News & Insights (Copyright & Media Law)

Public Interest (Reynolds) Privilege

We have a fresh batch of content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the ...

Privacy reform and Flood v Times - Taylor Wessing analysis

In this media law update, we analyse the recommendations of the UK parliament's Joint Committee on Privacy and Injunctions on how ...

Cookies - preparing for compliance

We have a fresh batch of content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the ...

Google not liable for defamatory content on its Blogger.com platform – conflicting decisions from the English High Court

Tamiz v Google Inc [2012] EWHC 449 (QB) Eady J (2 March 2012) and Davison v Habeeb [2011] EWHC 3031 (QB) HHJ Parkes QC (25 ...

Defamation Bill Update: The UK Government responds positively to the Joint Committee's report

Taylor Wessing analyses the UK Government's response on the draft Defamation Bill. Key issues that are covered ...

Patents in mobile devices

We have a fresh batch of content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the ...

Child sport stars can be public figures, says English High Court

Spelman v Express Newspapers [2012] EWHC 355 (QB) The English High Court has lifted a privacy injunction awarded to Jonathan ...

Radar: Technology & Communications Update - March 2012

Following the release of the draft EU Data Protection package, we take a lookat some of the key issues and challenges it ...

Social networks and ISPs are not required to install general filtering systems to prevent copyright infringement

Social networks and ISPs are not required to install general filtering systems to prevent copyright infringement SABAM v Netlog ...

FAPL v Mrs Murphy and QC Leisure - The Premier League wins

Introduction Well, it was a hell of a match, a battle even, between the publicans and the suppliers of their foreign decoder ...

Opportunities for the insurance market: media risks - part two

The Taylor Wessing insurance group, in conjunction with its media group, commissioned a survey designed to assess the extent to ...

Two European privacy judgments tilt balance towards freedom of expression

Axel Springer AG v Germany and Von Hannover v Germany (No. 2) The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in Strasbourg has ...

Opportunities for the insurance market: media risks - part one

The use of evolving technology has led to previously unforeseen risks for companies and other commercial organisations. The use ...

Preparing for 2012

We have a fresh batch of content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the ...

Brands Update - February 2012

This issue of Brands Update contains recent important cases from the UK and Community tribunals on registrability of trade marks ...

Copyright in a photograph of a red bus travelling over a black and white Westminster Bridge

What copyright protection do photographs of common scenes have in the UK and how far does that protection extend? These are the ...

Fundamental overhaul of EU data protection regime unveiled

A package of draft measures aimed at fundamentally overhauling and harmonising the EU’s data protection regime has been published ...

Radar: Technology & Communications Update - January 2012

We’re starting the year with a ‘what to expect’ preview.  In the current climate, trying to predict what lies ahead seems ...

Connecting 2011 and 2012

We have a fresh batch of content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the ...

Radar: Technology & Communications Update - December 2011

In our last issue of 2011, we cover the latest developments in two areas which have been recurring themes of the year: online ...

Are your French domain names protected?

New opportunities and restrictions apply from 6 December 2011 As of 6 December 2011, the registration of .fr (France) domain ...

More free speech protection, earlier dispute resolution and lower costs recommended!

Report of the UK's Joint Committee on the draft Defamation Bill Taylor Wessing summarises the report and provides commentary on ...

Radar: Technology & Communications Update - November 2011

This month’s issue covers two interesting CJEU judgments which are particularly relevant to online publishers, as well as ...

Where can claimants obtain pan-European relief against online publishers for infringement of privacy?

The CJEU's decision in Olivier Martinez v MGN Limited C-161/10 (25 October 2011) If an article on an English newspaper's website ...

Freedom of Speech on the Web

We have a fresh batch of content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the ...

Taylor Wessing launches dedicated Tech City office

Delayed libel claim struck out as abuse of process

Adelson v Anderson and Unite Here! [2011] EWHC 2497 (QB)         The High Court has struck out ...

Kiss 'n' tells and the public interest

Rio Ferdinand v MGN Limited [2011] EWHC 2454 (QB) Can the publication of a kiss and tell story involving a well-known footballer ...

Radar: Technology & Communications Update - October 2011

This month, we look at a case on keyword advertising and at the Government’s plans for the new Communications Act. We’ve also ...

Radar: Technology & Communications Update - September 2011

It’s been a rather more eventful summer news cycle than usual this year what with the phone hacking scandal and the riots. ...

Gambling

We have a fresh batch of content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the ...

"Publishing Law" co-authored by Christopher Benson of Taylor Wessing is published by Routledge

Star Wars: Supreme Court extends its empire against UK defendants, but not the force of UK copyright

The UK Supreme Court's much anticipated decision in the Star Wars Stormtroopers case (given on 27 July) has implications in two ...

Brands Update - July 2011

The Summer issue of Brands Update contains recent important cases from the UK and Community tribunals on registrability of trade ...

ISP ordered to block access to file-sharing website

The High Court's decision in Twentieth Century Fox v BT The High Court has ruled, in the first decision of its kind in England, ...

