Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Randy Picker Examines Market Power and Advertising During AEI’s Discussion of Google and Antitrust

Techpolicy.com, here. 

Exclusionary Vertical Restraints and Antitrust: Experimental Law and Economics Contributions

C. Landeo, here. 

Random House and Penguin merge to take on Amazon, Apple

Reuters.com, here. 

Leistungsschutzrecht als Taschenspielertrick

Politik.eco.de, hier. 

§ 52a UrhG wird wohl verlängert, aber vermutlich nicht entfristet

Iuwis.de, hier. 

Privacy Takes Center Stage in Uruguay

EFF.org, here. 

US-Supreme Court: Richtungsweisende Entscheidung zum Secondhand-Handel erwartet

Urheberrecht.org, hier. 

Buyer Power and Suppliers' Incentives to Innovate

C. Koehler, C. Rammer, here.

Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley Oral Arguments

Transcript here. Audio file here. 

NYC regulators propose rules for taxi apps

Theverge.com, here. 

Zur Reform des europäischen Datenschutzrechts

S. Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, here. 

Substitutes & football: a primer in market definition

R. Trindade, R. Smith, here. 

Lex Google : Hollande préfère un petit accord entre amis...

Numerama.com, here. 

The Annual Privacy Forum 1st edition

Privacyforum.eu, Presentations here. 

Would "Privacy in the Age of Augmented Reality" work?

A. Acquisti, Presentation here. 

Good Things Come in Threes? DOJ, FTC and EC Officials Wax Eloquent About FRAND

Patentlyo.com, here. 

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Saturday, October 20, 2012

The Unitary Patent Package: Twelve Reasons for Concern

Max Planck Institute for Intellectual Property and Competition Law, here. 

Friday, October 19, 2012

EP Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs on the Proposed Data Protection Regulation

Here. 

Off-Topic: European Council on EU's Nobel Prize for Peace


"The European Council is grateful that the European Union was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace. The Prize is an honour for all European citizens and for all EU Member States and institutions. The Nobel Committee rightly reminds how "the Union and its forerunners have for over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in
Europe". At a time of uncertainty, this tribute to past achievements is a strong appeal to safeguard and strengthen Europe for the next generation. Aware that advancing this community of peaceful interests requires constant care and an unwavering will, the members of the European Council regard it as their personal responsibility  to ensure Europe remains a continent of progress and prosperity", here.

Proyecto de Ley de creación de la Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia

Congreso.es, aquì. 

Private Recoveries in International Cartel Cases Worldwide: What do the Data Show?

J. Connor, here. 

Unfair methods of competition under FTC § 5: Beyond the Sherman Act and an ex post model of enforcement

R. Peritz, here. 

Google News faces mass newspaper boycott in Brazil

PaidContent.org, here. 

Beyond the integration of Markets: The citizen at the heart of EU law

J. Almunia, here. 

Poland and Hungary Adapted PSI Directive Transpositions (Infringement procedures closed)

Epsiplatform.eu, here. 

Google se paie la presse

Owni.fr, ici.

Monday, October 15, 2012

Fostering Internet Competition

Brookings Institution's event (Oct. 10, 2012), podcast here, uncorrected transcript here (Spencer Weber Waller starting at 10:22, again at 22:45, 33:00, 37:03, Q&A at 43:00, mentioning waves - ;-) - of creative destruction at 51:50;  see his recent paper on Facebook and antitrust here).

E-Books in France: Shunned or Just Getting Started?

Publishingperspectives.com, here. 

Apple reportedly reduces Samsung's role in A6 chip production, decreases dependency on its biggest rival

Theverge.com, here. 

Licensing music works and transaction costs in Europe

KEA, here. 

Network Neutrality and Privacy According to Art. 8 ECHR

B.-J. Koops, J. Sluijs, here. 

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Copyright, Interfaces, and a Possible Atlantic Divide

S. Vezzoso (this blog's author), here.
Abstract: "Recent copyright cases on both sides of the Atlantic focused on important interoperability issues. While the decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union in SAS Institute, Inc. v. World Programming Ltd. assessed data formats under the EU Software Directive, the ruling by the Northern District of California Court in Oracle America, Inc. v. Google Inc. dealt with application programming interfaces. The European decision is rightly celebrated as a further important step in the promotion of interoperability in the EU. This article argues that, despite appreciable signs of convergence across the Atlantic, the assessment of application programming interfaces under EU law could still turn out to be quite different, and arguably much less pro-interoperability, than under U.S. law."

HathiTrust: A Landmark Copyright Ruling

Publishersweekly.com, here. 

Friday, October 05, 2012

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

HUNTING THE WILD GEESE: COMPETITION ANALYSIS IN A WORLD OF “FREE”

F. Polverino, here. 

Re-use of Public Procurement Data

Epsiplatform.eu, here.

