Legal Niches

The New York state legislature has passed a law which will require online retailers to collect sales tax on items shipped to New York.  The so-called "Amazon Tax" might lead other states to enact similar measures, though some lawmakers believe such laws would not hold up in court.  Representatives of Amazon.com are reviewing the bill, anticipating that it will be challenged in court.

(Links:  NY Lawmakers Approve Internet Tax at WebProNews and N.Y. to tax goods bought on Amazon at Computerworld)

"A Texas woman has sued Blockbuster Inc. alleging the video rental company transmitted her personal information to Facebook.com through the Web site's Beacon marketing program. . . . In her complaint, filed April 9 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Harris claims that Blockbuster violated the Video Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits a video store from disclosing information about a person's video rentals or purchases."

(Link:  Blockbuster sued over Facebook ad feature at SilliconValley.com)

E-Commerce Law Briefs is a weekly feature appearing each Friday afternoon on E-Commerce Law. Each week, E-Commerce Law Briefs will provide a brief summary and commentary on recent legal news affecting e-commerce businesses.