Trade Commission Report Reveals Few Benefits From the TPP and Ignores its Costs
The White House has been curiously quiet on the Trans-Pacific Partnership front, following its earlier fanfare about the agreement when it was signed in February. Yesterday with the release of the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC)'s almost 800-page report on the TPP's Likely Impact on the U.S. Economy and...
Surveillance Chills Speech—As New Studies Show—And Free Association Suffers
Visiting an art exhibit featuring works about the U.S. war on terror or going to a lecture about Islam wouldn’t be cause for worry—unless you found out that the government was monitoring and keeping track of attendees. At that point, some people would be spooked and stay away, sacrificing their...
Senator’s Inquiry Into Facebook’s Editorial Decisions Runs Afoul of the First Amendment
UPDATE: Facebook's general counsel posted a response to Sen. Thune's letter on May 23, 2016.
Allegations that Facebook’s “trending” news stories are not actually those that are most popular among users drew the attention of Sen. John Thune (R-SD), who sent a letter of inquiry to...
Victory: A Sliver of Light to Be Shed on Patent Case
Court Orders Blue Spike to Explain Why It's Keeping the Public in the Dark
In a victory for the First Amendment and public access to court proceedings, a magistrate judge ruled in favor of EFF’s motion to unseal documents in a patent case in the Eastern District of...
Malaysian Parliament Suppresses Debate on Anti-Blogger Amendments
This week, the Malaysian Parliament went back into session to consider a series of amendments to the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 that, if passed, will further chill online speech and worsen the Malaysian regime's persecution of journalists, bloggers, and activists. The amendments may pass as early as next week,...
Dear Sony Music: It’s Not “Fee Use,” But “Fair Use”
We're pleased to report that Sony Music backtracked on its accusation of copyright infringement against the Hudson Valley Bluegrass Association, and HVBA's educational video remains freely available to the public. But the music label’s response leads us to think that Sony's misuse of copyright and of YouTube’s automated enforcement system...
UPDATE: Thursday Hearing Vacated
Update: This hearing has been vacated. In an order issued late Tuesday, the judge asked for supplemental briefing from the parties. A new hearing date may be set once that briefing is complete.
San Francisco – On Thursday, May 19, at 10 am, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) will...
California's Legislature Wants to Copyright All Government Works
User Content Platforms Take the Heat for Artists' Struggles at WIPO
All this week, EFF has been at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in Geneva, debating with delegates from around the world at the 32nd session of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR). We could write an exhaustive report of the discussions at the meeting...
California's Legislature Wants to Copyright All Government Works
AB 2880 will give state and local governments dramatic powers to chill speech, stifle open government, and harm the public domain.
The California Assembly Committee on Judiciary recently approved a bill (AB 2880) to grant local and state governments copyright authority along with other intellectual property rights. At...
