What becomes of old (popular) Twitch channels, is Walmart getting into the virtual currency game, could 5G mean safer self-driving vehicles, and more …
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The 5G-Enhanced Potential of Augmented Reality Comes with Interesting Legal Issues
In case you don’t know, William Gibson is the prescient science fiction author who effectively coined the terms “the matrix” and “cyberspace” as we currently use them, way back in the early 1980s. He also predicted augmented reality applications. In his 2007 novel, Spook Country, a character has taken to creating “locative art” installations in the real world that can be viewed only through mobile devices that use the GPS grid to create a virtual overlay on top of the real world as recorded through the device. For example, the artist recreates the scene of River Phoenix’s death, complete with annotations, that can be seen when the viewing device is brought to the real-world location where Phoenix died and aimed at the spot where his body was found. A character in the book describes such locative art this way: “Spatially tagged hypermedia. The artist annotating every centimeter of a place, of every physical thing. Visible to all, on devices such as these.” Today, we simply call that “augmented reality”—or AR for short.
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Rulemaking Effort Looks at “Emerging” and “Foundational” Technologies
Since January, Bureau of Industry (BIS) officials have been formulating an analytical framework for establishing controls on emerging technologies (which include biotechnology, artificial intelligence and machine learning technology, quantum information and sensing technology, additive manufacturing, and robotics). Recently on the Global Trade & Sanctions Law blog, colleagues Nancy A. Fischer, Stephan E. Becker, Matthew R. Rabinowitz and Sahar J. Hafeez provided an update on the process, while explaining why the timing of the rule will matter for companies for which export controls (and CFIUS) are a concern.
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CCPA, GDPR and the Future of Cross-Device Tracking
Efforts to regulate cross-device tracking have increased since we last addressed the topic in 2017, following the release of the FTC’s Staff Report. Significant developments include the implementation and enforcement of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), and the fast-approaching implementation deadline for the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA). These regulations, while not targeting cross-device tracking specifically, seek to limit the way in which consumer data is tracked and sold.
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The “Commander-in-Tweet” Returns: When a Social Media Account Creates a Public Forum, Critics Get to Stay
Two years ago, we wrote about a possible First Amendment challenge involving Donald Trump’s practice of blocking certain Twitter users from his @realDonaldTrump account. While it was unclear at the time of our post whether the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University—an organization that uses strategic litigation to preserve the freedoms of speech and the press—would pursue further action, the Knight Institute filed a complaint a few days later in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Trump, then-White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer and Daniel Scavino, the White House Director of Social Media and Assistant to the President. On July 9, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a decision regarding this First Amendment issue.
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News of Note for the Internet-Minded (7/12/19) – Non-Fungible Tokens, VR Aptitude Tests and Alexa Hears You!
Prime phishing day is upon us; Google hangs on to social media aspirations by a Shoelace; the prospects of Apple’s AR glasses get cloudy; and more …
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The Three Biggest (Non-IP) Legal Issues Faced by Blockchain-Based Platform Technology Providers
For all the excitement and promise of blockchain-based technology, it’s vital to remember that the very “newness” of a technology can lead to issues of basic legal compatibility. Few if any technologies magically create their own regulatory framework whole cloth, after all. For this reason, technology providers wishing to use the blockchain—or related distributed ledger technology (DLT)—in their own offerings necessarily must pay careful attention to how their particular blockchain-based technology will interact with the established (and evolving) contracts, laws and customer expectations encountered in the marketplace. Here are three of the biggest issues that await providers:
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Be Careful that Bot Doesn’t Come Back to Bite You
Much like humans, bots come in all shapes and sizes. In social media networks, these bots can like what you post and even increase your followers. Companies use bots for all types of things—from booking a ride to giving makeup tutorials. Some bots can even solve your legal problems. Besides saving time and money, bots have the potential to reduce errors and increase a business’s customer base. But what happens when bots spy on users and share personal information? Or when they make racial slurs and offensive comments?
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UK Privacy Regulator Takes Aim at the AdTech Industry
The UK Data Protection Authority, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), has published an update report on privacy issues around real-time bidding (RTB) and programmatic advertising. The report is a progress update on the ICO’s investigation into the AdTech industry, which it says is one of its regulatory priorities.
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FDA Public Hearing on Regulation of CBD: Are Extract, Processing and Quality Control Technologies Potentially More Important than Ever in the Cannabis Industry?
On May 31, 2019 the FDA held a public hearing about cannabidiol (CBD) products. The day-long hearing saw comments and presentations from stakeholders ranging from nonprofit organizations like ASTM International to the Grocery Manufacturers Association, a food, beverage and consumer product trade association. Corporate entities in the cannabis industry also provided testimony, such as ingredient manufacturer Mile High Labs, which supplies products like CBD isolate and concentrate, and Socati, which provides high-CBD genetic varieties and extraction processes. Pharmaceutical companies like Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Inc., which produces the drug Connect-FX, were also present. Connect-FX is a CBD transdermal gel for treating Fragile X syndrome (Martin-Bell syndrome), a rare genetic disorder that causes developmental problems like intellectual disabilities. It is currently being evaluated as an experimental treatment for use in child patients in clinical trials.