So Google, at the behest of the European Union, is compiling what could be the largest personal database the world has ever seen. Does this sound a little Orwellian to anyone? The privacy implications of Google’s actions should concern just about every user of the search engine and internet. As rightly pointed out by activist […]
Second Life, as it is aptly named, is a virtual world. Through online personas, known as avatars, users of Second Life interact with each other as well as with the virtual items that they create. Users reap rewards for their creative efforts by retaining and exploiting intellectual property (`IP’) rights in their creations; the result […]
Paris Hilton has filed a federal lawsuit over a U.S. $2.49 Hallmark greeting card that uses a photograph of the heiress and her trademarked phrase "That's Hot." Ms. Hilton is seeking at least U.S. $500,000 in actual damages and a permanent injunction barring Hallmark from further exploitation of her name and likeness. Although this case […]
Thailand is at war, with battles taking place on several fronts. Over 600,000 people in Thailand are infected with HIV and the government is fighting the epidemic by administering HIV treatment and medication through its universal healthcare system. But HIV drugs are costly. In order to provide its people with the necessary medication, Thailand has […]
It is important to appreciate that the principal issue in this case surrounds the notion of a contract to purchase virtual land. The onus was on Linden Lab to ensure that their online purchasing system was intact and not penetrable to unfair usages by purchasers. On the other hand, it is arguable that Bragg was […]
The ever-growing world of online social networking is a creature with many faces. From organizing events to finding companionship, programs such as Facebook offer something for everybody. But as the recent fiasco involving Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers shows, beneath the superficial glitter lies a dark and potentially dangerous side to the technology. […]
The murkiness of the legality of unlocking the iPhone was highlighted recently by an AppleInsider article which suggested that actions of the ‘iPhone Dev Team’, hackers who are offering the solution to unlocking the iPhone for free online, may be illegal. The iPhone is locked to one service provider, AT&T, meaning another wireless carrier‘s SIM […]
The concept is simple, a recent Toronto Star article explains: `By the end of 2009, if all goes according to plan, paper cheques won't be cleared any more. Instead, electronic images will be transmitted from one financial institution to another.’ Standing in the way of this bankers’ dream, however, is the American firm DataTreasury […]
Aristotle once said "that which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it." This idea has subsequently evolved into the modern concept of Tragedy of the Commons (or not quite modern - the term in fact dates back to an 1833 study of medieval land holdings). The concept itself is […]
Cross border transactions are a hot topic in today’s legal community. However, picture a very different type of border and a very different type of transaction. The dispute is real, the border vague, and the substance is, well, virtual. On May 1, 2006 Marc Bragg, a Pennsylvania lawyer, launched an action against Linden Labs Research […]