Hi, here is your weekly round-up of highlights from Out-Law News. As always, there are plenty of other stories from this week at http://www.out-law.com. You can also access our archive of weekly emails at http://out-law.com/en/newsletter/weekly-round-up/ The Out-Law Team ***This week's highlights from Out-Law News*** TMT & Sourcing and IP 1. MEPs not immune unless comments directly relevant to duties, says ECJ Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) may not be granted legal immunity on opinions they express unless there is an obvious, direct link between the comments and the performance of their parliamentary duties, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled. 08/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/meps-not-immune-unless-comments-directly-relevant-to-duties-says-ecj/ 2. EU ministers likely to back performer copyright extension today EU ministers will today vote on whether to approve a change to EU law that would extend copyright in sound recordings from 50 to 70 years. 07/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/eu-ministers-likely-to-back-performer-copyright-extension-today/ 3. Spamhaus award reduced from $11m to $3 A UK anti-spam company that had previously been ordered to pay more than $11 million in damages for 'blacklisting' a US marketing company will only need to pay a nominal $3 amount following a US court ruling. 07/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/spamhaus-award-reduced-from-11m-to-3/ 4. Original Bucks Fizz members lose trade mark battle over name The public would be likely to be confused if three original members of Bucks Fizz were allowed to register a trade mark that included the band's name, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has ruled. 06/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/original-bucks-fizz-members-lose-trade-mark-battle-over-name/ 5. Advertising watchdog reports soar in complaints since online remit was widened The UK's advertising watchdog has received a surge in the number of complaints it has had to investigate since it was given oversight of digital marketing regulation, it has said. 06/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/advertising-watchdog-reports-soar-in-complaints-since-online-remit-was-widened/ 6. Ofcom asked not to include general right to appeal under Digital Economy Act code The Government has asked Ofcom to avoid giving alleged copyright infringers a general right of appeal against warning letters they may receive about their online activity in new regulations due out shortly, the telecoms regulator has said. 05/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/ofcom-asked-not-to-include-general-right-to-appeal-under-digital-economy-act-code/ Energy 7. Commission proposes stricter third party energy rules Governments negotiating major energy deals with countries outside the European Union may need to get approval from the European Commission under proposed new rules. 08/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/commission-proposes-stricter-third-party-energy-rules/ Employment 8. Security concerns leading UK businesses to clamp down on social media, study says Almost a third of UK companies block or discourage employees' social media access at work, according to a new study. 06/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/security-concerns-leading-uk-businesses-to-clamp-down-on-social-media-study-says/ Banking & restructuring 9. Ringfencing's economic impact 'not likely to be vast' but profitability could be affected, report says Forcing banks to separate their retail and investment operations will only have a limited impact on the UK economy despite bankers' concern, a new report says. 06/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/ringfencings-economic-impact-not-likely-to-be-vast-but-profitability-could-be-affected-report-says/ Projects & construction 10. Reported concerns over would-be academy's PFI payments should be cleared up, says expert A Sheffield secondary school rebuilt ten years ago through a private finance initiative (PFI) has had to delay its transition to academy status as a result of legal concerns, according to industry reports. 05/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/reported-concerns-over-would-be-academys-pfi-payments-should-be-cleared-up-says-expert/ Regulatory 11. EU report to assess anti-corruption enforcement measures A new bi-annual report will help tackle EU corruption, the European Parliament has said. 05/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/eu-report-to-assess-anti-corruption-enforcement-measures/ Corporate 12. Most top companies miss deadline for women on boards commitment Just eight of the top 100 UK companies have formally announced that they will meet a target of having women occupy a quarter of board places by 2015, according to research. Nearly half of those companies are meeting current targets, it found. 05/09/2011 http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2011/september/most-top-companies-miss-deadline-for-women-on-boards-commitment/ ***About this email*** This is a weekly email for subscribers of Out-Law.com, a website with more than 10,000 pages of free legal news and guidance. If and when you need further advice, we hope you'll choose Pinsent Masons (http://www.pinsentmasons.com), the law firm behind Out-Law.com. Feel free to forward this email to your friends. If someone forwarded this email to you and you'd like your own subscription, register free at http://www.out-law.com. Existing subscribers: you can manage your profile at http://www.out-law.com/page-520. The email address for this subscription is <>. Feel free to give us your feedback by replying to this email. To unsubscribe, please reply with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line. (We'd also appreciate you telling us why you've decided to unsubscribe.) 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