An Advertiser's Guide to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act
Advertisers, e-commerce websites, affiliate networks, and publishers each play a large role in the development of the Internet. One reason they have been able to do so is Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA), which immunizes online interactive services from liability arising from third-party content on their platforms. The CDA does so in twenty-six words:
"No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider."
Lights, Camera, Action! FTC Settlement Signals Novel Use of ROSCA
This month, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a proposed settlement with MoviePass to resolve allegations that the company offered an automatically renewing movie subscription program but blocked paid subscribers from using the advertised services, and failed to adequately secure subscribers' personal data.
Singled Out: One Text Message Conveys TCPA Standing in the Fifth Circuit
On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an opinion in Cranor v. 5 Star Nutrition, LLC, holding that the receipt of a single text message is a sufficient injury to convey standing under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). This creates a circuit split with the Eleventh Circuit's 2019 opinion entered in Salcedo v. Hanna, which we previously blogged about.