EU Regulators Seeking Feedback Before Revising E-Commerce Directive

EU regulators are seeking feedback from users and digital service providers before drafting rules that could rein in Google, Facebook, Amazon, Uber and other tech companies, an EU document seen by Reuters showed. A 43-page questionnaire to be sent to members of the public, digital services providers and EU governments in coming weeks covers topics such as the power of “gatekeepers”, online platforms’ liability for illegal or harmful content, gig economy workers and transparency around online advertising.

European Countries Considering Contact Tracing Tech from Apple, Google

The continent that helped lead a backlash against Silicon Valley’s appetite for personal data is increasingly aligning itself with technology built by Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google to blaze a path out of the coronavirus pandemic. The embrace of Apple and Google protocols by European countries contrasts with the approach in the U.S., where state and local authorities are taking the lead on digital contact-tracing efforts.

Zuckerberg Says He's Worried About Countries Regulating Internet

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said he is “worried” that other countries may be trying to imitate China’s approach to regulating the internet. “Just to be blunt about it, I think there is a model coming out of countries like China that tend to have very different values than Western countries that are more democratic,” Zuckerberg said during an hourlong video conversation with European Union Industry Commissioner Thierry Breton.

Ubisoft Sues Apple, Google for Selling Ripoff of 'Rainbow Six: Siege' Game

Ubisoft Entertainment SA sued Apple Inc. and Google LLC, accusing the companies of selling a ripoff of its popular video game “Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege.” “Area F2,” created by Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd.’s Ejoy.com, is a “near carbon copy” of Rainbow Six: Siege, and that can’t be “seriously be disputed,” Ubisoft said in a complaint filed in federal court in Los Angeles.

Judge Gives Preliminary Approval to $500M iPhone Performance Settlement

A California federal judge preliminarily approved Apple's $500 million deal to end multidistrict litigation accusing the company of releasing software updates that slowed down the performance of certain iPhones, but extended the final approval deadlines in light of the coronavirus pandemic. During a hearing held via Zoom's videoconferencing tool, U.S. District Judge Edward J. Davila told the parties he wants to extend the final approval deadlines by a few weeks due to the COVID-19 crisis and he told them to meet and confer about proposing a new date for a final settlement approval hearing that would take place sometime in December.

Justice Department, States Preparing Antitrust Lawsuits Against Google

The Justice Department and top state attorneys general are likely to file antitrust lawsuits against Google in the coming months, according to two people familiar with the matter, as regulators prepare to take more aggressive aim at the tech giant’s search-and-advertising empire. The federal case could come as soon as the summer, said the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss a law-enforcement proceeding that had not been finalized.

Google Removes News Articles Based on Bogus Complaints, Analysis Finds

The Wall Street Journal identified hundreds of instances in which individuals or companies, often using apparently fake identities, caused Google to remove links to unfavorable news articles and blog posts that alleged wrongdoing by convicted criminals, foreign officials and businesspeople in the U.S. and abroad. Google took them down in response to copyright complaints, many of which appear to be bogus, the Journal found in an analysis of information from the more than four billion links sent to Google for removal since 2011.

Pompeo Faults China for Online Efforts to Steal Coronavirus Research

The United States condemned attempts by China-linked “cyber actors and non-traditional collectors affiliated” to steal U.S. intellectual property and data related to coronavirus research, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. “The PRC’s behavior in cyberspace is an extension of its counterproductive actions throughout the COVID-19 pandemic,” Pompeo said in a statement.

FBI Gets Warrant to Seize Sen. Burr's Cellphone in Stock Trade Probe

Federal agents seized a cellphone belonging to a prominent Republican senator on Wednesday night as part of the Justice Department’s investigation into controversial stock trades he made as the novel coronavirus first struck the U.S., a law enforcement official said. Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, turned over his phone to agents after they served a search warrant on the lawmaker at his residence in the Washington area, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a law enforcement action.

ACLU Wants House to Revisit Vote on Warrant for Web Browsing Data

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is calling on the House to revive an amendment that would block law enforcement from being able to access web browsing data without a warrant after the measure fell short by one vote in the Senate. The amendment was introduced by Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) during debate on legislation reauthorizing three intelligence programs that lapsed earlier this year.

France to Start Digital Tax This Year, Calling It 'Legitimate and Necessary'

France will tax big digital businesses this year whether there is progress or not towards an international deal on a levy, its finance minister said, adding such a tax had never been more legitimate or more necessary. Nearly 140 countries from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) are negotiating the first major rewriting of tax rules in more than a generation, to take better account of the rise of big tech companies such as Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Google that often book profit in low-tax countries.

TikTok Accused of Violating Children's Privacy Agreement with FTC

TikTok, the popular app for making and sharing short videos, has flouted an agreement it made with the Federal Trade Commission to protect the privacy of children on the service, a coalition of 20 children’s and consumer groups said. Last year, TikTok agreed to make major changes to settle charges that one of its predecessor companies, Musical.ly, had violated the federal children’s online privacy law.

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The GigaLaw Firm helps companies of all sizes protect their brands online, using domain name dispute policies – such as the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) – and other legal tools available to copyright and trademark owners on the Internet.