Law

UDRP Dilemma In Proving Bad-Faith Domain Registrations - Part I

The purpose of the Uniform Dispute Resolution Policy, known as the UDRP (hereafter the Policy), is to determine disputes relating to the registration or acquisition of domain names in bad faith. Under the Policy, the complainant must establish that (i) the disputed domain name is identical with or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the complainant has rights; (ii) the domain name registrant has no right or legitimate interest in respect of the domain name; and (iii) the domain name was registered and is being used in bad faith.

Whilst requirements (i) and (ii), at first glance, do not appear difficult to meet, it is not the same with requirement (iii). In fact, a serious problem arises for the complainant when a registrant has registered domain names in bulk, but has not used them i.e. they have not been resolved to any active website. more

Domain Name Typosquatter Still Generating Millions

Ever visit cartoonneetwork.com? Adaptac.com? Check the URLs carefully, for these aren't the "real" sites operated by the Cartoon Network cable channel or by Adaptec, manufacturer of PC storage devices. Instead, these domains -- and some 5,000+ others -- were registered by a Mr. John Zuccarini. Read on to learn what he is up to and how he has gotten away with it. more

US Senators Move to Shield Undersea Internet Cables from Global Threats

A bipartisan Senate bill seeks to strengthen U.S. oversight and global coordination to protect undersea fiber-optic cables, vital infrastructure increasingly targeted by geopolitical adversaries, natural disasters, and cyber or physical sabotage. more

The hiQ Decision Legalized Infrastructure Theft - We Need a Federal Fix

The hiQ ruling erased legal protections against commercial scraping, leaving infrastructure providers to absorb escalating costs. Without federal action defining data misappropriation, a free-rider AI economy could undermine open networks, investment, and long-term data integrity. more

Google’s Lighthouse Lawsuit - Disrupting the Cybercrime Supply Chain

Google's lawsuit against the Lighthouse phishing syndicate exposes the industrial scale of cybercrime, highlighting how criminals exploit easy access to digital infrastructure to scam millions. The broader supply chain enabling such operations demands urgent reform. more

Polish Presidential Veto Threatens Starlink Continuity in Ukraine

Earlier this week, Poland’s new President, Karol Nawrocki, vetoed amendments to the Act on Assistance to Citizens of Ukraine, provoking debate over critical satellite connectivity. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Affairs Krzysztof Gawkowski warned that the veto “de facto switched off Starlink for Ukraine,” potentially disrupting connectivity for hospitals, schools, and government operations. more

AI in Academia: Tool or Trap? Balancing Innovation and Intellectual Honesty in the Digital Age

AI has revolutionized how we process information, optimize tasks, and conduct research. However, its integration into academia sparks ethical and practical debates. Should we limit its use? How can we assess a student's true knowledge if they employ these tools? This text explores these questions from the perspective of a technology expert who argues that banning AI is as absurd as rejecting calculators or spreadsheets in the past. more

Disconnecting Finance: The EU’s Risky Use of Domain Takedowns as Regulatory Weapon

The European Union is increasingly wielding domain name deletions as a tool of financial enforcement - a trend sparked by the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) and now spreading across other legislative efforts such as the Financial Data Access Framework (FiDA) and the Payment Services Regulation (PSR).  more

Breaking Ground: Historic Launch of UN Global Mechanism for Cyberspace Governance

The international community has long struggled with the challenge of translating international law into actionable norms and practices in cyberspace. The conclusion of the United Nations Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) on the security of and in the use of information and communications technologies 2021-2025 marks a vital milestone in that ongoing process.  more

Have LLMs Broken Fair Use?

Two sets of authors sued Anthropic and Meta in San Francisco for copyright infringement, arguing that the companies had pirated their works to train their LLMs. Everyone agreed that a key question was whether fair use allowed it, and in both cases, the courts looked at the fair use issue before dealing with other aspects of the cases. Even though the facts in both cases were very similar, last week, two judges in the same court wrote opinions, coming to very different conclusions. How can that happen? Is fair use broken? more

Digital Sovereignty in a Fragmenting Internet: What Role Should WSIS+20 Play?

As the global digital order enters an era of intensifying geopolitical tension, debates over digital sovereignty have re-emerged as a defining fault line in Internet governance. At stake is not merely who controls data or infrastructure within national borders but whether the vision of a globally interoperable, open Internet, one of WSIS's founding principles, can be meaningfully sustained. more

Reviling Universal Service Subsidies and Then Showcasing the Results

Today, the Supreme Court will consider a challenge to the universal service subsidy program established soon after the introduction of telephone service by the AT&T Bell System and later officially adopted by the FCC as mandated by a 1996 law.1, 2 Universal service funding supports access to telephone and broadband service by subscribers in rural locales that commercial ventures will not serve absent a subsidy. more

11 Information Economy Policy Reversals Coming to a Marketplace Near You!

In the wake of the election, sweeping policy shifts in the information economy are set to accelerate. Expect fast-tracked FCC reforms, Starlink subsidies, and AI-driven oversight to redefine media, tech, and regulatory landscapes. From relaxed antitrust to intensified media control, these eleven reversals signal a move toward deregulation and Chicago School libertarianism, with lasting impacts on U.S. markets and governance. more

Colombia Avoids $350 Million Lawsuit Over “.co” Domain Dispute

Colombia has successfully defended itself against a $350 million lawsuit filed by U.S. company Vercara, formerly known as Neustar, in a legal battle over the management of the ".co" internet domain. more

Internet Archive Loses Their CDL Appeal

The Internet Archive's Controlled Digital Lending (CDL) lends out scans of physical books, ensuring that each scan is lent to one person at a time. Publishers sued, and the Archive lost thoroughly in April 2023. The Archive appealed the decision to the Second Circuit court in New York. As I said at the time, the appeal seemed like a long shot since that is the same court that said that Google Books was OK, mostly because it didn't provide full copies of the books. more