Author Archives: Kevin Maher

About Kevin Maher

Pinterest Stuck With New Lawsuit

Put it on the board!

The latest legal battle in social media could be a pretty sharp one. The popular photo-sharing network Pinterest is being sued by a man claiming that a potential investor stole his ideas. Theodore Schroeder of Ocean City, NJ cites that he met with several people while attempting to expand on his idea of a “board”-related social media site, called RendezVoo. One of these venture capitalists was Brian Cohen, who eventually went on to make a deal with Pinterest which included, Schroeder claims, his own intellectual property. Mr. Schroeder is seeking monetary compensation upwards of $75,000, stating that it took time, money, and other resources for him to continue his attempts to build RendezVoo. Pinterest has countered saying the lawsuit, filed right around the holidays, is “baseless”. Read more

Care to Share: Who Owns Your Instagram Pics?

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Picture problem

You might think twice before uploading your next picture. There is a class-action lawsuit has been filed against Instagram in regards to their newly updated Terms of Service. The photo-sharing company recently announced a change in their TOS that, in some eyes, relinquishes their users’ ownership of personal photographs they chose to upload. In theory, the Facebook-owned company would be able to use any added pictures and images to promote their own brand. The civil suit, based out of Northern California, contends that the pictures’ rights should be retained by the photographer and technically do not belong to Instagram. These proposed changes are scheduled to take effect early in 2013 and include the company’s advertising access to any personal information given by the end user.

A Kodak Moment: Patents To Sell for $525 Million

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Picture this…

It seems that film isn’t the only thing Kodak has been developing recently. The famous digital imaging and photography company agreed to sell their patent portfolio to a large group of companies including Google, Apple, and Facebook. Eastman Kodak, based in Rochester NY, is monetizing their patents to help recover from a recent bankruptcy. Economists are predicting that the $525 million agreement will help Kodak re-emerge from Chapter 11 in the first half of 2013. Amazon, Samsung, and Microsoft are also members of the 12-company group of licensees. Read more

Yelp Lawsuit Raises Freedom of Speech Issue

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A rock-solid lawsuit?

The founding fathers could never have imagined what path freedom of speech has taken since our country’s inception. Case in point, a character defamation lawsuit has been filed against a Yelp user who gave a negative review to a local contractor. The defendant, Dietz Development, claims that online feedback is one of the most important ways a potential buyer or client uses when they make a decision on whether or not to use a service and is seeking $750,000 in damages. The Yelp user, Jane Perez, has been defending her claims in court since late November, stating that she was simply exercising her freedom of speech after what she felt was an unsatisfying service. A Judge in Southern California has ordered her to edit her comments via a preliminary injunction. Read more

Mexican Lawsuit Takes Yahoo South of the Border

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Pleito; that’s Spanish for “lawsuit”

Como se dice “Yahoo” en Espanol? In a recent lawsuit between Yahoo and Mexico’s version of the Yellow Pages, Yahoo has been accused of various counts relating to breach of contract. A judge in Mexico City has brought down a $2.7 billion judgment on the internet corporation. Worldwide Directories and Ideas Interactivas claim that they have been losing profits due to Yahoo and Yahoo de Mexico’s regular business practices. The details of the lawsuit have not become public information; reports out of their headquarters in Sunnyvale, California state that Yahoo does not believe the decision to be final. Read more