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Welcome to the MoFo Tech Blog

MoFo Tech brings together legal insights and in-depth analyses on trends and complex issues shaping the global technology industry, covering fields such as blockchain and distributed ledger, cloud and SaaS technologies, driverless cars, drones, FinTech, computer hardware and software, the IoT, semiconductors, and telecommunications.

May 02, 2018 - Litigation, Intellectual Property
Turn On, Tune In, and Drop Out? BREXETING UK Signs up for the UPC, Whilst Germany Is Lingering to Ratify
By: Wolfgang Schönig and Robert Grohmann
The Unified Patent Court (“UPC”) will be a Court common to 25 Member States of the European Union (“EU”) (currently including the UK) and thus be part of their judicial system. The Court will have exclusive jurisdiction over traditional European patents (a bundle of
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May 02, 2018 - Litigation, Intellectual Property
German draft bill on the implementation of the EU Trade Secrets Directive
By: Wolfgang Schönig
Summary The European Union is finally making significant progress in implementing the first pan-EU trade secrets protection rules. The EU’s largest country, Germany, has published its long-awaited draft bill setting out how it proposes to implement trade secrets protection. The EU directive on trade
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April 30, 2018 - Regulatory
EU Digital Market VAT Reform
By: Mercedes Samavi and Trevor L James
Since 2015, the European Union has been gradually implementing a series of reforms designed to create a Digital Single Market across the EU. In setting its reform agenda, the European Commission looked beyond areas traditionally associated with the regulation of technology and digital services,
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April 27, 2018 - Announcements, Software
German Federal Court: Unfair Competition Law No Basis to Ban Ad Blocking and Whitelisting
By: Christoph Wagner and Theresa Oehm
In a landmark decision, on April 19, 2018, the German Federal Court of Justice decided that the ad blocking application and browser-extension Adblock Plus does not violate the German Unfair Competition Act ( Gesetz gegen den Unlauteren Wettbewerb – UWG ). Offering software that
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April 24, 2018 - Litigation, Intellectual Property
Supreme Court IP Decision Preserves Inter Partes Review Process
By: Matthew I. Kreeger, Mehran Arjomand, Brian R. Matsui and Seth W. Lloyd
After the biggest challenge yet to the Patent and Trademark Office’s popular inter partes review proceedings, the name of the game is largely “same old” for today’s Supreme Court decision in Oil States Energy Services, LLC v. Greene’s Energy Group, LLC , No. 16-712. The
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April 23, 2018 - Telecommunications
EU Copyright Reform Update - How Far Have We Come?
By: Christiane Stuetzle and Patricia C. Ernst
Copyright reform is a key part of the European Union’s package of measures designed to create a Digital Single Market in the EU. The European Commission’s view is of nothing less than a modernisation of EU copyright law to reflect the digital age. For
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April 17, 2018 - Regulatory, Telecommunications
Tune in, catch up: EU changes to TV and radio transmission rules
By: Alistair Maughan and Kristina Ehle
Linear TV and radio services are increasingly being consumed via the internet. Technical developments allowing the on-demand consumption of audio and audio-visual content on different user devices have also changed viewer habits resulting in linear TV content that can also be viewed at times
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March 27, 2018 - Internet of Things
CPSC Will Sharpen Its Focus on IoT in Upcoming Public Hearing About Internet-Connected Devices
By: Erin M. Bosman and Julie Y. Park
The extent and stringency of the legal requirements that the U.S. government should impose on companies that produce internet-connected products will be the subject of a public hearing that Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is holding on May 16, 2018. Informed by data from
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March 26, 2018 - Privacy + Data Security, Cloud Services + SaaS
CLOUD Act: New Legislation Will Overhaul U.S. Laws for Obtaining Data Stored Overseas
By: Robert S. Litt
May the U.S. government compel a company operating in the United States to produce data that it stores outside the country? A new law called the CLOUD Act makes clear that, in the case of legal process served under the Stored Communications Act (SCA),
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March 19, 2018 - Regulatory, Blockchain, Financings, Fintech
8 Key Items You Need to Consider Before Staging Your ICO
By: Spencer D. Klein
With over $8.8B raised via Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) since 2014, and over 1,200 tokens in circulation with a combined market capitalization of over $300B, it’s not surprising that ICOs are an increasingly popular fundraising tool. In this post, we discuss eight key items
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