IP: Judge: Yahoo not bound by French Nazi ban

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

> From: Richard Forno <rforno () infowarrior org>
>
> I knew this would never holdup.......rf
>
>
> http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-7815683.html?tag=mn_hd
>
> Judge: Yahoo not bound by French Nazi ban
>
> By Reuters
> November 7, 2001, 8:45 p.m. PT
>
> A U.S. federal judge ruled Wednesday that Yahoo was not bound to comply with
> French laws governing Internet content, a decision which could have broad
> implications for international free speech rights in the Internet age.
>
> U.S. District Court Judge Jeremy Fogel, weighing in on an international
> dispute over Yahoo auctions featuring Nazi memorabilia, said French court
> orders barring such auctions on U.S.-based Web sites would not be enforced.
>
> "We are extremely happy about this," said Mary Catherine Worth, senior
> corporate counsel, International, for Yahoo.
>
> "This has very broad implications for everyone, not only companies but also
> for individuals who operate Web pages here in the United States," Worth
> said.
>
> "Judge Fogel's ruling holds that if you have a U.S.-based Web site, you are
> subject to U.S. law and you are protected by the First Amendment. Foreign
> court orders will not be enforced."
>
> The case, seen as a key test of the evolving rules governing national
> jurisdiction, free speech and online commerce, has led to repeated court
> hearings both in France and in the United States.
>
> France had sought to bar Yahoo's auctions of Nazi items under broad French
> anti-hate speech laws, threatening the U.S.-based site with fines of as much
> as $13,000 per day unless it blocked French citizens' access to the items.
>
> Yahoo protested, saying it ran a French auction site that abides by local
> laws but could not effectively block people in France from going to other
> country-specific sites to access the objectionable material.
>
> The French court disagreed, pointing to technical experts who argued that
> IP-address tracking could spot more than 60 percent of French Internet
> surfers.
>
> Yahoo ultimately agreed to yank the Nazi items from its worldwide auction
> system, a move that was followed by online auction site operator eBay.
>
> But Yahoo also asked Fogel to consider whether French laws could be enforced
> in the United States, noting that the list of items and content that could
> be found potentially offensive in different countries was huge.
>
> Fogel, in his decision reached Wednesday, apparently agreed, extending U.S.
> guarantees of free speech rights to Internet sites seen across the world.
>
> "Today the judge basically he said it was not consistent with the laws of
> the United States for another nation to regulate speech for a U.S. resident
> within the United States," Worth said.
>
> Story Copyright © 2001 Reuters Limited.


For archives see:
http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/