News of the Week; March 18, 2020

DIGITAL

1. Law Commission of Ontario recommends sweeping changes to law of defamation to address challenges of internet age
2. LCO recommends new regime for online defamation
3. French antitrust watchdog hits Apple with its biggest fine ever: $1.2 billion
4. SoftBank Owned Patent Troll, Using Monkey Selfie Law Firm, Sues To Block Covid-19 Testing, Using Theranos Patents
5. The Internet is drowning in COVID-19-related malware and phishing scams
6. Capitalism’s Addiction Problem: The biggest, best-known companies in the digital economy are getting their users hooked on their products – and undermining the pillars of America’s market economy.
7. Why Tech Might Actually Be The Solution To Capitalism’s Addiction Problem
8. Online Harms Part 1: The new regulatory framework requiring businesses to protect online users against harm
9. Another Troubling Courtroom Loss for Online Marketplaces–Massachusetts Port Authority v. Turo (Eric Goldman)
10. Online Platforms Sidestep Claims over User Content Decisions and Social App Functions
11. As Politicians Are Still Looking To Destroy The Internet, Covid-19 Reminds Us Why Social Media Is Not Just Good, But Saving Lives
12. Burning The Ladder: Match.com Supports Burning Section 230 To The Ground, Despite Relying On It To Exist
13. TikTok Moderation Guidelines Show Users Were Punished For Political Content, Being “Ugly” Or “Slummy”
14. Invisible Censorship: TikTok Told Moderators to Suppress Posts by “Ugly” People and the Poor to Attract New Users
15. As Legal Dispute Intensifies, Early ‘Hype House’ Star Looks To Launch Rival TikTok Group
16. Insights: Taking TikTok Hype Houses Mainstream—What Could Go Wrong?
17. 80% of TikTok’s Ad Spend is Dedicated to Snapchat, Reports MediaRadar
18. New York Attorney General Continues Aggressive Enforcement Over Coronavirus Claims
19. The Tort of Conversion in the Electronic Age: A Case Study
20. Social Media Promised To Block Covid-19 Misinformation; But They’re Also Blocking Legit Info Too
21. People In Kashmir Can’t Access Coronavirus Information Because The Government Is Crippling The Internet
22. Why is Meetup helping people organize meetings during a pandemic?
23. Major tech platforms say they’re ‘jointly combating fraud and misinformation’ about COVID-19
24. How Wikipedia Prevents the Spread of Coronavirus Misinformation: A group of hawk-eyed experts operate on a special track to monitor medical information on the site.
25. Android surveillanceware operators jump on the coronavirus fear bandwagon
26. Verily’s COVID-19 screening site goes live, is already over capacity
27. Facebook was marking legitimate news articles about the coronavirus as spam due to a software bug
28. Reputable sites swept up in FB’s latest coronavirus-minded spam cleanse [Updated]
29. Facebook Pledges $100 Million To Small Businesses Affected By Coronavirus, Partners With WHO To Remove False COVID-19 Content
30. Here’s how social media can combat the coronavirus ‘infodemic’: Facebook and Twitter are major sources of Covid-19 news. They’re also where misinformation thrives. How can platforms step up?
31. Facebook is shutting down MSQRD, the AR selfie app it acquired in 2016
32. Instagram’s IGTV Reaching Out To “Emerging” Creators For Ad-Share Tests This Spring
33. Facebook announces $100 million program for small businesses impacted by coronavirus
34. Facebook unleashes the legal hounds against deceptive web domain names
35. It’s Not Just the Content, It’s the Business Model: Democracy’s Online Speech Challenge
36. Apple Music Signs New Licensing Deals With Majors
37. Apple Music reaches new deals with major labels sans “Apple Prime” bundle agreement
38. Apple’s WWDC is happening this year after all—but it has a new format
39. Apple’s WWDC to take place entirely online: Conference will be held in June with online keynote and sessions
40. There Are No Plans To Cancel Or Postpone VidCon, Organizers Say
41. Social Media Influencer Marketing and FTC Enforcement
42. Spotify Patents A Voice Assistant That Can Read Your Emotions
43. Google and Verily clarify their roles in the US coronavirus response [UPDATED 3/15]
44. YouTuber Loses Lawsuit Over Channel Termination–Mishiyev v. Alphabet
45. YouTube Closes Some Content Moderation Offices Due To Coronavirus, Warns Creators It’s Temporarily Relying On Automated Systems
46. YouTube Warns Video Takedowns Could Be Higher During Coronavirus Crisis
47. YouTube Warns That, Thanks To Covid-19, It’s Handing Over More Content Moderation To The Machines And They Might Suck
48. Here’s Why Google Broke Out YouTube’s Ad Revs For The First Time Last Quarter
49. YouTube Officially Removing ‘Trending’ Tab From Mobile App In Favor Of ‘Explore’
50. Top 50 Most Viewed YouTube Channels Worldwide • Week Of 3/16/2020
51. Will Wall Street Get In The Way Of Jack Dorsey’s Lofty Plans To Turn Twitter Into A Protocol?
52. Fox Sells Stake In Roku To Purchase Ad-Supported Streamer Tubi For $440 Million
53. Snapchat Introduces DIY Augmented Reality Tool for Brands: Advertisers can customize Lens Web Builder with logos, images
54. Snapchat joins forces with WHO to combat coronavirus misinformation
55. Twitter Will Increase Its Use of Automation Tools as It Looks to Ensure Accuracy in COVID-19 Discussion
56. World Health Organization Launches Daily Livestreamed Concert Series With Coldplay, John Legend, More
57. Amazon Music launches analytics for artists with a mobile app
58. What it’s like to own Vancouver’s last two video stores during a pandemic
59. Amazon hiring 100,000 warehouse workers amid coronavirus boom
60. Coronavirus Is Speeding Up the Amazonification of the Planet: As restaurants, bars, and local shops close down, platform-based monoliths are vacuuming up customers and jobs
61. World Health Organization Launches Daily Livestreamed Concert Series With Coldplay, John Legend, More
62. Netflix Suspends All Scripted Productions In U.S., Canada
63. Netflix Party lets you have movie night while social distancing
64. Coronavirus Shutdowns Could Increase Viewers’ Content Consumption By 60%, Per Nielsen Data
65. Competition Law and Online Sales Restrictions: UK Court of Appeal Judgment in Ping
66. Online casino fined £3 million for “systemic” AML failings
    