Honest comment: The single meaning rule and additional imputations

Lait v Evening Standard Limited [2011] EWCA Civ 859 Summary In a judgment handed down on 28 July 2011, the Court of Appeal ...

Copyright in newspaper headlines and short extracts

The Court of Appeal's decision in NLA v PRCA / Meltwater The Court of Appeal has given its keenly awaited judgment in the NLA v ...

TV and Internet Convergence

We have updated the content on our Taylor Wessing Download site which provides insights into the legal implications of the latest ...

Super-injunctions and anonymised injunctions – what next?

The last couple of weeks have been tantalising for anyone with even a vague interest in privacy law. Key highlights have been Max ...

What’s in the Hargreaves’ Report and what could it mean in practice?

Professor Ian Hargreaves’ report "Digital Opportunity – A Review of Intellectual Property and Growth" was published on ...

Over complexity and funding gap: potential stumbling blocks for Hargreaves' Digital Copyright Exchange

The Hargreaves Review published today recommends that the Government bring together rights holders and other business interests ...

Lessons from Mosley v United Kingdom

A victory for free-speech but a Strasbourg seal of approval for the UK's current privacy regime As has been widely reported, the ...

Radar: Technology & Communications Update April 2011

Radar covers a wide range of subjects relevant to technology and communications law, from matters of general interest and ...

The Government's proposals to reform civil litigation funding and costs in England and Wales

The Government will abolish the recoverability of CFA success fees and after the event insurance premiums in all civil ...

Competition regulators clear Project Canvas

Ofcom and OFT give Freeview-on-demand joint venture green light On 19 October 2010 Ofcom announced that it would not investigate ...

Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less?

The OFT starts a long-awaited investigation into the sale of e-books The OFT has finally responded yesterday to the growing ...

Advertising Minutage – it's about quantity not quality

The Chief Executive of Ofcom, Ed Richards described TV as "the cockroach of the internet revolution" at the recent ...

The return of the Global IP Index

The Taylor Wessing Global Intellectual Property Index (GIPI) team are delighted to announced the opening of the GIPI3 survey. ...

When can tweeting and blogging be in contempt of court?

Media coverage of the murder of Joanna Yeates has focused the attention of journalists and lawyers on the Contempt of Court Act ...

Surfing the social media wave

In the Surfing the social media wave (published by Scrip 100 on January 7th 2011) Tim Worden talks about some of the social media ...

Has Strasbourg Court toppled the no win, no fee regime in media cases?

On 18 January 2011, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg ruled that the costs claimed by supermodel, Naomi ...

InFocus: Life Sciences & Healthcare e-newsletter - January 2011

Welcome to the January 2011 edition of InFocus, the Life Sciences and Healthcare newsletter. This month we discuss: Sold Out - ...

High Court rules that there is copyright in headlines and short extracts

The Implications In late November, the High Court delivered its judgment in the Newspaper Licensing Agency Limited (the NLA) v ...

Pharma and Social Media – What Does 2011 Hold?

2010 was the year in which the FDA had said they would issue some guidance on the use of social media by pharma.  It was ...

Ministry of Justice announces timetable for the Defamation Bill and likely costs reform

On Monday, the Government published the Ministry of Justice’s business plan for the period 2011-2015. Among other things, the ...

David Cameron faces European constraints in introducing a US fair use copyright exception

David Cameron announced last week that there will be an independent review into how the UK’s intellectual property system can ...

MPF award for Taylor Wessing's commitment to sustainability

Taylor Wessing is celebrating after winning the Sustainability Reporting category at the prestigious MPF European Practice ...

Hotels: Social networking & apps – don't get left behind

Hotels are increasingly turning to social media and mobile phone applications ('apps') as key initiatives to build brand loyalty, ...

"Dangerous" Intellectual Property Myths

Most people these days have heard of intellectual property (or at least copyright).  Whilst the general public's awareness ...

Faster, cheaper IP litigation?

From 1 October 2010, a new procedure becomes available in the English Patents County Court (‘PCC’). It is intended to permit more ...

LEGO Block

Lego has lost its appeal to the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Yesterday, the ECJ upheld the General Court’s finding that the ...

What's in a link? English law issues with linking online

Linking is a hot topic at the moment, in particular with the NLA's ongoing dispute with Meltwater over its news aggregation ...

Stricter rules for German employee data protection

Use of Facebook to be made illegal in making hiring decisions Germany continues to tighten its data protection rules for ...

Who is The Stig?

A court case to protect the secret identity of Top Gear driver 'The Stig' was itself surrounded by secrecy today. The hearing at ...

Brands Update - Summer 2010

Brands Update containing the latest cases from the UK and Community tribunals on registrability and infringement.

Gagging bid thrown out

A German doctor who killed the Cambridgeshire pensioner David Gray with an overdose of a painkiller has lost his bid to gag Mr ...

Europe to rule on whether social networking sites must monitor user generated content

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is expected to rule next year on whether a social networking site must monitor user generated ...

