Author: marquispullen

Look What You Made Her Do: How Swift, Streaming, and Social Media Can Increase Artists’ Bargaining Power

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By: Emily Tribulski Music and technology have always been intertwined and recently the developments of streaming and social media have opened the door for artists to elevate their place in the music industry. The growth of social media engagement is undeniable and in 2016 streaming platforms led to the music industry’s first earnings increase in fifteen years, with double digit gains each year since—a change to the status quo that cannot be ignored. The technological moment provided by streaming and social media gives lesser-known artists, especially when they are backed by superstars, a unique opportunity to challenge traditionally label friendly record deals. These technologies provide artists with the ability to grow their fanbase and increase their bargaining power before reaching the negotiation table with a label—giving them more leverage to maintain ownership of their music and receive more artist friendly contracts. Download Full Article (PDF) Cite: 19 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 91

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Ben Grunwald on Solving ”The Wandering Officer” Problem

DLTR Blog, Scholar Interviews Leave a comment

By Ben K. Grunwald Last month, as Derek Chauvin’s trial began for the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Duke Law Professors James Boyle and Ben K. Grunwald discussed “The Wandering Officer” problem, the common phenomenon in which law enforcement officers get fired at one law enforcement agency to be rehired at another while continuing to engage in the same conduct that got them fired in the first place. During this back and forth, which has been edited for length and clarity, the professors talk about Grunwald’s recent Yale Law Journal article with Professor John Rappaport from the University of Chicago on the issue and the policy proposals most likely to promote police accountability and other social reforms in the United States, but particularly in Black communities and other communities of color. You wrote a fascinating 2020 Yale Law Journal article, with Professor John Rappaport from the University of Chicago, called The Wandering Officer. Could you describe what a wandering officer is and what the goal of the study is? A wandering officer is a police officer who is fired by one law enforcement agency and then gets hired by another. The most famous example is Tim Loehman, who—just a few

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A Fresh Start: Surveillance Tech and the Modern Law Firm

Science & Technology, Surveillance Tech Leave a comment

By: Titus R. Willis The legal community is rapidly evolving: firms are more beholden to clients than ever, associates are growing more competitive with one another, and younger firm employees are more willing than ever to subject themselves to surveillance from their employers. These evolutions come alongside a boom in surveillance technology. Tech companies now provide services that can track every keystroke a lawyer makes on a company computer, analyze the content of their computer screens, or even develop algorithms to measure employee productivity. How does the modern law firm respond to these new technologies? How do they weigh their obligations to clients with the privacy considerations of their employees? This Note examines these key questions and makes a comment about the honor of the legal profession along the way. Download Full Article (PDF) Cite: 19 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 75

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Keeping Up With China: CFIUS and the Need to Secure Material Nonpublic Technical Knowledge of AI/ML

Alternative Intelligence, Machine Learning Leave a comment

By: Anthony Severin Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies will shape societies by the values they are programmed to respect. In part because of anti-competitive Chinese practices such as forced transfers of intellectual property (IP), companies based in the U.S. have lost the ability to compete in several fields. To avoid losing competitiveness in AI/ML sectors, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) should promulgate rules blocking Chinese investors from acquiring ownership interests in U.S. companies when that ownership would allow access to material nonpublic technical knowledge of AI/ML. Such a categorical blacklist approach will limit forced transfers of IP and increase the influence of American values on the development of AI/ML technology. Download Full Article (PDF) Cite: 19 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 59

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Consumers Beware: How Are Your Favorite “Free” Investment Apps Regulated?

Technology and Financial Reporting Leave a comment

By: Siqi Wang The proliferation of free or low-cost investment apps has disrupted the financial industry in recent years. Major brokerage firms have been pressured to go to zero fees due to intense competition from their fintech counterparts. While these apps have extended their products and services to those underserved by traditional brokers, some of their practices raise consumer protection concerns. Namely, the practice of “payment for order flow,” which helps fintech startups sustain a zero-commission model, could lead to subordinating customers’ best interest to market makers who acquire their retail orders from these fintech startups. Further, “cash management accounts,” newly popular among fintech startups with an ambition to compete with chartered banks raise questions about the use of idle customer assets and the protections afforded to these accounts in case of liquidation. This Note considers the products and services of these investment apps in the context of existing U.S. regulations and regulators for broker-dealers, investment advisors, and chartered banks. To illustrate this, this Note analyzes the potential consumer financial protection issues arising out of these fintech-based investment platforms’ distinctive business models and the services they provide. Download Full Article (PDF) Cite: 19 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 43

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Cyber and TRIA: Expanding the Definition of An “Act of Terrorism” to Include Cyber Attacks

CyberCrime Leave a comment

By: Nehal Patel The 9/11 terrorist attacks brought on financial losses that caused insurers and Congress to reevaluate how the United States approaches terrorism risk coverage. Congress quelled concerns of insurers evading coverage of future terrorist attacks by enacting the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act in 2002. This Note considers the difficulties presented by the out-of-date language employed by Congress in 2002 and proposes amendments so that the Act more clearly covers acts of cyberterrorism, which are ever-growing in their destructive potential. Download Full Article (PDF) Cite: 19 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 23

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Ripple Effects: How in Re Ripple Labs Inc. Litigation Could Signal the Beginning of the End of the Payment Platform

Cryptocurrency Leave a comment

By: Lindsay Martin Ripple Labs provides an international payment network that allows financial institutions to transfer money more cheaply and quickly than traditional international payments. Ripple’s native digital currency, XRP, supports global payments by acting as intermediate currency between different currencies, eliminating correspondent bank’s need to hold deposits in foreign currencies. In an ongoing class action lawsuit, XRP purchasers claim that the digital asset qualifies as a security under federal securities laws and that Ripple illegally offered and sold XRP as an unregistered security. Given Ripple’s rising prominence as a tool for financial institutions, this pending case will impact cryptocurrency markets and international payments. Because XRP is most likely a security subject to regulation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), this matter poses an existential threat to the Ripple network. This note examines the legal issues leading up to the Ripple litigation and explains why XRP is most likely a security. It concludes by discussing the SEC’s likely approach to Ripple’s unregistered Initial Coin Offering (ICO). Download Full Article (PDF) Cite: 19 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 1

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Careers in Intellectual Property

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Interested in a career in intellectual property law? Please join us for a panel discussion featuring Garrett Levin and Joshua Stowell, moderated by Professor Jennifer Jenkins, Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Center for the Study of the Public Domain. Garrett Levin (JD/MA ’06) is President and CEO of the Digital Media Association (DiMA), a trade organization comprised of the world’s leading streaming companies and the leading advocate for pro-innovation policies that promote growth, consumer choice, and creativity within the music industry. Joshua Stowell (JD ’06) is a Partner in the Orange County office of Knobbe Martens and co-chair of the firm’s trade secrets litigation group. Presented by the Duke Law & Technology Review. For more information, please contact Andrew Lindsay at andrew.lindsay@duke.edu. Join at https://duke.zoom.us/j/92192155874 or with Meeting ID 921 9215 5874. Date: Monday, October 26, 2020 at 12:30 PM (Virtual)

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