67. Sonos Backs Off Plan To Brick Older, Still Functioning Speakers
68. Bill Gates steps down from Microsoft board
69. Bill Gates steps down from Microsoft board of directors: Corporation’s co-founder will focus more on his philanthropic activities
70. Bitcoin loses 21 percent of its value in broad cryptocurrency rout

A.I.

1. AI is an Ideology, Not a Technology: At its core, “artificial intelligence” is a perilous belief that fails to recognize the agency of humans.
2. Gabe Newell on Brain-computer Interfaces: ‘We’re way closer to The Matrix than people realize’
3. How can machine learning be applied to game development?
4. Coronavirus: Social giants police web with AI as staff sent home
5. “High-risk AI”: A European approach to excellence and trust
6. The challenges of Artificial Intelligence in the field of IP
7. Who owns AI creations? Comment on WIPO’s ‘Draft Issues Paper on Intellectual Property and Artificial Intelligence’ (Guido Noto La Diega)
8. Identifying the Legal and Business Risks of Disinformation and Deepfakes: What Every Business Needs to Know

COMMUNICATIONS

1. TELUS Corporation obtains court order to hold virtual-only shareholder meeting
2. California AG Announces Settlement Agreement with T-Mobile and Sprint
3. US Cable Companies Lost 5 Million Paying Customers Last Year Alone
4. AT&T waives data cap during coronavirus; Comcast keeps charging overage fees
5. US ISPs Drop Usage Caps, Pledge To Avoid Kicking Users Offline During Coronavirus
6. Comcast and T-Mobile upgrade everyone to unlimited data for next 60 days
7. Comcast’s Broadband Market Domination Continues To Grow
8. Charter engineer quits over “reckless” rules against work-from-home
9. Amid pandemic, T-Mobile gets emergency access to Dish’s 600MHz spectrum
10. AT&T CEO pay rose to $32 million in 2019 while he cut 20,000 jobs
11. Patient Distancing: The Critical Role Telehealth Will Play During the Coronavirus Pandemic
12. President Trump Signs Legislation to Enhance Efforts to Secure U.S. Telecommunication Networks
13. President Trump Signs Huawei/ZTE Replacement Funding Legislation; FCC Pushes for Necessary $1 Billion Appropriations Bill
14. FCC’s 2018 Abolition of Main Studio Rules Means Broadcast Studios Do Not Need to Be Open to the Public During Coronavirus Outbreak
15. After deregulatory blitz, FCC scrambles to prevent ISP abuse during pandemic
16. President renominates FCC commissioner O’Rielly
17. Data From Italy, China Suggests The US Internet Isn’t Likely To Choke On COVID-19 Broadband Usage Spike

