Spotify, a $1.6 Billion Dollar Lawsuit and Music Licensing Laws in the Digital Age

March 29, 2018

Josh Greenberg

On December 29, 2017, Wixen Music Publishing, Inc. filed a $1.6 billion lawsuit against Spotify USA Inc. The complaint alleges that Spotify willfully infringed copyrights in thousands of songs, including songs from artists Tom Petty, Neil Young, and The...

Anthony Mattana, Founder and CEO of Hooke Audio Discusses Innovation in Sound Recording

March 26, 2018

MG+

Driven entrepreneurs with a great idea can have the power to change the world. In this series from MG+, we interview founders and CEOs with great ideas that are making a difference by launching innovative products and services that...

The SEC, CFTC and Possible Future Of Utility Tokens

March 7, 2018

Steve Masur

A lot of people have been asking us what may happen with regards to regulation of ICOs in the United States. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s regulatory action against Munchee, Inc.’s ICO, coupled with the recent U.S. Senate Committee...

Why Independent Contractor vs. Employee Status Matters

February 7, 2018

Josh Greenberg

Among the various questions that employers face is whether to classify certain personnel as independent contractors rather than as employees. Many new entrepreneurs will rely on the advice of colleagues and friends who will encourage categorizing new hires as...

E.U. General Data Protection Regulation Looms for American Multinational Businesses

January 31, 2018

Josh Greenberg

If you do business in Europe, a new landmark European Union data protection law may have a huge impact on how you may collect and store personal information from their E.U. clients and customers. The General Data Protection Regulation...

The Chuck E. Cheese Test for Whether a Token is a Security

January 18, 2018

Steve Masur

Cryptocurrency markets are still nascent, and most people are still trying to work out how they will develop, and how blockchain can be applied to the wider variety of business cases. There is not much guidance from the government,...

Cryptocurrency, the Howey Test, and Munchee’s Guidance on How to Apply it

January 10, 2018

Steve Masur

Corporate and securities lawyers utilize the Howey test to determine whether a transaction is an “investment contract,” or more simply whether it involves offering a security, and therefore is subject to certain reporting and disclosure requirements. A transaction will...

US Regulators & Your Cryptocurrency: It’s Complicated

December 22, 2017

Rob Griffitts

This is the first in a series of posts in which I’ll examine the US regulations that impact cryptocurrency businesses. Many describe bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as being unregulated. As a blanket statement, this is not true. What is...

Year-End Maintenance for a Healthy Business

November 29, 2017

MG+

The end of another year presents an opportunity for you to take stock of how your business has developed, and to think carefully about whether you have kept pace with your legal needs. MG+ encourages you to consider the...

Equity Dilution Explained “Always Know If The Juice Is Worth The Squeeze”

October 2, 2017

Josh Greenberg

If you’ve ever made orange juice from concentrate, you probably already have a good feel for how equity dilution works. When you put the orange juice concentrate in a pitcher, you have a small amount of, well, really strong...

Protecting Yourself from Copyright Infringement with the DMCA Safe Harbor

September 28, 2017

Josh Greenberg

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 512, (“DMCA”) provides Internet communications service providers, including website operators, with immunity from copyright infringement liability for, among other things, infringing material posted on its sites by its users, provided the...

The Pitfall of Trademark Genericide: When Household Names and Brands Collide

July 12, 2017

Josh Greenberg

Escalator. Heroin. Dry Ice. Teleprompter. Laundromat. Each of these words or phrases were originally coined as trademarks, though have since lost their distinctive nature and exclusivity as they slowly became part of the American lexicon in the years since their introduction....