Social media sites are transforming not only the daily lives of consumers, but also how companies interact with consumers. Here at Morrison Foerster, across all of our practice groups, we are seeing complex, cutting-edge legal issues arising out of social media. As with the Internet boom during the mid-to-late 1990s, social media is generating new legal questions at a far faster pace than the law’s ability to provide answers to such questions. In an effort to stay on top of these emerging issues, and to keep our clients and friends informed of new developments, Morrison Foerster publishes this blog devoted to the law and business of social media.<h2>ABOUT MORRISON FOERSTER</h2>Morrison Foerster is a leading global law firm that transforms complexity into advantage for its clients. Our clients include some of the largest financial institutions, banks, consulting and accounting firms, and Fortune 100, technology, and life sciences companies. Highlighting the firm’s commitment to client service, leadership in market-changing deals and impact litigation, and values-based culture, Morrison Foerster has been repeatedly recognized as one of the top 10 firms on The American Lawyer’s A-List. Year after year, the firm receives significant recognition from Chambers and The Legal 500 across their various guides, including Global, USA, Asia‑Pacific, Europe, UK, Latin America, and FinTech Legal. Our lawyers passionately care about delivering legal excellence while living our values. Morrison Foerster has a long-standing commitment to creating a culture that respects and celebrates differences, while providing an inclusive environment. The firm has achieved Mansfield Certification Plus since 2018 as a result of successfully reaching at least 30 percent women, communities of color, and LGBTQ+ lawyer representation in a notable number of current leadership roles and committees. The firm also has a long history of commitment to the community and society through providing pro bono legal services, including litigating for civil rights and civil liberties, improving public education and fostering the wellbeing of children, advocating for veterans, promoting international human rights, enforcing the right to asylum, and safeguarding the environment.

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Aaron is the chair of the firm’s Technology Transactions Group and co-chair of the Interactive + Digital Media Group. He advises clients on a wide range of complex transactions involving intellectual property and technology, including structuring and negotiating strategic licensing, development, collaboration, procurement, and distribution deals.Aaron’s practice focuses on advising both established and emerging companies in a variety of data- and technology-intensive sectors, including software, SaaS, cloud-based technology, digital media (social media, AR/VR, gaming, streaming media, AdTech), AI, healthcare, consumer electronics, e-commerce, other online business models, and mobile applications. He also maintains an active practice counseling companies on branding and marketing, trademark licensing, and content-related transactions, as well as the intellectual property aspects of mergers, acquisitions, asset spin-offs, and private equity investments.He has represented clients such as Autodesk, Meta, OpenAI, Splunk, Konami, Kaiser Permanente, SoftBank, Visa, and Yahoo, among others.Aaron has been recognized by numerous publications for his work on market-defining technology transactions. He is currently ranked by Chambers USA for “Technology Transactions.”Aaron also serves as co-editor of Socially Aware, the firm’s award-winning newsletter and blog devoted to the law and business of social media, and regularly publishes on various IP and technology-related topics. Aaron is also a sought-after speaker on new and emerging areas of law, and is a frequent presenter and panelist at conferences and legal services programs. In addition to his active practice, Aaron regularly provides pro bono assistance to various nonprofit and charitable organizations such as Common Sense Media and the Starlight Children’s Foundation. He is a member of the board of directors of California Lawyers for the Arts.While in law school at the University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law, Aaron served as executive editor of the California Law Review and was elected to the Order of the Coif. Following law school, Aaron served as law clerk to the Honorable William H. Orrick and the Honorable Martin J. Jenkins, both United States District Judges for the Northern District of California.

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Aaron is the chair of our Technology Transactions Group. He advises clients on a wide range of complex transactions involving intellectual property and technology, including structuring and negotiating strategic licensing, development, collaboration, procurement, and distribution deals. Aaron’s practice focuses on advising both established and emerging companies in a variety of data– and technology–intensive sectors, including software, SaaS, cloud computing, AR/VR, AI, gaming, healthcare, consumer electronics, social media, e–commerce, other online business models, and mobile applications. He also maintains an active practice counseling companies on the intellectual property aspects of mergers, acquisitions, asset spin–offs, and private equity investments.