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

1. Volunteers 3D-Print Unobtainable $11,000 Valve For $1 To Keep Covid-19 Patients Alive; Original Manufacturer Threatens To Sue
2. Industry Committee Recommends Adding Digital Lock Exception to USMCA Copyright Provisions (Michael Geist)
3. False Start for Paparazzi in Copyright Suit
4. Cruz v. Cox Media Group: District court holds Cox Media Group liable for copyright infringement due to publication of bystander’s photograph of 2017 terrorist attack in conjunction with news story, finding no fair use.
5. LinkedIn Appeals Important CFAA Ruling Regarding Scraping Public Info Just As Concerns Raised About Clearview
6. After A Long Climb, Led Zeppelin Prevails In The Stairway To Heaven Copyright Battle
7. Is “This Land is Your Land” in the Public Domain?
8. The Freewheeling, Copyright-Infringing World of Custom-Printed Tees: Print-on-demand companies allow anyone to upload designs for T-shirts, mugs & other items. But many images violate I.P. rights.
9. Cofemel decision applied for the first time by UK court
10. The Philadelphia Phillies Are Phighting for Their Rights to the Phanatic
11. March Madness Trademarks: Avoiding a Foul Call from the NCAA (2020 Update – Part 1)
12. March Madness Trademarks: Avoiding a Foul Call from the NCAA (2020 Update)(Part 2 – Even if the Tournament is Off)
13. Google’s Servers Hosted by Third Parties Do Not Establish Patent Venue
14. Failure to Mark Can Put Damages Underwater
15. Protecting Trade Secrets During a Pandemic
16. Natural Language Processing
17. Former Refrigerator Manufacturer Says Companies Using Open Source, Royalty-Free Video Technology Must Pay To License 2,000 Patents
18. Patent Marking – Federal Circuit Clarifies Noncompliance is not Cured by Ceasing to Sell Products or by Willful Infringement
19. 2020: A Busy Year for CRISPR Patents at the EPO
20. Firm wielding Theranos patents asks judge to block coronavirus test [Updated]
21. After Theranos suit, Fortress makes patents available on royalty-free basis for COVID-19 tests
22. Softbank-Owned Patent Troll Now Promises To Grant Royalty-Free License For Covid-19 Tests; Details Lacking
23. True or false: testing limits of comparative advertising
24. Patent-Eligible Improvements to Computer Functionality Must Be Directed to an Improvement of the Computer or Network Platform
25. Claims Using Naturally-Occurring Phenomenon in Method of Preparation Found Patent Eligible
26. Choosing Advocacy over Candor Renders Patent Unenforceable
27. Unitary Patent and Unified Patent Court – Is it all over or is there a Plan B?
28. The Growing Importance of International Arbitration for Intellectual Property Disputes
29. Intellectual property law: a year in review
30. As Congress Explore New Awful Copyright Plans, Maximalists Look To Rewrite The History Of SOPA/PIPA

PRIVACY

1. Why the Coming Battle Over Canadian Privacy Reform Starts at Home (Michael Geist)
2. Housebound Blues: Considering the Privacy and Data Security Consequences of Remote Work
3. Clearview Was A Toy For Billionaires Before It Became A Toy For Cops
4. Best Practices for Maintaining Employee Privacy Regarding Covid-19
5. The government might want your phone location data to fight coronavirus. Here’s why that could be okay.: Privacy advocates want restrictions on how much phone location data the government gets from tech companies.
6. How China built facial recognition for people wearing masks
7. Since The FBI Can’t Be Bothered To Do It, Motherboard Has Compiled A Database Of Attempts To Access Encrypted IPhones
8. We need privacy and data laws to tackle this global pandemic
9. TikTok Says New ‘Transparency Center’ Will Invite Outside Experts To Observe Its Content, Data Practices
10. What industries utilize opt-in cookie banners the most, and the least?
11. High-stakes security setups are making remote work impossible
12. Study ranks the privacy of major browsers. Here are the findings
13. Local Government Employee Fined For Illegally Deleting Item Requested Under Freedom Of Information Act

CREATIVITY   

1. Eighth Circuit Serves Another Round of First Amendment Protection for Alcohol Advertising
2. China Expels U.S. Journalists
3. Insane: China Expels American Journalists In Ridiculous, Unhelpful Spat About Covid-19

