News
976 articles
29 September 2016
Harassment through 'confidential' direct mail advertising?
Advertising letters whose external design suggests that they are an important official document are misleading and constitute harassment of the recipient. Therefore, according to the view of the Kammergericht Berlin (KG Berlin), such direct mail advertising must be discontinued.
Read more28 September 2016
Advertising with 'Previous' Price – Unfair Competition Violation?
Advertising reduced prices with reference to the previously applicable price as a 'previous price' is a popular means of prompting customers to make a purchase. Customers are thus presented with a 'bargain'. However, such advertising may also entail the risk of unfair competition. The Regional Court (LG) Bochum had to decide when an unfair competition violation exists.
Read more27 September 2016
Trimmed for Fat – Distortion of a Celebrity Photo?
May photographs by a photographer be altered by means of image editing and then made available to the public on the internet as a parody of the original recorded image, or does this constitute a copyright infringement? Under what circumstances such image editing constitutes an authorized free use of copyright-protected works or whether the use must cease due to the distortion of the work […]
Read more22 September 2016
Medical services at fixed prices?
Is a dentist permitted to offer his services to the public at a fixed price, or does this constitute an anti-competitive violation of the pricing regulations under the Fee Schedule for Dentists?
Read more21 September 2016
No liability for public Wi-Fi
Mc Fadden is not liable to Sony Music for infringement of copyright by third parties who used the Wi-Fi network made available by him to the public.
Read more16 September 2016
Standard ringtone as a sound mark?
Sound marks are somewhat exotic, but are nonetheless capable of registration in principle. Sound marks are acoustic, audible marks, that is to say sounds, sequences of sounds, melodies or other noises and sounds. But what about a standard ringtone? Can it be registered as a Union mark? The Court of Justice of the European Union says no.
Read more15 September 2016
No Licence for Save.tv
The operator of the online video recorder Save.tv cannot demand the conclusion of a contract with private television broadcasters for the retransmission of a 'cherry-picked programme'.
Read more13 September 2016
Reporting on Günther Jauch's adoptive daughters permitted
The Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfG) has decided: The daughters of Günther Jauch must accept repeated naming with indication of their age in the press.
Read more08 September 2016
Link Liability – Decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (EuGH)
Are you liable for links to unlawful content or not? The Court of Justice of the European Union has now taken a position on this.
Read more06 September 2016
Eventim's service fees unlawful
Eventim may not charge service fees exceeding customary shipping costs for the brokerage of event tickets. The Regional Court (LG) Bremen followed the view of the Consumer Centre North Rhine-Westphalia and prohibited such regulations.
Read more05 September 2016
Bushido remains on the index!
Does the album 'Sonny Black' by German rapper Bushido remain on the index of youth-endangering media? Bushido sued the Federal Review Board for this decision before the Administrative Court Cologne.
Read more31 August 2016
Licence fees even for unused and invalid patents
The Court of Justice of the European Union (EuGH) had to decide what the licensee of a patented technology actually pays for. For the use of the patent itself? The possibility of using the technology? Or the right not to be sued? And it came to the latter conclusion. A licensee must therefore also pay the agreed fee if he does not […]
Read more30 August 2016
Liability for misuse of Facebook account?
Is the holder of a Facebook account liable if a third party misuses his membership account and insults other Facebook users in a manner that violates their personality rights? The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Frankfurt a.M. had to decide this question.
Read more25 August 2016
Cleaning Products and Labelling Obligations
When products are advertised, the corresponding legal requirements must be complied with in order to avoid misleading consumers and thus breaching competition law – this also applies to cleaning products. In particular, the CLP Regulation (Classification, Labelling and Packaging) must be observed.
Read more23 August 2016
Revocation of brokerage agreements?
Is a brokerage agreement concluded by e-mail or telephone a distance contract, with the consequence that brokerage customers can revoke such an agreement within the statutory time limits? This was a question the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) recently had to decide.
Read more18 August 2016
Breach of cease-and-desist declaration through Google Cache?
Once a contractually penalized cease-and-desist declaration has been issued, the debtor faces the risk of being held liable for payment of a contractual penalty if he breaches the cease-and-desist declaration. Is a breach to be assumed even if the content that has already been removed is still findable via Google Cache?
Read more17 August 2016
Professional designation "Psychologist" through further training?
May a provider of work-related further training courses advertise their programmes as conferring the professional designation "Business Psychologist (FH)", "Organisational Psychologist (FH)" or "Communication Psychologist (FH)"? An association representing the interests of psychologists considered this to be contrary to competition law, insofar as the further training courses did not build upon university studies in psychology.
Read more09 August 2016
Game Over for Pokémon Go Developer?
Terms of use and privacy policy of the Californian software company Niantic Labs contain clauses that are inadmissible under German law, according to the vzbv. The vzbv has therefore called upon the developers of Pokémon Go to cease and desist.
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