Aaron P. Rubin

Lawrence Gallick is of counsel in the firm’s Austin office and a member of the Technology Transactions Group.Lawrence focuses his practice on technology transactions and licensing matters. His diverse experience includes advising on SaaS agreements, cross-licensing agreements, research and collaboration agreements, development agreements, and distribution agreements. He counsels a broad range of companies across the software, hardware, life sciences, biotech and FinTech spaces, as well as other entities including universities.He advises clients in connection with general corporate matters including contract negotiations, and leasing and technology placement agreements.Lawrence also serves as co-editor of <a href="https://www.sociallyawareblog.com/" target="_blank">Socially Aware</a>, the firm’s award-winning newsletter and blog devoted to the law and business of social media, and regularly publishes on various IP and technology-related topics.Prior to joining the firm, Lawrence was counsel at another major law firm. Before earning his law degree, Lawrence was a web consultant, project manager, and web developer in Portland, Oregon, where he managed and consulted on projects using industry methodologies and performed custom development and integration of content management systems.Lawrence was named a Super Lawyers “Rising Star” in 2015 and 2018–2022, and is licensed in both California and New York. Lawrence earned his J.D. from the University at Buffalo School of Law, where he was the electronic systems editor for the Buffalo Law Review and awarded the ABA-BNA Award for Excellence in the Study of Intellectual Property Law.

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Lawrence Gallick

Anthony Ramirez is a partner in the Technology Transactions Group in the New York office of Morrison Foerster.Anthony advises clients on general commercial and transactional matters. He regularly advises companies on the IP aspects of their M&A transactions. His clients include technology, digital media and content for television and music, financial services, and communications companies with diverse intellectual property assets and issues.His practice focuses on the legal aspects of developing, licensing, and commercializing technology and intellectual property, as well as negotiating general commercial contracts, including outsourcing transactions, as well as content and data licenses. He regularly assists clients with legal issues relating to licensing and commercialization of digital media and content, digital content that is distributed over the Internet or streamed, mobile applications and social media, as well as the licensing of recorded music for distribution via digital platforms. Anthony is also experienced with issues relating to open-source software, software development, artificial intelligence and machine learning, cloud-based technology, and protection of proprietary information.Anthony has extensive experience working on matters involving disruptive technologies, such as blockchain. He has helped fintech clients with general intellectual property issues in connection with terms of service for online financial products and services.Anthony is an integral part of the outside pro bono legal team for nonprofit organizations based in New York, including advising clients on legal issues regarding entertainment, social media, privacy rights, and the negotiation of outsourcing and service agreements. Anthony received his J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School in 2009. He received his B.S. from Cornell University in 2004.

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Anthony Ramirez is a partner in the Technology Transactions Group in the New York office of Morrison Foerster. He advises clients on general commercial and transactional matters. His clients include technology, media, and communications companies with considerable intellectual property assets. His practice focuses on the legal aspects of licensing and commercializing technology and intellectual property, as well as negotiating general commercial contracts. He also regularly assists clients with legal issues relating to mobile applications and social media.

Anthony M. Ramirez

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Socially Aware is devoted to the law and business of social media, proactively addressing emerging issues and keeping our clients informed of new developments. We cover fields such as artificial intelligence, privacy and data security, Section 230, intellectual property, and much more.

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Social Links: TikTok Trademarks, Social Signposts, and Robot Rock | Socially Aware