GAMES

1. The coronavirus pandemic has sparked a rise in online gaming in the U.S.
2. Gaming Usage Up 75 Percent Amid Coronavirus Outbreak, Verizon Reports: Video streaming has also seen a bump, up 12 percent during peak usage hours.
3. Crunching devs share the human cost of development at Naughty Dog
4. Dreams dev testing the waters of letting players monetize their work
5. F1 drivers and other pros switch to esports in the age of the coronavirus
6. Board finds that Nintendo Joy-Cons don’t infringe on Gamevice controller patents
7. Nintendo wins patent dispute against Gamevice: Patent Trial and Appeal Board invalidates all 19 of mobile accessories maker’s claims against platform holder
8. Nintendo tells employees to self-quarantine: Measure taken after employee in Redmond, Washington offices tests positive for novel coronavirus
9. Nintendo staff working from home after employee tests positive for coronavirus
10. Ittle Dew 2+ returns to Nintendo Switch: Former publisher Nicalis denies allegations it attempted to re-publish title without permission
11. Animal Crossing: New Horizons review: A quarantined life has never been cuter
12. Nexon to close down MapleStory 2 global servers this spring
13. Gaming and live streaming rise globally amid COVID-19 crisis: Games industry in a strong position to weather pandemic, say analysts
14. A short history of banned games in Germany: Beiten Burkhardt’s Andreas Lober explores Germany’s fractious relationship with video games — and the age rating issues that still lie ahead
15. The developer of Journey bucks the trend of “predatory” monetisation
16. What a WoW virtual outbreak taught us about how humans behave in epidemics
17. Call of Duty: Warzone crosses 15 million players in four days
18. Call of Duty: Warzone surpasses 6 million players in 24 hours
19. Call of Duty: Warzone hits six million users in 24 hours – Activision’s free-to-play battle royale launch dwarfs competition
20. Free press advocates unveil new library of censored works — in Minecraft
21. Reporters Without Borders builds censorship-free zone in Minecraft: The press freedom group will publish articles censored in their country of origin via in-game books
22. Samsung is discontinuing its PC-to-phone game streaming app PlayGalaxy Link
23. Samsung scraps PlayGalaxy Link streaming service: Games streaming service canned after five-month beta trial period, ends March 27
24. Why culturalisation matters as much as localisation: Kate Edwards discusses how to approach culturalisation, and how to navigate sensitive themes so your game can reach wider markets
25. The four pillars of good representation: GDC 2020 – Proletariat’s Tori Schafer offers key considerations for studios including LGBT+ representation in their games
26. Forza creative director on the hardest part of fostering inclusivity: Dan Greenwalt talks about the never-ending work of creating a workplace where developers feel safe to call out mistakes
27. GameStop cancels in-store events indefinitely in response to COVID-19: But employees reportedly struggle with lack of cleaning supplies or emergency sick leave
28. 505 Games, Activision, Nintendo 2019’s Best Publishers Says Metacritic, Sony Not in Top 20
29. February US sales down 29%, says NPD: Tracking firm reports no new releases cracked the top 20 as every platform saw hardware sales drop year-over-year
30. UK Monthly Report: GTA V reigns again as The Division 2 bounces back in February: Software market drops more than 15% and console sales continue to tumble
31. Niantic updates Pokémon Go in effort to limit coronavirus spread
32. Niantic just made it easier to play Pokemon Go in self-isolation
33. Pokémon Home grosses $2.6m in first month: US leads in player spend and installs as total downloads exceed 2.3 million
34. Monster Hunter World: Iceborne ships 5m units: Series lifetime sales exceed 62 million as Iceborne expansion maintains strong performance
35. Doom Eternal is a masterful twitch shooter symphony with one sour note
36. Doom Eternal: Critical Consensus: Id Software’s latest shows brilliance in its bombast, but dabbles in platforming and world building with less success
37. Google details what you need to play Stadia games in 4K on the web: Mac users need not apply.
38. Blog: Nvidia’s brilliance, Google’s foresight, and the necessity of adding something new
39. UK Charts: Nioh 2 takes No.1 as Mario Kart 8 races up the charts
40. Assassin’s Creed Unity was one of the best-selling games in the world last month: Latest EMEAA charts puts Ubisoft’s 2014 title at No.1
41. Lego teams up with Nintendo for Super Mario brick-based game
42. Lego Super Mario toys announced: New line incorporates interactive electronic character with traditional building block elements
43. Pokimane, DrDisrespect sign multi-year Twitch exclusivity deals: Two top streamers opt to remain while other popular names move to YouTube, Mixer, Facebook
44. Twitch Indefinitely Bans Lifestyle Streamer Kaceytron For Coronavirus Comments
45. Ubisoft, EA, Bethesda, and more enact remote working policies due to COVID-19
