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DCMA, FatWallet, and those Thanksgiving sales
Posted by Raul Ruiz on Tuesday, December 03 @ 11:02:53 EST
Contributed by Vacuum
Digital Millennium Copyright Act
Vacuum writes "Declan McCullagh's Politech is reporting that FatWallet, who got slapped with numerous DCMA complaints for posting Thanksgiving sale information early, is fighting back -- by using the DCMA. Argh! Who's saying what to whom??

Full text follows.

Thanks.

From here:
http://www.politechbot.com/p-04208.html

Begin
--

Date: Mon, 02 Dec 2002 14:03:22 -0800
From: "Deirdre Mulligan"
To: declan@well.com
Subject: FatWallet fights back

Declan -- I thought this would be of interest to your readers. As you
know FatWallet received DMCA takedown notices from several major retail
chains requesting that it remove sales prices effective during their Day
After Thanksgiving Sales. FatWallet reluctantly removed the posts to
avoid liability. Today, Megan Gray and the Samuelson Clinic on behalf of
FatWallet sent letters to the retailers contesting their frivolous
copyright assertions and demanding payment, under Section 512(f) of the
DMCA, for all damages, including costs and attorneys' fees, incurred by
FatWallet in addressing the knowing and material misrepresentations of
copyright protection.

In addition, FatWallet has demanded that Wal-Mart withdraw their pending
subpoena, under Section 512(h) of the DMCA, for identifying information
on the individual who posted Wal-Mart sales information. If Wal-Mart
does not withdraw FatWallet will seek to quash it in federal court.

Press release here:
http://www.law.berkeley.edu/cenpro/samuelson/news/pressrelease.pdf

--
Deirdre K. Mulligan
Acting Clinical Prof. and Director
Samuelson Law, Technology and Public Policy clinic
Boalt Hall
University of California
346 North Addition
Berkeley, CA 94720-7200

v 510.642.0499
f 510.643.4625
dmulligan@law.berkeley.edu
http://www.samuelsonclinic.org

--
End"
 
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Re: DCMA, FatWallet, and those Thanksgiving sales (Score: 0)
by Anonymous on Tuesday, December 03 @ 12:47:51 EST
"Using" the 512(f) is not "using" the DMCA in some reprehensible way--it is using one helpful provision (for the accused) in an otherwise controversial law.

Lawyers need to work within the existing law, even if they believe the law is unwise.


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