Lawrence W. Gallick

Sick of the “<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@joolieannie/video/7399736793119247662" target="_blank">very demure, very mindful</a>” social media trend yet? The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office probably is too. Our national nightmare began on August 5 when TikToker Jools LeBron uploaded a video of herself pontificating about the way she dresses and behaves for a job interview, claiming that she was “very modest” while broadcasting self-absorption to millions of online followers (the very definition of modesty). The trend was picked up by a number of other entities—including the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C-vr65nSM-N/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet" target="_blank">White House</a> and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/share/p/tjeKx23Zj1B9rjBj/">Dunkin’ Donuts</a>—and now LeBron is attempting to <a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/09/09/trademark-disputes-demure-viral-phrase" target="_blank">trademark the phrase</a>. Unfortunately for her, quick-acting IP vultures beat her to it. At least three other applicants with absolutely no connection to the viral trend had the same idea and <a href="https://tsdr.uspto.gov/#caseNumber=98706752&caseSearchType=US_APPLICATION&caseType=DEFAULT&searchType=statusSearch" target="_blank">filed to register a trademark</a> before her. Will Jools LeBron become an enduring symbol of cultural excellence like the <a href="https://youtu.be/C7tydu_erZo?si=m3RxTvVJo0AW4Qm0&t=5" target="_blank">Hawk Tuah girl</a>, or will she become irrelevant like art and literature?Utah’s proposed law regulating the use of social media by minors, which we <a href="https://www.sociallyawareblog.com/topics/social-links-july-2024" target="_blank">reported on in July</a>, has been <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/utah-law-restricting-youth-social-media-use-blocked-by-judge-2024-09-11/#:~:text=Sept%2011%20(Reuters)%20%2D%20A,impose%20restrictions%20on%20minors'%20accounts." target="_blank">temporarily blocked</a> by U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Shelby. In <a href="https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/legaldocs/gkvllnwexvb/09102024utah.pdf" target="_blank">the ruling</a>, Judge Shelby wrote that the law likely constitutes an unconstitutional limitation on protected speech and plaintiff NetChoice is “substantially likely to succeed on its claim the Act violates the First Amendment.” NetChoice has successfully blocked similar legislation in several states and recently prevailed in the Supreme Court in <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/7/1/24166388/supreme-court-ruling-moody-paxton-texas-florida-social-media-law" target="_blank">two content moderation cases</a>. Judge Shelby summed up the ruling in no uncertain terms, writing that “The court recognizes the State’s earnest desire to protect young people from the novel challenges associated with social media use, but owing to the First Amendment’s paramount place in our democratic system, even well-intentioned legislation that regulates speech based on content must satisfy a tremendously high level of constitutional scrutiny.”<a href="https://www.msn.com/en-ca/music/news/feds-indict-musician-on-landmark-massive-streaming-fraud-charges/ar-AA1q0wI9" target="_blank">By robots, for robots</a>. That’s the new dystopia we apparently find ourselves in. North Carolina-based musician Michael Smith <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/media/1366241/dl" target="_blank">has been indicted</a> in federal court on three counts of wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy. Smith used AI to create hundreds of thousands of songs which he uploaded to multiple music streaming services. He then created thousands of bot accounts to “listen” to his music nonstop, generating more than $10 million in royalty payments. AI-generated music is uncharted territory for artists, labels, publishers, and IP attorneys, as society wrestles with the incredibly fast-moving technology. A number of major record labels are trying to put the <a href="https://www.billboard.com/pro/major-label-lawsuit-ai-firms-suno-udio-copyright-infringement/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social" target="_blank">genie back in the bottle</a>, but a long road of litigation is a near certainty. Perhaps it will be settled by robot lawyers arguing in front of a robot judge on behalf of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okhQtoQFG5s" target="_blank">robot artists</a> and robot listeners they represent.After an investigation by the EU, X has <a href="https://www.dataprotection.ie/en/news-media/press-releases/data-protection-commission-welcomes-conclusion-proceedings-relating-xs-ai-tool-grok" target="_blank">agreed to comply</a> with the European Data Protection Commission’s guidelines and to stop using personal data to train its AI chatbot, Grok. X has agreed to delete data collected from May 7 to August 1 and cease collecting user data for developing Grok. Despite X’s compliance, the social media giant <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2024/09/06/elon-musks-x-could-still-face-sanctions-for-training-grok-on-europeans-data/" target="_blank">may still face sanctions</a> over AI models trained on the previously collected data. In the U.S., where laws governing data usage are less stringent, <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/how-to-stop-x-from-using-your-posts-to-train-its-ai/ar-BB1qHPJX?apiversion=v2&noservercache=1&domshim=1&renderwebcomponents=1&wcseo=1&batchservertelemetry=1&noservertelemetry=1" target="_blank">users may now opt out</a> of allowing the platform to access their data for AI training, but the process is not intuitive and users are opted in by default.In a <a href="https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/letters/social-warning-label-letter.pdf" target="_blank">letter to Congress</a>, 42 state attorneys general have encouraged lawmakers to pass legislation requiring cigarette-style warning labels on social media platforms. The action was <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2024/6/17/24180005/surgeon-general-warning-labels-social-media-mental-health" target="_blank">spearheaded last June</a> by U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy after a <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2749480" target="_blank">2019 AMA study</a> published in the Journal of American Medicine. The impact of so many attorneys general advocating for legislation remains to be seen, but it could very well move the needle in Congress. As the AGs wrote, “A surgeon general’s warning on social media platforms, though not sufficient to address the full scope of the problem, would be one consequential step toward mitigating the risk of harm to youth.” With so many <a href="https://www.ncsl.org/technology-and-communication/social-media-and-children-2024-legislation" target="_blank">states considering legislation</a> to curtail social media use among children, overarching federal guidelines may be inevitable. The issue appears to be bipartisan and has gained real momentum over the last few months.