Cuba Gooding Jr. admits forcible kiss on waitress

NEW YORK -- Oscar-winning actor Cuba Gooding Jr. admitted forcibly kissing a waitress, his lawyer said Wednesday, in a New York court plea that will see other criminal complaints against him dropped.

The "Jerry Maguire" star had been accused by more than 20 women of groping and unwanted touching over decades, and had faced criminal charges stemming from complaints by three of them.

Gooding's lawyer, Frank Rothman, told AFP his client had entered a guilty plea on one misdemeanor count.

"He admitted to one charge that he kissed a waitress without her consent," Rothman said, adding "all the other charges have been dismissed."

"In six months, if he stays out of trouble, that charge will be withdrawn, and he will have no criminal record at the end of this."

Gloria Allred, who is representing the unnamed woman in a civil suit, said applications for other alleged victims to be able to testify in the case -- on the basis that they were subject to similar conduct -- were denied by the judge.

"My law firm and New York attorney, Casey Wolnowski, will continue to litigate our civil case against Cuba Gooding, Jr. in Federal court in New York on behalf of our brave client who alleges in her lawsuit that Cuba Gooding, Jr. committed an act of gender violence against her," Allred said.

"We look forward to achieving a just result in this lawsuit."

Gooding, 54, shot to fame for his role in the 1991 film "Boyz n the Hood," and cemented his reputation with an Oscar win for best supporting actor in American football movie "Jerry Maguire," opposite Tom Cruise.

Gooding is the latest entertainment figure to face a public reckoning over unwanted sexual advances in the #MeToo wave, which began with producer Harvey Weinstein being brought to justice for decades of abuse.

Agence France-Presse

Google hit with third antitrust lawsuit, by new state coalition

SAN FRANCISCO - Dozens of US states on Thursday hit Google with its third antitrust suit in as many months, accusing the internet giant of abusing its internet search dominance to eliminate competition.

The suit by antitrust enforcers from 38 US states and territories is in line with, but goes beyond a case filed by the US Justice Department against Google earlier this year.

"Google’s anticompetitive actions have protected its general search monopolies and excluded rivals, depriving consumers of the benefits of competitive choices, forestalling innovation, and undermining new entry or expansion,” said Colorado attorney general Phil Weiser.

The suit came a day after a group of states led by Texas filed a separate antitrust suit, and asks to be consolidated with the federal case against Google.

Nebraska attorney general Doug Peterson called the antitrust assault on Google historic, saying the combined suits represented the biggest alliance since a case against Microsoft decades ago.

"This is really historic," Peterson said.

The suit charges that Google made deals to shut out competitors and set out to lock out rivals by getting its search and advertising systems into smart speakers, cars, smartphones and more.

"We are in a new time, a new era, and it is very critical that we in the field of enforcement in competition remain very engaged in the tech industry going forward," Peterson said.

CASES ON SEARCH, ADVERTISING

Several US states led by Texas filed a suit against Google on Wednesday over alleged anticompetitive practices, branding it an "internet Goliath" that had eliminated competition in online advertising and was harming consumers.

In the earlier case, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton contended that Google rigged advertising auctions, taking advantage of its position serving up ads as well as online search results.

Amazon, Tripadvisor, Yelp and other internet firms involved in recommending products or services have long complained that Google favors its own offerings in general search results.

While Google ad revenue has continued to grow, its share of the booming US online ad market is ebbing under pressure from competitors such as Facebook, Amazon and others, according to eMarketer.

The market tracker expected Google this year to command just shy of 30 percent of the US ad market set to total about $42.4 billion.

Google software not only crawls the internet and indexes what it finds, it determines which results to provide for queries and what ads are displayed.

The California-based internet giant also handles auctions for ads competing to be displayed. 

Google's long-running business model coupling a free search engine and free services like email and YouTube with paid advertising is being put to the test in a landmark antitrust lawsuit filed by the US Justice Department.

The US government filed its blockbuster lawsuit in October accusing Google of maintaining an "illegal monopoly" in online search and advertising. 

The country's biggest antitrust case in decades, it opens the door to a potential breakup of the Silicon Valley titan.

Agence France-Presse

Miley Cyrus settles $300 million lawsuit claiming she stole 'We Can't Stop'

NEW YORK - Miley Cyrus has settled a $300 million copyright infringement lawsuit by a Jamaican songwriter who accused the pop star of stealing her 2013 smash "We Can't Stop" from a similar song he recorded a quarter century earlier.

Michael May, who performs as Flourgon, sued Cyrus in March 2018, claiming that "We Can't Stop" closely resembled his 1988 song "We Run Things," which he called a reggae favorite since reaching No. 1 in his home country.

