Whereas

Weekly Whereas: Kindle, Kiwis and Simplifying Contractual Processes

• Is a Kindle 2 wireless reading device in your future? I used to think I would always want the feel of print books and magazines. Well, I use my iPhone for a lot of reading these days (mainly RSS feeds) and I've gone almost completely paperless in my law practice, so maybe I'm coming around to this idea. But is the reading of text against copyright law? The Authors Guild is bothered by this. Some views here and here. 

• New Zealand's controversial Internet/copyright law is placed on hold - this after website and twitter blackouts.

• Adam's Drafting has an article on retooling your contract process for the downturn that I find fascinating. I have helped many of my clients over the years to simplify their contract process, saving them money and time and helping them to focus on the business relationship. This is sound advice for times like these.

Copyright and fair use of the Obama's iconic image

The latest big fair use lawsuit involves President Obama's red and blue iconic image ("Hope") that has been everywhere throughout the election and beyond. Did the artist use the AP's image fairly, according to copyright fair use law? The Fair Use Project at Stanford Law School, representing the artist, is seeking a declaration that its all ok. Oh, and by the way, the other wrinkle in this case is whether the freelancer who took the photograph actually assigned the copyright in the photo to AP.

Eric Goldman's talk to students about social networking and blogging

Today, Eric Goldman, Associate Professor and Director of the High Tech Law Institute at Santa Clara University School of Law (where I earned my JD/MBA), gave a talk about social networking and blogging to law students. The group that he spoke to was the Student Intellectual Property Law Association (SIPLA) - oh, how this brings back memories. I was Vice President of the SPLPA when I was in law school and we were just getting the program off the ground.

He posted his slides and a great bibliography of previous materials he has posted about these subjects. I have been a reader of Eric's Technology & Marketing Law Blog for a long time now, and really appreciate the compilation of resources for bloggers and social media fans. In the compilation is a list of Bay Area Blawgers - I'm heading to a meet up with some of these writers in March and am looking forward to adding some great new feeds to my Google Reader and friends IRL (in real life...if you're not sure what that means).