46. Twitch Partners With Measurement Firm Comscore To Amp Up Ad Data
47. Coronavirus-induced school and office closures have been great for Twitch streamers
48. Esports: how can travel businesses take advantage of this exciting new market?
49. EA, Rockstar, others shift to remote working amid pandemic: FIFA publisher also cancels all live events until global situation improves
50. Square Enix warns of Final Fantasy VII Remake shipping delays: Worldwide release still set for April 10, but publisher says it’s “increasingly likely” that copies may be delayed in delivery
51. Genvid Technologies secures $33m in Series B funding round: Interactive streaming developer backed by Samsung, Huya and NTT Docomo
52. Miniclip acquires UK mobile studio Eight Pixels Square
53. Miniclip acquires Eight Pixels Square: UK mobile developer joins Swiss development and publishing outfit
54. Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Critical Consensus: Kind, community escapism just when we needed it
55. Overwatch League cancels all March and April live events in response to COVID-19: Scheduled matches will still be played and broadcast online
56. Call of Duty League cancels all scheduled live events due to COVID-19: All planned matches will go forward online-only, with live broadcasts
57. Fullscreen’s Dustin Glass Exits To Head Gaming For Digital Video-Focused Reach Agency
58. Twitch Dives Into Exclusive Livestreaming Deal With Dr DisRespect
59. Back-end engine developer Pragma closes $4.2m seed round; LA-based startup provides “back-end as a service” solution set to launch later this year
60. Making remote work work: Two developers from Endless’ global workforce focus on communication, trust, and culture in distributed development
61. GDC 2020 virtual talks, awards streaming for free all week! Here’s the lineup
62. Microsoft Build conference, DOTA and League of Legends esports among latest events to be cancelled
63. Microsoft drops full Xbox Series X tech specs, reveals ‘storage expansion cards’
64. Xbox Series X specs revealed, aims for “a minimum doubling” over Xbox One X: Microsoft’s upcoming console will also dramatically improve the performance of current and previous gen games
65. Xbox announces, retracts Thanksgiving 2020 launch for Series X: Larry Hryb says Microsoft is “committed to launching holiday 2020”
66. The new Xbox Wireless Controller will reduce latency and allow instant sharing
67. Going for speed: The load-busting, lag-limiting tech of the Xbox Series X
68. Sony details PlayStation 5 tech specs in extensive ‘deep dive’
69. 5 highlights from PlayStation’s big PS5 system architecture deep dive
70. Sony lays out more PS5 details: Mark Cerny talks about the promise of system’s 825GB SSD and Tempest 3D Audio Tech, offers details on backwards compatibility and expanded storage
71. PlayStation’s switch to a SSD for the PS5 aims to ‘give the game designer freedom’
72. Sony details PS5’s fast SSD, variable clock rates, 3D audio tech [Updated]
73. Ex-Vainglory devs raise $2.5m for Bazooka Tango: Seed funding will help new studio create debut title set in Vainglory universe, built in Super Evil Megacorp’s engine
74. A year without E3 is a chance to take stock | Opinion: The ESA’s show has failed to articulate what function it will serve to the modern industry — this year’s cancellation will force that discussion to happen
75. Epic Games acquires facial animation tech studio Cubic Motion
76. Epic acquires Cubic Motion: Unreal Engine maker picks up the company behind facial animation tech in God of War and Hellblade – Senua’s Sacrifice
77. Manticore Games is building a “truly level playing field” for game development: CEO Frédéric Descamps hopes to disrupt game creation in the way that YouTube and Twitch did broadcasting
78. Deca Games acquires DragonVale following Backflip Studios closure
79. Stuck at home? Binge on some “War Stories” gaming videos!
80. Don’t Miss: Neo Cab and the effort to make an empathetic game about gamification
81. Don’t Miss: The story behind Remedy’s viral dog mocap star
82. Don’t Miss: A 2012 look at CDPR’s Cyberpunk plans, and lessons learned from The Witcher
83. Don’t Miss: Evolving the combat design of id Software’s Doom Eternal
84. Don’t Miss: Naughty Dog’s Jak and Daxter: the Precursor Legacy postmortem
85. Video: Making better games by understanding human error 
86. Report: AR Startup Magic Leap is Looking for a Buyer
87. Magic Leap looks for buyers
88. Report: AR headset maker Magic Leap exploring a sale at $10 billion valuation
89. Games industry raised over $5.5m for Australian bushfire relief; Humble Bundle, Call of Duty DLC and Bungie T-shirts lead fundraising efforts
90. Red Magic 5G gaming smartphone has 144hz display, internal cooling fan
91. Video Gaming/E-Gaming Law Update
92. U.S. Patent no. 10,286,314: System and method for providing continuous gameplay in a multiplayer video game through an unbounded gameplay session
93. BAFTA opts for online-only game awards as COVID-19 concerns grow
94. Untitled Goose Game nabs Game of the Year at the 2020 Game Developers Choice Awards!

Jon