In an effort to bolster its struggling economy, California has joined the ranks of many other states in implementing the “Amazon” tax. California joins New York, Colorado, Hawaii, Connecticut, Texas, Illinois, Arkansas, Rhode Island, and North Carolina in enacting a law that makes online retailers subject to sales and/or use tax obligations as a result of the activities of their in-state affiliates. The Amazon tax is named after the online retailer Amazon.com because the new tax will have the biggest impact on online retailers who sell goods and have affiliates in many states. Amazon has responded by notifying 25,000 California-based…
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Kim Kardashian v. Old Navy, Featuring Robot Vanna White & a Fake Tom Waits
July 25, 2011
The celebrity (although I’m not sure why) Kim Kardashian is suing Old Navy and its parent company Gap, Inc. in Los Angeles federal court for using a lookalike model in their advertisements. Specifically, Kardashian claims that this video violates her rights of publicity by featuring a model who very closely resembles Kardashian. The video itself has generated more than 2 million views on YouTube to date. Kardashian’s suit alleges that the reality TV star “has invested substantial time, energy, finances and entrepreneurial effort in developing her considerable professional and commercial achievements and success, as well as in developing her popularity,…
Avoiding Issues With the New .XXX Domain
July 19, 2011
Recently, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) approved .xxx to join the elite ranks of .edu, .org, and, of course, .com as the next domain extension. As the name implies, .xxx will effectively try to create a voluntary Internet red light district for pornographic websites. It’s not hard to imagine why .xxx would be controversial, but why is .xxx necessary? The reasoning is that it will be far easier for search engines, employers, and schools to block any domains ending in .xxx. While this is good news for schools that want to protect against adult content, it…
Claim Your Domains: The Cheapest, Easiest Way to Prevent Domain Name Issues
July 15, 2011
This is a common tip that I give to all of my clients, but I can’t say it often enough: register common alternatives to your domain name. Don’t zone out on me, this is a big deal. Let’s say you own MyBurrito.com. It’s easy to think of the common variations that your customers might type in when they’re searching for your page: My-Burrito.com MyBurritos.com MyBurrito.net MyBurito.com (not everyone is a world-class speller or typist) Now go back over that list and come up with all the other reasonable variations (My-Burito.net?). Register those domains and have them point back to your…
