable Discussion About Property Values
TracFone, the pre-paid phone company, recently settled with the FCC over allegations that the company failed to protect customer information during three different data incidents. According to the FCC, in each of the...more
This week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced a settlement with TracFone Wireless to resolve investigations into whether TracFone failed to reasonably protect its customers’ information from unauthorized...more
Consumers use cell phone numbers to authenticate their identities across a variety of accounts, such as those held with wireless providers, financial institutions, healthcare providers, and retail websites. One common example...more
Texting in the course and scope of business communications is almost ubiquitous. If your company issued a phone to an employee, presumably your company has the ability to control and preserve text messages sent on it. ...more
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) (www.eff.org) is a wonderful resource for privacy-related issues and concerns. I check its website frequently to make sure I am aware of the latest issues and concerns around privacy....more
Georgia has become one of 16 states in the country that bans the use of hand-held devices while driving. Governor Nathan Deal signed “Hands-Free Georgia Act” (House Bill 673) into law on May 2, 2018. The new law takes effect...more
‘Tis the season for gift giving. Smartphones and mobile devices are a hot item during the holidays. The first thing many people do when they get a new phone or device is to start downloading apps. Since there will be a lot of...more
In this hoganlovells.com interview, Hogan Lovells partner Trey Hanbury talks about the need for wireless carriers to broaden their offerings to meet the demands of an increasing number of niche markets. At the same time,...more
Distracted driving has become one of the leading causes of motor vehicle accidents and fatalities in the United States. In 2014 alone, Pennsylvania saw more than 13,964 crashes involving a distracted driver, including 49...more
The Ninth Circuit issued two similar opinions arising out of Samsung’s appeals of orders denying arbitration in two putative class actions filed against it. The claims against Samsung allege that the smartphone maker...more
There has been lots of talk about the ripple effects of the Trump travel ban. But here’s a new twist I hadn’t heard before—U.S. Customs and Border Control (CBP) agents are detaining U.S. citizens and requiring them to unlock...more
The Indianapolis Colts mobile app is alleged by a putative class to record fans’ private conversations. In the putative class action, the named plaintiff alleges that the mobile app secretly activates the smart phone’s...more
The Federal Trade Commission filed suit last week in federal court against Qualcomm, Inc., following its investigation launched in September 2014. The FTC alleges that the semiconductor manufacturer illegally maintained a...more
Adding more complexity to the issue of arbitration contract formation, the Ninth Circuit has rejected Samsung's attempt to compel individual arbitration of fraud claims asserted by plaintiffs in two class actions. Ruling in...more
Just about half of all American homes have cut the cord and rely only on wireless phones. Clearly, people see value in living near a cell phone tower. So how should you respond when you face opposition claiming that your...more
American Association of Political Consultants, Inc. et al. v. Lynch, Civil Action No. 5:16-cv-00252 (E.D.N.C., May 12, 2016). On May 12, 2016, five politically based organizations filed a suit against Loretta Lynch, in...more
On March 18, United States District Judge Ursula Ungaro of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida entered an order against a Hong Kong-based company that was improperly distributing prohibited...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently became the first federal appellate court to apply the Federal Communications Commission’s declaratory ruling that expanded the notion of what constitutes an...more
In Gensel v. Performant Technologies, Inc., No. 13-C-1196, 2015 WL 6158072, (E.D. Wisc. Oct. 20, 2015), the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin granted Performant Technologies, Inc.’s (“Performant”)...more
For brick-and-mortar retailers, smart phones have taken on an entirely new role in customers’ shopping experiences. A technology known as "mobile location analytics" ("MLA") or sometimes, "indoor analytics," gives brick and...more
With the release of Android 6.0, code name Marshmallow, Google has mandated that OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) enable full disk encryption. Google is requiring that the feature be enabled as part of the ‘out of box...more
Under what circumstances does a person give his “prior express consent” to be contacted on his cellphone by a creditor? The Sixth Circuit recently examined that very question in Hill v. Homeward Residential, Inc., where it...more
On July 10, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission issued a 138-page Declaratory Ruling and Order approving nearly two dozen proposals to the rules and regulations implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act...more
On June 30th, the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC’s or the Commission’s) Enforcement Bureau (EB) reached a projected $3.2 million consent decree to resolve an investigation into whether TracFone, the nation’s largest...more
In a recently released staff report, the Federal Trade Commission makes several recommendations designed to reduce “mobile cramming.” Cramming occurs when consumers access or enroll in third-party services through a mobile...more