Notional licence fee not the correct measure of damages for infringing CD covermount

This case concerned a CD covermount which included recordings of songs performed at a Jimi Hendrix Experience concert (the Band’s ...

Cancellation of sale agreements, not a level playing field yet

The recently published Executive Council Decree No. 6 of 2010 changes the way in which sale and purchase agreements (SPAs) for ...

Online Behavioural Advertising - EU call for cookie consent may be a privacy ‘own goal’

Background Directive 2002/58 on Privacy and Electronic Communications (the E-Privacy Directive), is a 2002 EU directive on data ...

Mr Justice Tugendhat explores what "defamatory" means in a media friendly ruling

In an important ruling on what "defamatory" means, Mr Justice Tugendhat granted the Telegraph Media Group Limited ...

It’s time for defamation proceedings to ditch the jury

The recommendation in Lord Lester’s Defamation Bill that the presumption of trial by jury be reversed, and the recent decision of ...

The Online Copyright Infringement Obligations Code

The Digital Economy Act 2010 ("DEA") was given Royal Assent on 8 April 2010. The DEA contains a number of provisions ...

Court of Appeal rules that Channel 4 v Fiddes trial will go ahead without jury

The Court of Appeal has today upheld a controversial decision that the high-profile Channel 4 libel trial must go ahead without a ...

Reforming English libel law: What is in Lord Lester's Bill?

The Coalition Government has pledged to review libel laws to protect freedom of speech. Given this pledge, we are watching with ...

Football Fixture Lists: English High Court Rules that Database Copyright Subsists

The English High Court ruled last Friday that database copyright (but not database right) subsists in the fixture lists of the ...

Important Changes to the UK Advertising Regime

The Advertising Standards Authority, the self-regulatory body responsible for governing advertising in the UK, has recently ...

Tentative Steps - A plain legal guidance framework will empower the move to online opportunities

In 2009, pharma first dipped its toe into the uncertain waters of social media. With luck, in 2010 some guidance will emerge from ...

Product placement is unbanned, well almost - with exceptions

The UK government has formally reversed its previously announced ban and will join the rest of the EU (other than Denmark) and ...

CFC Proposed Reforms - impact on IP Rich Groups

On 26 January 2010, the Government published a Discussion Document outlining its current thinking on the reform of the United ...

UK Government Consultation proposes to slash Conditional Fee Agreement Success Fees by 90%

Hot on the heels of Jackson’s LJ's "Review on Civil Litigation Costs", which was published last week, the Ministry of ...

Extension of "No Real and Substantial Tort" Defence to Libel Claim

Peter Williams v Mirror Group Newspapers [2009] EWHC 3150 (QB)

Online publisher successfully relies on the EU hosting defence for unmoderated user comments

Karim v Newsquest Media Group (27 October 2009) English High Court (Eady J) Is an online publisher liable for unmoderated ...

Twitter announces new brand protection tools (World Trademark Review)

Timothy Pinto and Damian Simpson discuss Twitter's plans to provide companies with new brand protection tools and marketing data ...

Risks of Publishing Archive Photographs Online

This High Court decision published this month may be of interest - Grisbrook v MGN and others (16 October 2009). The case ...

Promoting your business - a legal checklist

The checklist is designed to help you spot potential issues and lower legal risks. It is intended for anyone who is involved ...

Adwords opinion favours Google

On 22 September 2009, the long anticipated Opinion in the three joined Google France references to the European Court of ...

Liability for user-generated content

With the popularity of social networking sites, discussion boards and other such sites, user-generated content ('UGC') ...

The Whiter Shade of Pale case

(Fisher v Brooker)

Protecting Your Rights on Facebook

IP Think Tank - The Global Intellectual Property Index 2009

In this special edition of the IP Think Tank podcast Roland Mallinson and Nigel Stoate chat to Ben Lehman about the just-released ...

Domain Name May Defeat Company Name or Trademark Rights

On April 24, 2008, the German Federal Court of Justice rendered a decision regarding an allegation of infringement of company ...

Is the ECJ "diluting" brand owners' rights?

In response to a reference from the English Court of Appeal, led by Jacob L.J., the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has given its ...

Germany: Amended copyright law looks to the future

Dr. Stefan Freytag on amendments in German copyright law, IP Today, December issue 2008

Brands Update - October 2008

Taylor Wessing's Head of trade marks, copyright and media is listed in The 1000 London's Most Influential People

Taylor Wessing's Head of trade marks, copyright and media, has been listed in the up and coming law section of the Evening ...

"All change please!" - Sweeping new UK legislation on unfair commercial practices comes into force on 26 May 2008

Criminal liability for unfair business-to-consumer ('B2C') commercial practices and misleading business-to-busines ('B2B') ...

Taylor Wessing wins key victory for leading UK newspaper group, Associated Newspapers

Third Edition of the Definitive Guide to Publishing Law co-written by Taylor Wessing solicitor, Christopher Benson, launched

The missing link: Problems of trademark protection for famous signs in sports

Implications of the judgement of the ECJ in Adidas-Salomon AG & others v Fitnessworld Trading Ltd and of the German ...