May accused Cyrus and her label RCA Records, owned by Sony Corp, of misappropriating material including the phrase "We run things. Things no run we," which she sang as "We run things. Things don't run we."

May, Cyrus, Sony and other defendants filed a joint stipulation in Manhattan federal court on Friday ending the lawsuit with prejudice, meaning it cannot be filed again.

Cyrus' lawyers said in a Dec. 12 letter that a settlement agreement had been signed, and that the stipulation would be filed "pending payment of the settlement proceeds," which were not specified.

Lawyers for May and Cyrus did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

"We Can't Stop," from Cyrus' album "Bangerz," peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 2013.

It was blocked from hitting No. 1 by Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines," the subject of its own high-profile copyright case over its resemblance to Marvin Gaye's 1977 song "Got To Give It Up." 

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Disney and Michael Jackson estate settle documentary dispute

LOS ANGELES - Disney and Michael Jackson's estate have resolved a copyright dispute over a documentary about the late King of Pop that saw the Hollywood studio accused of breathtaking hypocrisy and aggressive tactics.

"The Last Days of Michael Jackson", a two-hour program that aired on Disney-owned ABC in 2018, was accused of using the pop star's songs, music videos, concert footage and clips of his memorial service without permission.

On Thursday, Jackson lawyer Howard Weitzman said in a statement to AFP: "The matter has been amicably resolved." No details of the settlement were provided.

The Jackson estate's lawyers alleged in a complaint filed last year that Disney had ignored copyright law while zealously prosecuting anyone who infringed on its own intellectual property.

"Unable to make a compelling presentation about Michael Jackson on its own, Disney decided to exploit the Jackson Estate's intellectual property," read the complaint.

Disney has argued that the documentary -- a broad overview of Jackson's life -- made fair use of content including parts of hits "Billie Jean" and "Beat It", as allowed under copyright law.

But the complaint noted that "Disney has threatened to sue independent childcare centers for having pictures of Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck on their walls."

"Disney once sued a couple on public assistance for $1 million when they appeared at children's parties dressed as an orange tiger and a blue donkey. Apparently, those costumes cut too close to Tigger and Eeyore for Disney's tastes," it added.

Jackson is estimated to have sold 350 million records, including "Thriller", the best-selling album of all time.

He amassed 13 Grammy Awards, 13 number one solo singles in the United States and became the first artist in history to have a top ten single in the Billboard Hot 100 in five different decades.

He died in June 2009 at age 50, while he was in the Los Angeles area practicing for a planned series of concerts in London entitled "This Is It".

The cause was given as an overdose of the anesthetic propofol. His personal doctor, Conrad Murray, was convicted in 2011 for administering the fatal dose of medication to Jackson.

The Jackson estate this year filed a $100 million lawsuit against HBO for "posthumous character assassination" after its documentary "Leaving Neverland" alleged that Jackson molested young boys at his fairytale-themed ranch.

HBO has launched an appeal in its bid to dismiss the case.

In his lifetime, Jackson denied all child sex allegations.

amz/to

Agence France-Presse

TikTok sued in US over alleged China data transfer

SAN FRANCISCO, United States - A university student in California has filed a class-action lawsuit against video app TikTok, which she accuses of harvesting large amounts of user data and storing it in China.

"TikTok clandestinely has vacuumed up and transferred to servers in China vast quantities of private and personally-identifiable user data," the court filing said.

Misty Hong, a student in Palo Alto, California, filed the suit against the Chinese-based app in California federal court last week, according to a report in The Daily Beast on Monday.

The video platform, which is hugely popular with teenagers around the world, was launched by Chinese company ByteDance in September 2017.

"TikTok also has surreptitiously taken user content, such as draft videos never intended for publication, without user knowledge or consent," the lawsuit alleges.

"In short, TikTok's lighthearted fun comes at a heavy cost," it said.

The suit marks the latest legal battle for the app. In early November, the US government opened a national security investigation into TikTok, according to the New York Times, potentially looking into whether the app was sending data to China.

Hong alleges that the app retrieved her data without permission -- including videos that she had created but not shared online -- and transferred them to servers run by companies that cooperate with the Chinese government.

She filed the suit on behalf of the approximately 110 million US residents who have downloaded the app.

TikTok did not immediately reply to AFP's request for response.

In November, it said it could not comment on a possible US investigation but emphasized that the respect of US users and regulators was its highest priority.

TikTok has distanced itself from Chinese authorities, maintaining that its servers are located outside of the country and that its data is therefore not subject to Chinese law.

