Google (NSDQ: GOOG) attorneys argue in the trove of documents unsealed in the long-running legal battle between YouTube and Viacom (NYSE: VIA) that while Viacom “now insists that YouTube is liable because it should have recognized that their content was not authorized, plaintiffs’ own actions defeat that claim.” Specifically, Google…

Two weeks after Apple filed suit against HTC for infringing on 20 Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) patents related to the device, underlying architecture and hardware, the Android-and-Windows-Phone-maker has issued a formal response from its North American headquarters in Seattle. HTC’s CEO Peter Chou said: “HTC disagrees with Apple’s actions and will…

As promised, the FCC has released its proposal for a National Broadband Plan that it will deliver to Congress tomorrow. In the six-page executive summary, it lays out ambitious goals that includes rewriting laws and policies that would enable more Americans to be connected to the internet—wired or wirelessly—at affordable…

The lawyers at United Online-owned Classmates.com are busy; the social networking site is paying up to $9.5 million, along with $1.3 million in legal fees, to settle a class action lawsuit charging that it violated members’ privacy rights. TechFlash—which first reported the settlement—says the site sent free subscribers promotional e-mails…

China has now reiterated its position in its standoff with Google (NSDQ: GOOG)—and it looks like all that remains is for Google to finally make its move. China says it won’t let Google operate an unfiltered search engine in the country. The latest statement from a government minister (via CNET):…

Looking for real-time data of its own, the FCC (yes, the regulatory body in Washington, D.C.) has released a mobile app for iPhone and Android. Don’t worry, the feds aren’t interested in listening to your phone conversations, rather they say the purpose of the app is to provide “Americans with…

The album’s not dead yet - well, not in Pink Floyd’s case at least. A judge has ruled in favour of the prog rock band, which went to the UK High Court for the right to have its material sold online only the form of albums, not individual singles, which…

Google’s proposed (and now delayed) acquisition of mobile ad network AdMob appears to be drawing even more regulatory scrutiny from the FTC. Bloomberg cites sources who say that regulators now want “sworn declarations” from Google (NSDQ: GOOG) competitors about the $750 million deal. The key sentence in the Bloomberg report…

In an appearance this morning at a Seattle breakfast event, former FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, now a partner at Patton Boggs, was careful not to offer any jabs at the current administration. Instead, he focused on the current administration’s plans for rolling out a new national broadband plan, scheduled to…

Litigious EMI may have avoided a court showdown with yet another digital music startup (it’s settled a case over lyrics data with TuneWiki), but it’s also fighting a case brought against it by one of its own artists… Pink Floyd has two beefs, according to some rather bare-bones reporting of…

Google’s announcement last month that it would build “ultra” high-speed broadband networks in the U.S. has generated interest from cities who want the tech jobs (and prestige) that would likely come if Google (NSDQ: GOOG) were to select them as a trial location. To be considered, cities must fill out…

TiVo (NSDQ: TIVO) won another court round against Dish and EchoStar (NSDQ: SATS) when two members of a three-judge federal court panel sided with a lower court ruling that the satellite companies are in contempt of a permanent injunction prohibiting infringement on its DVR patents. But the fight, ongoing in…

The International Trade Commission will have first dibs on deciding whether Nokia (NYSE: NOK) or Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) are infringing on each others’ patents, a federal judge has decided. Yesterday, a Judge in Delaware agreed to put the patent claims between Apple and Nokia on hold, pending a resolution before…

While no one wants to wake up to the news that Apple—one of the most successful consumer brands—has filed a lawsuit against you, in this case, little-known HTC must have celebrated just a tiny bit. In 13 years, the Taiwanese has grown to more than 9,000 employees worldwide, including 3,000…

More legal wrangles for Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) over patents as the smartphone market continues to heat up. The iPhone maker is suing rival handset maker HTC, which makes devices using both Android and Windows platforms, for infringing on 20 Apple patents related to the device user interface, underlying architecture and…

Google (NSDQ: GOOG) has loudly suggested that Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) is behind the European Commission’s preliminary antitrust inquiry into Google’s practices. Microsoft’s response: So what? “Complaints in competition law cases usually come from competitors,” writes Microsoft Deputy General Counsel Dave Heiner in a blog post. “This is the way that…

It certainly has not been the best week for Google (NSDQ: GOOG) in Europe: The EC opened a preliminary antitrust inquiry against the company, three of the company’s executives were sentenced to jail terms in Italy—and now the Article 29 Working Party—which represents data protection officials from EU members countries—has…

It’s rare that calm, measured Google (NSDQ: GOOG) uses animated language in matters of corporate strategy. But, in a blog post, it says an Italian court’s sentencing of three of its execs to suspended jail terms is “astonishing” and “outrageous”. The case, as we have reported before, concerned a video…

Google (NSDQ: GOOG), which has faced three antitrust inquiries in the U.S. over the last year, is now facing its first in Europe. The WSJ says that the European Commission has opened a “preliminary probe” into Google at the behest of three European competitors, including Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) subsidiary Ciao,…