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Telecommunications
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February 27, 2024
Google Owes $12M For Infringing Voice Patents, Jury Says
A Texas federal jury has found that Google should pay $12 million to an app developer's company for infringing several patents that let people call from multiple phone numbers using a single phone.
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February 27, 2024
Consumers Ask 9th Circ. To Revive Qualcomm Antitrust Case
Cellphone buyers are hoping to revive their beleaguered antitrust case accusing Qualcomm of illegal tying schemes to inflate the price of their chips, telling the Ninth Circuit in their new opening brief to reverse the district court's ruling from September or, at a minimum, toss it to the California Supreme Court to decide whether their state law claims are viable.
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February 27, 2024
TV Station Can't Kill Verizon Counterclaims In Carriage Fight
A Rhode Island television station can't dodge counterclaims that it was the one responsible for letting Verizon know that it had been paying retransmission fees to the wrong company, the Massachusetts federal judge overseeing the TV station's lawsuit against Verizon and Nexstar has ruled.
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February 27, 2024
FCC OKs T-Mobile's 2.5 GHz Licenses Over AT&T Objection
The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday signed off, over an objection from AT&T, on a raft of new T-Mobile licenses in the 2.5 gigahertz spectrum band with the condition that T-Mobile divest some spectrum holdings in Hawaii.
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February 27, 2024
Make Sure Net Neutrality Covers Wholesale Service, FCC Told
The Federal Communications Commission needs to ensure wholesale broadband access services are covered by net neutrality rules the commission is expected to adopt soon, a trade group for competitive networks told the agency Monday.
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February 27, 2024
Altice Unit Can't Force Bill Padding Claims To Arbitration Yet
A West Virginia federal judge is keeping a proposed class action accusing Altice subsidiary Optimum of illegal bill-padding in his courtroom for now, denying the company's motion to compel arbitration after the customers amended their complaint and voided all but one named plaintiff.
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February 26, 2024
Google Judge Rips $700M Antitrust Deal: 'It's Not Great'
A California federal judge lambasted a $700 million deal that consumers and state attorneys general struck with Google blocking antitrust claims related to Android apps and the Play Store for 127 million consumers for the next seven years, saying Monday he's "never granted prospective relief" and that plaintiffs "folded" with "four aces."
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February 26, 2024
NIST Widens Cybersecurity Framework To Cover All Industries
The U.S. Department of Commerce agency that developed a landmark cybersecurity framework for critical infrastructure operators announced Monday that it had finalized a long-anticipated update, aimed at helping all industry sectors and organizations, to a voluntary tool to better manage cyber risks.
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February 26, 2024
Clement, Prelogar Odd Bedfellows In Social Media Showdown
After GOP-led states targeted perceived stifling of conservative voices on social media, Monday's oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court could have featured predictable partisan fissures. But the case instead illustrated that legal ideology in the digital age is sometimes surprising.
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February 26, 2024
Ligado Claims Iridium Bias In $40B Spectrum Takings Case
Ligado Networks has pushed back against Iridium Communications' bid to back the government in Ligado's $40 billion lawsuit accusing the government of unlawfully taking over a spectrum it secured exclusive licensing for, saying Iridium had ulterior motives for filing a friend-of-the-court brief.
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February 26, 2024
Apple Antitrust Class Action Gets Early 2026 Trial Date
A California federal judge on Monday set trial in a high-stakes consumer class action antitrust fight over Apple's App Store policies for February 2026, but refused to weigh in on Apple's request to pause certain discovery while the tech giant appeals the judge's recent class certification decision.
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February 26, 2024
Religious Stations Ask Justices To Review Webcast Royalties
Religious webmasters who say that the Copyright Royalty Board's latest rate hike affects them disproportionately want the U.S. Supreme Court to take up their case and decide whether there is religious discrimination at play.
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February 26, 2024
Don't Nix Cash App Referral Text Suit, Consumer Says
Cellphone users alleging mobile payment service Cash App bombarded them with "annoying and harassing spam texts" have told a Seattle federal judge that Cash App's parent company shouldn't be allowed to escape their suit, pointing to recent and "nearly identical" claims against trading app Robinhood that survived a dismissal bid and subsequently settled for a proposed $9 million.
