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This week's news on Out-Law.com
TMT & Sourcing & IP
Courts cannot force ISPs into broad filtering and monitoring for
copyright-infringing traffic, ECJ rules
Courts cannot force ISPs into broad filtering and monitoring for copyright-infringing traffic, ECJ rules
Court injunctions that force internet service providers (ISPs) to filter and
monitor user traffic in order to prevent illegal file-sharing are contrary to EU
law and fundamental rights, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has said.
24/11/2011
Technology companies can stifle competition through use of IP rights, EU Commissioner says
The EU's Competition Commissioner has raised concerns that technology companies
can use intellectual property (IP) rights to stifle competition.
24/11/2011
Feasibility study into digital copyright exchange launched
A report into how a new digital copyright exchange (DCE) could work will be
submitted to the Government before Parliament breaks up for summer next year,
the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has said.
23/11/2011
Content mining copyright exemption would harm UK business, publishers claim
Allowing people to use computers to 'mine' vast banks of copyrighted material
would damage the economy, the UK Publishers Association has said. It wants to
block an exception to copyright law for the practice.
22/11/2011
Proposed US copyright laws threaten innovation, growth and cybersecurity, brands say
Several major internet companies have expressed their "concern" at draft US laws
that aim to combat online copyright infringement by foreign websites.
18/11/2011
Traffic management practices must not be anti-competitive, European Parliament says
The European Parliament has adopted a resolution promoting the principles of an
"open and neutral" internet.
22/11/2011
Employment
Reduced consultation periods and overhauled tribunal system proposed as part of
'radical' employment law changes
The 90 day minimum consultation period for collective redundancies may be
restricting business and could be reduced as part of the most radical reform to
employment law for decades, the Government has said.
24/11/2011
Government report proposes independent assessments and job-brokering for long term absent
An independent service should assess employees who are signed off work with
long-term health conditions, a Government report has recommended.
22/11/2011
Projects and Construction
Current PFI projects will not be affected by review, Treasury confirms
The Treasury's current review of the way in which private sector funding is
harnessed for public infrastructure projects will not affect projects that are
already operational, the Treasury has confirmed.
22/11/2011
Pensions
Excluded workers not all entitled to retrospective pension scheme
membership, says Court of Appeal
Women who had been excluded from a pension scheme but did not join it within
three months of being allowed to are not entitled to retrospective membership of
the scheme, the Court of Appeal has ruled.
21/11/2011
Tax
General tax avoidance prohibition should be introduced, report says
General tax avoidance prohibition should be introduced, report says
The Government should consider introducing a general anti-avoidance rule (GAAR)
into the UK tax system, an independent report has recommended.
21/11/2011
Property
Government Green Deal anticipates £14bn private sector investment in energy
improvements for buildings
Government Green Deal anticipates £14bn private sector investment in energy improvements for buildings
Proposals setting out the details of the Green Deal, a Government-backed scheme
established by the Energy Act that will enable new energy efficiency measures to
be installed at no up-front cost, have been announced by Energy Secretary Chris
Huhne.
24/11/2011
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