Maßnahmen zur Steigerung des Wettbewerbs auf den Kraftstoffmärkten in Deutschland


J. Haucap, R. Dewenter, U. Heimeshoff, here.

Europe's Cloud Computing Strategy Calls for More Standardization

M.cio.com, here

MySQL: A Business Parable

- Open Source, the IP always owned
- LAMP web stack, MySQL a de-facto standard (FB, Google, Twitter, Yahoo)
- dual licensing (consulting and support, T-shirts sale: uninteresting to VC)
- VC, looking for an "exit"
- Sun and then Oracle acquisitions
- Oracle "not a charity"
From the Open Forum Europe 2012 Conference, here. 

MEDIDAS EN MATERIA DE INFRAESTRUCTURAS Y SERVICIOS FERROVIARIOS.

CNC, aquí.

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Monday, September 17, 2012

Aliyun App Store Confirmed To Be Distributing Pirated Android Apps, Many From Another Pirate Site

Androidpolice.com, here. 

Update on Trademark-Related Aspects of the Expansion of the Domain Name System

WIPO, Standing Committee on the Law of Trademarks, Industrial Designs and Geographical Indications, here. 

Recommandations pour l'ouverture des données et contenus culturels

GROUPE DE TRAVAIL OPEN GLAM, ici. 

Information Meeting on the Role and Responsibility of Internet Intermediaries in the Field of Trademarks

WIPO, September 17, 2012, Program here, Live Broadcast - floor - here (English here). What I will be following in particular: Sessions 2 and 3: The Use of Trademarks on the Internet:  Problems and Solutions.

Digital Content Contracts for Consumers


N. Helberger & M. Loos & L. Guibault & C. Mak & L. Pessers, here.

German court may defer to EU regulator on Samsung-Apple lawsuits over FRAND patents

Fosspatents.com, here. 

German Rail: What's the Point of Open Data?

Epsiplatform.eu, here. 

Competitive Harm from MFNs: Economic Theories

J. Baker, Presentation here. 

DOJ/FTC Ask if MFns Are Anti-Competitive, and get an earful

Skadden.com, here. 

The German Proposal on a New Leistungsschutzrecht – Endangering Press Diversity and the Digital Economy

Computer & Communications Industry Association, here. 

Google and Personal Data Protection

B. Van der Sloot, F. Zuiderveen Borgesius, here. 

Monday, September 03, 2012

Saturday, September 01, 2012

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Sunday, August 26, 2012

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Apple-Samsung Amended Jury Verdict

US District Court, Northern District of California, Case No.: 11-CV-01846-LHK, here. 

Friday, August 24, 2012

La Hadopi réfléchit à une "suite de la réponse graduée" sans amendes

Numerama.com, ici. 

WIPO: 2012 IP Facts and Figures: Computer Technologies' Patent Dominance

Here.
However, "most national  and regional IP office statistics refer to 2010".
At p.21: "(I)n 2010, computer technology (117,576) and electrical machinery (104,543) accounted for the largest numbers of applications, with a combined share of 15% of all published application" (emphasis mine).



Seoul court rules Samsung didn't violate Apple design

Reuters.com, here.

Travel Business: The ineluctable Middlemen

The Economist, here. 

Anti-competitive Agreements and Unilateral Conduct/Abuse of Dominance: Some Current Issues

R. Whish, Presentations here and here. 

The Interface Between Competition Law and Sectoral Regulation

N. Ee-Kia, Presentation here. 

Striking a balance between competition compliance and business costs – an Australian perspective

J. Walker, Presentation here. 

Fair use for Australia?

Barrysookman.com, here. 

Thursday, August 23, 2012

The Internet a Decade Later

Infographic, here. 

Why are UK producers the superheroes of the global format trade?

Bbcworldwide.com, here. 

Ökonomen sollen ihre Geldgeber offenlegen - Die Volkswirte-Vereinigung beschließt einen Ethikkodex

Faz-community.faz.net, hier.

Lemley on what drives competition in the IT space

“Apple presented the intellectual property view of innovation — we created it, we own it, you can’t use it. Samsung presented the competition view of innovation — everyone should make great products and let consumers choose. IP law generally sides with Apple at this broad level, though there is a pretty good argument that it is competition, not monopoly, that drives great innovation in the IT space”, from Competing Views of Competition in Apple-Samsung Trial, Allthingsd.com, here.

For Non-Twitter Users: Video of the TPI Aspen Panel on Antitrust and Internet Competition

Here, panelists here.

Schritt nach vorne für die offene Verwaltung in Deutschland?

Ifross.org, hier. 