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February 26, 2024
Protect 'Cellular V2X' Technology In Cars, Group Urges Feds
Federal Communications Commission rules need to make sure unlicensed signals don't interfere with the nascent cellular vehicle-to-everything technology, which allows cars to communicate with their environments, a trade group emphasized in a recent letter to the FCC.
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February 26, 2024
Justices Say Social Media Speech Laws Pose 'Land Mines'
The U.S. Supreme Court seemed skeptical Monday of the constitutionality of Florida and Texas laws prohibiting social media platforms from removing content or users based on viewpoint, but struggled with whether the still-developing records in the lawsuits challenging the regulations could support a meaningful ruling on platforms' First Amendment rights.
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February 26, 2024
FCC OKs Frequency Coordination Tech For 6 GHz Band
The Federal Communications Commission is approving a group of applications for automated frequency coordination systems to allow unlicensed, standard power Wi-Fi devices on the 6 gigahertz band, saying the systems showed through rigorous testing that they can use the band without causing harmful interference to incumbent users.
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February 26, 2024
Feds Blacklist Canadian Surveillance Co. Over Egypt Work
The Bureau of Industry and Security added Canadian network surveillance provider Sandvine Inc. to its export blacklist on Monday over the surveillance provider's support to the Egyptian government's program of censorship and political repression.
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February 26, 2024
Bally Sports Parent Gets OK For $495M Settlement, $450M DIP
A Houston bankruptcy judge on Monday approved a $495 million settlement and a $450 million debtor-in-possession financing package for Bally Sports Network's parent company, loading the bases for the broadcaster to file a Chapter 11 plan in the coming weeks.
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February 26, 2024
FCC Tells Reps. Starlink RDOF Application Was Insufficient
The Federal Communications Commission recently told members of Congress that the agency rejected satellite company Starlink's long-form application for about $885 million in rural broadband development subsidies because the company's plan indicated it had trouble meeting speed standards, among other reasons.
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February 26, 2024
Meta Drops Data Scraping Fight Against Israeli Co.
Meta told a California federal judge Friday it's agreed to drop its remaining claim in litigation alleging Israeli company Bright Data unlawfully scrapes user data from Meta's social media platforms to sell to third parties, and Meta also agreed to waive its right to appeal its recent partial summary judgment loss.
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February 26, 2024
$9.7M Financial Network Telemarketing Deal Gets Final OK
A California federal judge granted final approval Friday to a $9.75 million class action settlement against a debt consolidation company and its subsidiaries for telemarketing calls that plaintiffs say violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
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February 24, 2024
Up Next At High Court: Social Media Laws & Bump Stocks
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments related to three big-ticket cases this week in a pair of First Amendment challenges to Florida and Texas laws prohibiting social media platforms from removing content or users based on their viewpoints and a dispute over the federal government's authority to ban bump stocks.
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February 23, 2024
Netflix, Hulu Don't Owe Franchise Fees, Calif. Panel Rules
Netflix and Hulu have again beaten a proposed class action from a California city claiming the streaming providers should be regulated like cable companies and pay franchise fees to localities, with a state appeals court ruling the city had no right to private action under a 2006 statute.
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February 23, 2024
FCC To Again Start Collecting Broadcast Workforce Data
The Federal Communications Commission has voted on party lines to start collecting workforce diversity data from the broadcast industry after a more than two-decade hiatus.
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February 23, 2024
Google Says Innovation Led To Dominance In Closing Brief
Google is telling the D.C. federal judge overseeing the U.S. Department of Justice's monopoly case against the search giant that its innovation and relentlessness are the forces driving its dominance in search, not anticompetitive agreements as the Justice Department has alleged.
Expert Analysis
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How Attys Can Avoid Exposing Their Firms To Cyberattacks
Attorneys are the weakest link in their firms' cyberdefenses because hackers often exploit the gap between individuals’ work and personal cybersecurity habits, but there are some steps lawyers can take to reduce the risks they create for their employers, say Mark Hurley and Carmine Cicalese at Digital Privacy & Protection.
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Virginia 'Rocket Docket' Slowdown Is Likely A Blip
After being the fastest or second-fastest federal civil trial court for 14 straight years, the Eastern District of Virginia has slid to 18th place, but the rocket docket’s statistical tumble doesn't mean the district no longer maintains a speedy civil docket, says Robert Tata at Hunton.
