The Year in Software - 2006
FindLawBy The FindLaw Editorial Staff
2006 is coming to a close, and it has been a topsy-turvy year, to say the least.
The world of Legal Technology has also had its share of ups and downs in 2006, with companies spying on their boards, the treasury department spying on money transfers, and the government spying on, well, everyone! With all the spying going on, data security was certainly on everyone's mind in 2006, and several key stories arose out of the inability of comapnies and government agencies to protect their customer and employee data. The new Federal Rules of Civil Procedure also added to the mix with new requirements for companies and other potential litigants to keep in mind as they generate gigabytes and gigabytes of information every day.
We've assembled some of the top software issues that have appeared in the Legal Technology Center over the course of 2006, and we offer them up so you can relive the highs and lows that were 2006. Enjoy, and have a wonderful holiday season and a happy New Year!
Adobe's Document Center Offers Hosted Security Solutions for Legal Professionals
Adobe has made a point of reaching out to legal professionals and other knowledge workers with its recent release of Acrobat 8. Now the company is offering a new, hosted document service that also aims to provide useful features for professionals who need to control access to important electronic documents.
(read more)Motion Picture Studios File Suit To Stop Ripping of DVDS to Portable Video Players
Just when you thought it might be safe to rip DVDs for use on your personal video player, such as an iPod Video, the motion picture studios have just filed a federal lawsuit in New York to put an end to such practices. While the motion picture studios certainly have financial and legal might behind them, the question remains as to whether they will prevail in their lawsuit.
(read more)Open Source Software Survives Antitrust Challenge
Does giving something away violate the Sherman Act's prohibition on predatory pricing? Does encouraging a price of zero constitute price-fixing? No on both counts, according to a recent Seventh Circuit decision in an antitrust suit against companies distributing software under the GNU Public License (GPL).
(read more)Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional: a Revolution for Legal Document Production and Management
It is rare when a new piece of software becomes instantly indispensable for legal practitioners. The release of Adobe Acrobat 8 Professional on November 2 marked just such an occasion.
(read more)Privacy Apps Have Potential to Help, Hinder Attorneys
A number of scandals in recent years have revealed the power of the electronic record. From Enron to the Foley page scandal, email and instant messaging technologies have provided evidence of wrongdoing long after their users had assumed that the information had disappeared into the ether.
(read more)Sixth Circuit Clears Lexis Nexis of Copyright Infringement
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a district court's dismissal of copyright infringement claims by a Michigan law firm against Lexis Nexis regarding legal forms and the software for filling them out. The decision cleared Lexis of infringement, but re-instated a breach-of-contract claim that the district court had dismissed on the pleadings.
(read more)Court Rules Google's Use of Trademarks As Keywords Is Non-Infringing
A federal judge in New York has just ruled that Google's practice of selling trademarks as keywords that trigger links to particular Web sites other than those of the trademark holders does not constitute infringement because Google does not actually "use" the trademarks within the meaning of the law.
(read more)Enterprise Software Licensing from a Legal Perspective
Selling to enterprise organizations provides extraordinary opportunities for software vendors – opportunities to either establish lucrative relationships with reliable customers, or create burdensome “one-off” deals that can cause your organization major headaches.
(read more)When "Free" Downloads Are Also Legal
Free music is now becoming more and more acceptable and mainstream - and believe it or not, it is legal. If this trend continues, it could very well be a long overdue answer to the plight of an arguably devastated music industry.
(read more)Creative Commons – Seeking To Build A Layer of “Reasonable Copyright”
Have you heard of Creative Commons? If not yet, you may soon. Creative Commons consists of a US charitable corporation and a UK not-for-profit company that has the underlying message that “some people may not want to exercise all of the intellectual property rights the law affords them.”
(read more)Microsoft Antitrust Settlement Ready for Distribution
A $1.1 billion antitrust settlement with Microsoft is now available for distribution, according to attorneys at Townsend Townsend & Crew, the San Francisco firm that represented California consumers and businesses. In August 2006, cash vouchers will be sent to Californians who made claims for their share of the settlement proceeds.
(read more)When Redaction Goes Wrong: PDF Follies Lead to Unintended Disclosures
In a motion filed on June 21, 2006, the U.S. Attorney's Office accidentally released information that it had sought to keep confidential through redaction. The mistakes that the U.S. Attorneys made - and the ways to avoid them - are important lessons for anyone who ever works with files in the popular Portable Document Format (PDFs.)
(read more)Pirated Software: Cracking Down On Internet Fraud
Unwitting consumers at times are duped into purchasing pirated software online. This results in substantial lost revenue to the true developers of the software and can lead to consumers obtaining less desirable software than promised.
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