Suppliers & Distributors & Disputes
Amazon Pulls More Than 4,000 e-Books from Online Marketplace
In a dispute over e-Book discounts, Amazon has decided to stop offering e-Books published by Independent Publishers Group in its online marketplace. IPG is the nation’s second largest independent publisher, and has refused to come to terms with Amazon in a dispute over a contract renewal. The problem for IPG is that Amazon’s Kindle accounts for 60% of all e-book sales. If they don’t give in to Amazon’s demands, they lose out on a majority of the market. IPG has told its publishers to stress to their consumers that their content is available from Barnes & Noble, and Apple, among other places. This story is a reminder that businesses must proceed with caution when they develop products that are dependent upon cooperation from other businesses. Perhaps IPG should have negotiated for better terms, or a longer term, in its previous contract with Amazon. Now that Amazon has a dominating market share, it has great leverage in contract negotiations.
Privacy Policies & Mobile Apps
California’s AG Reaches Deal with Mobile Device Makers Requiring Apps to Have Privacy Policies
Apple, Google, Amazon, Hewlett-Packard, Research In Motion, and Microsoft have all agreed to begin requiring that all of their respective apps contain individual privacy policies. While the tech giants made the deal to comply with California state law, it is expected that the changes will be applicable nation-wide. As part of the agreement consumers will have the opportunity to read the terms of the privacy policies prior to purchase of apps.
CAN-SPAM & Computer Crime Law
Social Media Startup Violated CAN-SPAM; Is Now at Mercy of Facebook
In Facebook v. Power Ventures, a federal court ruled that social media startup Power Ventures violated CAN-SPAM and anti hacking law when it created a web browser that would sync with social media profiles. Facebook brought the suit because when the startup created a new web application that synchronized all of a user’s social media profiles, it did so in violation of Facebook’s terms of use policy. The violation of the terms of use apparently constitutes a violation of California state computer crime law. The Court also determined that Power Ventures violated CAN-SPAM when it utilized Facebook to send out “misleading” commercial messages that encouraged users to send out event invitations to join Power Ventures. The messages were found to be misleading because they appeared to becoming from Facebook, the company, and not from the individual users. As the Electronic Frontier Foundation put it, “This means that any user who sends a commercial message on Facebook is technically in violation of the law, since it appears to come from Facebook.”
Regional News
New Tech Incubator in Seattle
Surf Incubator has leased the entire eighth floor of the Exchange Building in downtown Seattle. Surf Incubator has 15,000 square feet of office space where, “digital entrepreneurs write software, network with peers, receive advice from experienced professionals, attend seminars, recruit talent, and generally do all the things necessary to launch a successful startup!” The incubator launches this March, offers office space for $300/month, and has an open house tomorrow night from 5:30-6:30. Earlier this week our satellite blog the Seattle Small Business Lawyer’s blog wrote about the potential benefits of co-working spaces. Surf Incubator seems like it will be a great new option for Seattle tech companies seeking a co-working environment. If you’re interested in Surf Incubator, you can apply via their website.