The Supreme Court of Canada Speaks: How To Assess Fair Dealing for Education

M. Geist, here. 

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

So Close, Yet So Far Apart: The EU and U.S. Visions of a New Privacy Framework

C. Wolf, W. Maxwell, here. 

Embracing Magic

K. Walker, here. #TPIAspen

Quotation from  Magical Patent Policy: "one third of all patent lawsuits now involve software
patents, way out of whack to the relative size of the industry. Software and Internet patents are litigated
eight times more often than other patents. Troll lawsuits cost productive U.S. companies $29 billion in
direct payouts last year, $80 billion a year when you take all costs into account, and more than $500
billion in the years since the Federal Circuit first authorized software patents. Worst of all, wasteful
patent litigation is costing customers real money and real choices in the devices they love.
This happens because software patents too often allow ownership of broad, sometimes trivial ideas. It
should not be this way. It is the execution as much as the idea that often matters in the
marketplace. Facebook wasn’t the first social network -- but it thrived because it executed well. Google
wasn’t first in search, but the way we executed has made our results better."

Quotation from Magical Competition Policy: "we should pay close attention to switching costs and lock-in. Since everyone is competing against
everyone else, consumers, advertisers, and publishers typically have lots of options. But those options
are less useful if walled gardens or proprietary formats make it difficult for users to switch. That’s why
Google created our Data Liberation Front, letting users easily export their data. The inability to move
your data -- like contacts, emails, and web history -- from one service to another can sometimes make
switching more difficult in ways that are bad for consumers and bad for competition."

Panel - Internet Competition: Implications for Antitrust

ASPEN 2012 AGENDA, Technology Policy Institute 

August 21, 2012
Susan Athey, Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, Harvard University and Visiting Researcher, Microsoft Research New England
Tim Bresnahan, Landau Professor in Technology and the Economy, Stanford University
Carlos Kirjner, Vice President and Senior Analyst, Internet, Alliance Bernstein
William Kovacic, Global Competition Professor of Law and Policy; Professor of Law; Director, Competition Law Center, George Washington University
Edith Ramirez, Commissioner, Federal Trade Commission
Hal Varian, Chief Economist, Google
Thomas Lenard, President and Senior Fellow, Technology Policy Institute (moderator)
Full Agenda here.

  , Video here.


- EU setting standards for competition policy globally 
- Platform competition and multihoming
- Complements/substitutes
- counterfactuals and harm to competition by innovation
- leadership in the vertical stack
- lesson from MS: from complement to possible substitute
- dangerous competition threats ex-post and ex-ante (Google/Netscape)
- counterfactual analysis when high quality products are given away for free (multi-sided markets)
- screen control and design
- fines' irrelevance
- changing nature of switching costs  (e.g. privacy issues suddenly relevant to Internet users and Google users in particular)
- the importance of behavioural economics in order to understand consumers' actions

Canada modernizes its Copyright Act (beyond the Canadian Copyright Modernization Act)

T. Margoni, here. 

Gesetzliche Verankerung der Netzneutralität in Österreich?

Blog.lehofer.at, hier. 

‘European Square’ iZettle Now Works With Android; Visa Europe Dispute Drags On

Techcrunch.com, here. 

Android Litigation Update

Techrights.org, here. 

2012 EU Survey on R&D Investment Business Trends

Here.

From the Report, p. 12:
"For some sectors, the expected R&D investment changes of the respondents are higher than the growth rates observed in the past (both for the responding companies and the whole sector):  software & computer services (11% p.a. over the next three years), general industrials (6.8%), automobiles & parts (6.0%),
chemicals (5.5%), oil & gas producers (4.6%), aerospace & defence (4.1%), construction & materials (3.8%), technology hardware & equipment (3.5%), and fixed line telecommunications (2.6%).For a few other sectors,
the expected changes are lower than the past growth rates (both for the responding companies and the whole sector): electricity (4.6% p.a. over the next three years) and pharmaceuticals & biotechnology (3.2%)." (emphasis added).

Can this really be true? Patents for TV programme formats ...

Tht IPKat, here. 

Bundeskartellamt verhängt Bußgeld gegen TTS Tooltechnic wegen vertikaler Preisbindung

Pressemitteilung, hier. 

Judge Asks Google to Supplement Its List of Any Paid Folks

Groklaw, here. 

The Impact of Free Music Downloads on the Purchase of Music CDs in Canada

G. Barker, T. Maloney, here. 

Legal Challenge To ICM Registry’s and ICANN’s .XXX gTLD Continues – What Are The Implications For Other gTLD Applicants?

Jdsupra.com, here. 

Monday, August 20, 2012

Replies to Questionnaire on Exceptions and Limitations to Patent Rights

WIPO, here. 

Search, Essential Facilities, and the Antitrust Duty to Deal

M. Lao, here. 

Copyright and the Digital Economy

Australian Law Reform Commission, Issues Paper, here.
Questions, among other hot topics, on cloud computing (p. 26 ff.), transformative use (p. 36 ff.), data and text mining (p. 48 ff.), a broad fair use exception (p. 71 ff.), and contracting out of copyright exceptions (p. 79 ff.).