Federal Circuit Affirms Economic Interest of Open Source Copyright Holder By Yelena Shagall – Edited by Evie Breithaupt Jacobsen v. Katzer Federal Circuit, August 13, 2008, No. 2008-1001 Slip Opinion On August 13, the Federal Circuit ruled that open source license terms can create enforceable copyright conditions.  In Jacobsen v. Katzer, the Federal Circuit addressed the Northern District of California’s rejection of Jacobsen’s motion for preliminary injunction against competitor Matthew Katzer and Kamind Associates, Inc (“Katzer/Kamind”) for infringement of the ... Read More...

D. Mass: MIT Students’ Security Presentation Merits Temporary Restraining Order By Jon Choate – Edited by Dan Ray  Mass. Bay Transp. Auth. v. Anderson D. Mass., August 9th, 2008, No. 08-11364-GAO Temporary Restraining Order (Hosted by EFF)   On August 9th, Judge Woodlock of the U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts granted the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (“MBTA”) a temporary restraining order against Zack Anderson, RJ Ryan, and Alessandro Chiesa, undergraduates at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (“MIT”). The order ... Read More...

Second Circuit: Cablevision DVR Does Not Directly Infringe Copyright By Stephanie Weiner — Edited by Andrew Ungberg The Cartoon Network LP v. CSC Holdings, Inc. Second Circuit, August 4, 2008, 07-1480-cv(L) & 07-1511-cv(CON) Slip Opinion (also hosted at the EFF) On August 4, the Second Circuit reversed the District Court for the Southern District of New York, ruling that Cablevision’s “Remote Storage” Digital Video Recorder system (RS-DVR) does not infringe the copyrights of the various broadcast and cable channels that ... Read More...

Sixth Circuit Affirms Conviction of Counterfeit DVD Importer  By Dmitriy Tishyevich – Edited by Nicola Carah  United States v. Teh Sixth Circuit, July 31, 2008, No. 06-2371  Slip Opinion  On July 31, the 6th Circuit affirmed the conviction of Thiah Teh, who was indicted after airport officials searched his luggage and found what appeared to be 756 counterfeited DVDs and 284 counterfeited DVD sleeve packages.  Teh was found guilty and sentenced to one year of probation under 18 U.S.C. § 545, which ... Read More...

Third Circuit Holds Child Online Protection Act Unconstitutional By Anna Lamut – Edited by Nicola Carah ACLU v. Mukasey Third Circuit, July 22, 2008, No. 07-2539 Slip Opinion On July 22, the Third Circuit affirmed the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania’s decision, finding that the Child Online Protection Act (“COPA”), 47 U.S.C. § 231, violated the First and Fifth Amendment, and permanently enjoined its enforcement. COPA imposes civil and criminal penalties for anyone who, “for commercial purposes,” knowingly posts “material ... Read More...