In November, the app hit 1.5 billion downloads worldwide, outperforming Instagram.

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TikTok accused in California lawsuit of sending user data to China

SAN FRANCISCO - A California college student has accused popular video-sharing app TikTok in a class-action lawsuit of transferring private user data to servers in China, despite the company's assurances that it does not store personal data there.

The allegations may deepen legal troubles in the United States for TikTok, which is owned by Beijing ByteDance Technology Co but operates entirely outside of China and has developed an especially devoted fan base among U.S. teenagers.

The company is already facing a U.S. government national security probe over concerns about data storage and possible censorship of political sensitive content.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California last Wednesday and originally reported by The Daily Beast, alleges TikTok has surreptitiously "vacuumed up and transferred to servers in China vast quantities of private and personally-identifiable user data."

TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the allegations, but maintains that it stores all U.S. user data in the United States with backups in Singapore.

The documents identify the plaintiff as Misty Hong, a college student and resident of Palo Alto, California, who downloaded the TikTok app in March or April 2019 but never created an account.

Months later, she alleges, she discovered that TikTok had created an account for her without her knowledge and produced a dossier of private information about her, including biometric information gleaned from videos she created but never posted.

According to the filing, TikTok transferred user data to two servers in China - bugly.qq.com and umeng.com - as recently as April 2019, including information about the user's device and any websites the user had visited.

Bugly is owned by Tencent, China's largest mobile software company, which also owns social network WeChat, while Umeng is part of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group.

The lawsuit also claims that source code from Chinese tech giant Baidu is embedded within the TikTok app, as is code from Igexin, a Chinese advertising service, which security researchers discovered in 2017 was enabling developers to install spyware on a user's phone.

The legal documents did not provide evidence of the data transfers or the existence of Baidu or Igexin source code in the app. Hong and her legal representatives could not immediately be reached for comment.

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Amazon files lawsuit contesting Pentagon's $10-billion cloud contract to Microsoft

Amazon.com Inc on Friday filed a lawsuit in the US Court of Federal Claims contesting the Pentagon's award of a cloud computing contract worth up to $10 billion to Microsoft Corp.

An Amazon spokesman said that the company filed a complaint and supplemental motion for discovery. The filing was under seal.

"The Complaint and related filings contain source selection sensitive information, as well as AWS's proprietary information, trade secrets, and confidential financial information, the public release of which would cause either party severe competitive harm," Amazon said in a court document seeking a protective order.

"The record in this bid protest likely will contain similarly sensitive information."

Last week, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper rejected any suggestion of bias in the Pentagon's decision to award Microsoft the contract after Amazon announced plans to challenge it.

Amazon was considered a favorite for the contract, part of a broader digital modernization process of the Pentagon, before Microsoft emerged as the surprise winner.

The company has previously said that politics got in the way of a fair contracting process. US President Donald Trump has long criticized Amazon and its founder Jeff Bezos.

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Fil-Am allegedly abused by Pinoy priest sues LA Archdiocese

LOS ANGELES – A 34 year-old Filipina has sued the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in what is believed to be the first civil suit against the country's largest Catholic diocese since California passed a law last month that extends the statute of limitations for child abuse survivors.

Aimee Galicia-Torres said she was only 8 years old when a Filipino priest who was also a family friend molested her at an aunt’s house. The sexual abuse went on for four years.

According to the suit, the LA's Archdiocese was negligent in the hiring and supervision of Galicia-Torres’ alleged abuser - Father Honesto Bismonte - and that there could have been a cover-up when church leaders knew about his actions.

Galicia Torres said that by speaking up, she felt a sense of hope she hasn’t felt in a long time.

“I felt like a huge weight was lifted off me. Finally, my voice was being heard. I want him, my abuser, to know I’m the one doing this to him. I want to take back my power that I lost when he abused me,” she said.

Ordained in the Philippines in 1954, Bismonte came to California in 1981 and served in churches in Los Angeles, Gardena and Pomona. 

In 2002, Bismonte was removed from the ministry after being arrested and charged with molesting two young girls more than 50 times.

He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery and ended up serving two years of informal probation.

According to the updated 2018 Archdiocese Report to the People of God that lists priests who had been publicly accused of sexual abuse, the 90-year old Bismonte has been retired with no faculties to minister.

While the lawsuit does not specify any dollar amount, this Filipina wants answers.

“Why was he allowed to transfer from the Philippines knowing that he had some sort of relationship with some underage kid? I want to know how he was transferred from the Philippines to the United States, how many people knew about it and how and if this could’ve been prevented,” she said.

