The blog
Writing & notes
Essays, notes and reflections on technology, law and life.
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Apple Computer v Apple Music:
Apple Computer (maker of the Macintosh computer systems) and Apple Corp (the music publisher founded by The Beatles) have been fighting over the right to use the Apple name and logo since about the mid 1980s. At the time, the companies reached a settlement that permitted Apple Computer to maintain its name and logo, providing… Read more →
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Class Action Initiated against ATI over HDCP Interoperability
According to The Inquirer, United States lawyers have just filed pleadings in a representative suit against ATI Technologies, a manufacturer of computer graphics hardware, in connection with claims made about the interoperability of its graphics cards with HDCP technology. The claim is founded in breach of warranties implied by consumer protection legislation, and alternatively negligent… Read more →
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Wal-Mart Seeks Trade Mark over Yellow Smiley Face Logo
According to BBC News, Wal-Mart has applied for a trade mark in respect of the ‘smiley face logo’ popularised by folk music in the 1970s and presently adorning its employees’ uniforms and other promotional material. However, its application has been opposed by a Massachusetts graphic designer, who claims to have invented the iconic symbol back… Read more →
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Windows XP End User Licence Agreement: Decyphered
The Microsoft Windows XP End User Licence Agreement (‘EULA’) is a well-known example of dense legal drafting. In being so generalised, and endeavouring to cover all possible uses and jurisdictions — from Australian high school students to Chinese nuclear power plants — it isn’t the most accessible document to the general public. Indeed, non-lawyers have… Read more →
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Harriton is Down: Wrongful Life, Damage and The Duty of Care
Although not strictly technology-related, I note with interest that the High Court of Australia today handed down judgment in Harriton v Stephens. In this long-awaited decision, the Court dismissed an action brought on behalf of a child disabled as a result of exposure to the rubella virus in utero. The Court was called upon to… Read more →
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Public Debate at The University of Melbourne
The public debate is an oratory tradition of some standing at the University of Melbourne. I like to think that it brings out the best in interactive (meatspace) scholarship, providing a framework for reflection and catalysing further discussion of the issues. Why this sudden diversion into matters speechification? This Thursday, the Melbourne University Debating Society… Read more →
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Bloggers Targeted by New Clauses in Employment Contracts
After a few corporate embarrassments caused by webloggers last year, certain companies look set to outlaw the practice — both at home and in the workplace. According to one recently-published book, an employer can do so by means of inserting new limiting provisions into employment contracts: “Employers are now considering including specific blogging provisions in… Read more →
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Google Asked to Remove Miro Tribute
From Wendy Seltzer: ‘Searching with Google yesterday, I smiled at its logo, playfully reworked to look like a Joan Miró painting in honor of the Spanish artist’s birthday. His family and Artist’s Rights Society weren’t smiling, the Mercury News reported, asking Google to remove the tribute mid-day. Google honored the request while saying that the… Read more →
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Representative Actions and Technology Goods
Ars Technica examines the class action lawsuit as a mechanism for consumer redress: Class-action lawsuits are common, especially when it comes to tech products. iPods, CDs, DVD rentals… you name the product and chances are someone has filed a class-action suit. There’s no denying it: class-action lawsuits feel good. After all, individual consumers have little… Read more →
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Rambus Wins $306m from Hynix in Semiconductor Patent Case
Rambus has succeeded in a patent claim against Hynix Semiconductor which was ordered to pay US$306.5 million in damages: A jury found that Hynix had infringed 10 of Rambus’ patents in a verdict announced on Monday in [the United States] district court in San Jose, [California]. The award covers compensation for Hynix sales in the… Read more →