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Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

theguardian.com

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Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#21

Post by moocowduckquack »

brainsic wrote: post #6

Google has been called "arrogant and immoral" - by whom? the plaintiff?! Google is arguing about jurisdiction in front of a judge, why is the author doing publicity work for the plaintiff? and why is a routine legal argument news?

why is the author doing publicity work for the plaintiff

Hell, when the UK Prime Minister publicly takes sides in ongoing celebrity court proceedings and announces that he is on "Team Nigella", I think that many journalists probably shrug their shoulders and give up attempting any pretence of balance around court.

Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#22

Post by gress »

brainsic wrote: post #6

Google has been called "arrogant and immoral" - by whom? the plaintiff?! Google is arguing about jurisdiction in front of a judge, why is the author doing publicity work for the plaintiff? and why is a routine legal argument news?

The author explains that this statement is by the plaintiff. The argument is news because it would be surprising to much of the public.

Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#23

Post by gress »

brainsic wrote: post #12
yapcguy wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Begs the question, so what exactly does the Google UK office actually do again?! Google "operates" in the UK, the second biggest market for advertising revenue yet manages to book their profits in Ireland because that's where their sales are "signed". Yet even that Dublin office has no profit as they have expenses to pay to the tune of billions in IP to a patent-holding Google subsidiary in Bermuda. This must me a wa…

It might come as a shock to you but people (and corporations) try to win in court, arguing over jurisdiction is an automatic first step - nothing extraordinary is happening here. And if you need someone to point for you the difference between this no harm money/publicly seeking bullshit lawsuit, and chemical spill disasters then you lack all perspective.

It it your perspective that intentionally violating user privacy causes no harm?

Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#24

Post by gress »

lettergram wrote: post #19

I do not remember exactly where I read this (so if someone could point me in the right direction I would be grateful), but I thought I read something about U.K. government was working with the U.S. to spy on its people... If that is true, then why is Google being sued and not the U.K. government?

The two issues are totally unconnected.

Google is being sued because it broke the law.

The U.K. Government enacted an unpopular policy that was not illegal. The remedy for this is the ballot box, not the courts.

Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#25

Post by ChuckMcM »

arethuza wrote: post #2

I think that headline is slightly misleading - Google is running an argument in court that as their service is supplied from the US then they can't be sued here in the UK. If the courts decide otherwise then Google has quite a lot of assets here in the UK in the form of Google UK Limited - obviously tiny compared to the US parent but still a pretty substantial organization by any objective measure. I tend to side wit…

They also include this in their Terms of Service[1] -

"All claims arising out of or relating to these terms or the Services will be litigated exclusively in the federal or state courts of Santa Clara County, California, USA, and you and Google consent to personal jurisdiction in those courts. " Which basically says if you use Google services you agree that any dispute you have with Google will be litigated in a California court. This particular clause has been upheld several times for Google.

[1] http://www.google.com/intl/en/policies/terms/

Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#27

Post by patrickaljord »

gress wrote: post #23
brainsic wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It might come as a shock to you but people (and corporations) try to win in court, arguing over jurisdiction is an automatic first step - nothing extraordinary is happening here. And if you need someone to point for you the difference between this no harm money/publicly seeking bullshit lawsuit, and chemical spill disasters then you lack all perspective.

It it your perspective that intentionally violating user privacy causes no harm?

Google is not violating anyone's privacy unless you've already decided they're guilty. Moreover, no one's forced to use google services. If anyone is violating people's privacy without their consents, it would be the government.

Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#29

Post by arethuza »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #25
arethuza wrote: post #2

I think that headline is slightly misleading - Google is running an argument in court that as their service is supplied from the US then they can't be sued here in the UK. If the courts decide otherwise then Google has quite a lot of assets here in the UK in the form of Google UK Limited - obviously tiny compared to the US parent but still a pretty substantial organization by any objective measure. I tend to side wit…

They also include this in their Terms of Service[1] - "All claims arising out of or relating to these terms or the Services will be litigated exclusively in the federal or state courts of Santa Clara County, California, USA, and you and Google consent to personal jurisdiction in those courts. " Which basically says if you use Google services you agree that any dispute you have with Google will be litigated in a Calif…

Just because something is in a contract (or indeed a terms of service) doesn't mean it is enforceable - especially in a completely different country.

If Google were a US only corporation then this would be a moot point, but as the aren't they are subject to the laws and courts of the countries where they operate. Given that they are actually in court someone clearly thinks there is a stateable case - it'll be interesting to see what the court decides.

Edit: Here is an update from the Telegraph:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/google/10520755/Briton...

Re: Google argues lawsuit concerning UK privacy should be brought in California

#30

Post by yid »

grecy wrote: post #28

If this works for Google, I imagine I can have a business based in Uruguay that sells weed to the world, and I only have to face court in Uruguay when people claim it's illegal in their country?

> If this works for Google, I imagine I can have a business based in Uruguay that sells weed to the world, and I only have to face court in Uruguay when people claim it's illegal in their country?

I'd imagine this would be perfectly legal if Uruguay has legal provisions that state that shipping weed to other countries is legal. I'd also imagine that if they didn't have such a clause, they'd soon run afoul on various international trade treaties. So good luck... :)

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