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Broadcast Deal Parties, Beware In-House FCC Hearings
Potential buyers and sellers in the telecom space should take note of the recent collapse of Standard General's attempted takeover of Tegna, which could not find its way out of a procedural maze created by the Federal Communications Commission's administrative law judge review, says Dennis Corbett at Telecommunications Law Professionals.
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5 Management Tips To Keep Law Firm Merger Talks Moving
Many law firm mergers that make solid business sense still fall apart due to the costs and frustrations of inefficient negotiations, but firm managers can increase the chance of success by effectively planning and executing merger discussions, say Lisa Smith and Kristin Stark at Fairfax Associates.
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Opinion
FCC Caller Authentication Rules Are Counterintuitive
The Federal Communications Commission's recently adopted STIR/SHAKEN caller authentication rules were intended to stop robocalls, but are instead causing businesses to lose control of whether they are being identified properly or at all by various terminating carriers, leading to inaccurate labeling of calls, says Ray Pasquale at Unified Office.
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Practical Steps For Compliance Leaders Amid Evolving Risks
As corporate compliance leaders face evolving challenges, from changing regulatory expectations to new technology, they can implement certain action items to optimize their compliance programs for today’s environment, say consultants at Charles River Associates.
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Rethinking In-Office Attendance For Associate Retention
The hybrid office attendance model doesn't work for all employees, but it does for many — and balancing these two groups is important for associate retention and maintaining a BigLaw firm culture that supports all attorneys, says Summer Eberhard at Major Lindsey.
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4 Paths To Defending Calif. Unfair Competition Claims
In its recent Epic Games v. Apple decision, the Ninth Circuit fairly underscored the broad scope of California's unfair competition law, but at the pleading stage and beyond, defendants should give particular consideration to the applicability of four nuanced and UCL-specific paths to resolution, say attorneys at Munger Tolles.
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Fintiv Discretionary Denials Seem To Be Back At PTAB
The significance of discretionary denials in inter partes reviews since the 2020 Fintiv decision has surged and ebbed, but recent Patent Trial and Appeal Board decisions signal a potential comeback — requiring patent litigators to recalibrate their strategies, say Josepher Li and Michelle Armond at Armond Wilson.
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Murdaugh Trials Offer Law Firms Fraud Prevention Reminders
As the fraud case against Alex Murdaugh continues to play out, the evidence and narrative presented at his murder trial earlier this year may provide lessons for law firms on implementing robust internal controls that can detect and prevent similar kinds of fraud, say Travis Casner and Helga Zauner at Weaver and Tidwell.
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Cos. Should Stay Alert After Florida's Mini-TCPA Amendment
Despite an amendment narrowing the scope of the Florida Telephone Solicitation Act to curtail frivolous litigation, businesses that advertise using telephone calls and text messages should still maintain robust compliance, as the law could lead to challenges regarding its meaning and application, says Alexis Buese at Gunster.
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How To Navigate Class Incentive Awards After Justices' Denial
Despite a growing circuit split on the permissibility of incentive awards, the U.S. Supreme Court recently declined to hear cases on the issue, meaning class action defendants must consider whether to agree to incentive awards as part of a classwide settlement and how to best structure the agreement, say attorneys at K&L Gates.
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Firm Tips For Helping New Lawyers Succeed Post-Pandemic
Ten steps can help firms significantly enhance the experience of attorneys who started their careers in the coronavirus pandemic era, including facilitating opportunities for cross-firm connection, which can ultimately help build momentum for business development, says Lana Manganiello at Equinox Strategy Partners.
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Prepping Your Business Ahead Of Affirmative Action Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court's upcoming ruling on whether race should play a role in college admissions could potentially end affirmative action, and companies will need a considered approach to these circumstances that protects their brand power and future profits, and be prepared to answer tough questions, say Nadine Blackburn at United Minds and Eric Blankenbaker at Weber Shandwick.
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Tackling Judge-Shopping Concerns While Honoring Localism
As the debate continues over judge-shopping and case assignments in federal court, policymakers should look to a hybrid model that preserves the benefits of localism for those cases that warrant it, while preventing the appearance of judge-shopping for cases of a more national or widespread character, says Joshua Sohn at the U.S. Department of Justice.