The California’s Child Victims Act extends the statute of limitations allowing more sexual abuse survivors to come forward with lawsuits.

In a statement, the Archdiocese of LA said it was not yet aware of the lawsuit filed against them, however they reiterated they took appropriate actions against Bismonte after his 2002 molestation case. The Archdiocese also stressed that Bismonte remains out of the ministry and is now living privately in an assisted living facility. 

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Jussie Smollett sues Chicago, claims malicious prosecution over alleged beating

(Reuters) - Jussie Smollett has filed a lawsuit accusing Chicago of maliciously prosecuting him after concluding that the actor’s claim to having been the victim of a racist and homophobic beating on a city street was a hoax.

Smollett, 37, best known for his work on the Fox television drama “Empire,” made his accusation in counterclaims filed on Wednesday, after Chicago sued him to recoup $130,106 in police overtime costs to investigate the beating claim.

He accused the city, police and others of causing “substantial economic damages as well as reputational harm, humiliation, mental anguish and extreme emotional distress,” and is seeking compensatory and punitive damages.

“The city stands by its original complaint and will continue to pursue this litigation,” Bill McCaffrey, a spokesman for Chicago’s law department, said by email. “We fully expect to be successful in defeating these counterclaims.”

Smollett, who is black and gay, ignited a social media firestorm after telling police on Jan. 29 that two masked men had thrown a noose around his neck, poured bleach on him and shouted racial and homophobic slurs, while expressing support for U.S. President Donald Trump.

Illinois prosecutors charged Smollett on Feb. 20 with making up the attack, including by hiring two brothers to stage it, and falsely reporting a “high-profile hate crime” to draw publicity after becoming dissatisfied with his “Empire” salary.

But they dropped the criminal case on March 26, drawing anger from Chicago’s police department and then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who called it a “whitewash of justice.”

Smollett pleaded not guilty to lying about the attack, and has long said he was truthful about it.

Chicago nonetheless sought triple damages in its April 11 civil lawsuit to recoup overtime costs.

Smollett played singer-songwriter Jamal Lyon on “Empire” but was dropped from the show after the alleged attack.

The counterclaims were filed against Chicago, the brothers and a number of police officers and employees.

Smollett accused police of trying to prosecute him based on the brothers’ “false, self-serving and unreliable statements in order to close the investigation into the attack.”

He also said Chicago could not recover investigative costs because it already accepted his $10,000 “payment in full” in connection with the dismissal of the criminal case.

Without ruling on the merits, U.S. District Judge Virginia Kendall on Oct. 22 refused to dismiss Chicago’s civil lawsuit against Smollett, saying his high profile and “the extreme nature of the accusations” could explain the overtime costs.

The case is Chicago v. Smollett, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, No. 19-04547.

Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Cynthia Osterman

India seeks answers from WhatsApp after cyber espionage

India demanded answers from WhatsApp over a snooping scandal Thursday after coming under fire from critics who accused authorities of using malware installed on the Facebook-owned messaging service to spy on citizens.

WhatsApp has filed a lawsuit in the United States against Israeli technology firm NSO Group, accusing it of using the hugely popular instant messaging platform to conduct cyberespionage on nearly 1,400 journalists, diplomats, dissidents and human right activists worldwide. 

The Israeli firm has denied journalists and activists were targeted and said that it only licenses its software to governments for "fighting crime and terror".

Nearly two dozen activists, lawyers and journalists were targeted in India -- WhatsApp's biggest market with some 400 million active users -- according to Indian media reports.

The Indian Express reported WhatsApp confirmed a number of Indian users had been targeted by the Pegasus spyware, which installed itself on their devices and relayed back data to the hackers. 

New Delhi has asked WhatsApp to "explain the kind of breach and what it is doing to safeguard the privacy of millions of Indian citizens," information and technology minister Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote on Twitter, denying the government had used the malware to spy on its citizens. 

But opposition leaders accused the government of invading citizens' privacy.

"A government that spies on journalists/activists/Opposition leaders and treats its own citizens like criminals has lost the right to lead in our democracy," main opposition Congress party spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said in a tweet.

Indian media reports said 20 activists, lawyers and journalists were informed by WhatsApp recently that their phones were compromised for two weeks in May. 

Rights activists and dissidents in India have accused the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist government of intimidating them over their criticism of policies. 

Since Modi's ascent to the top post in 2014, it has banned hundreds of non government organisations and stopped funding of many more. 

Rupali Jadhav, an activist, and one of those contacted by WhatsApp said she suspected that she was targeted for her work on caste, class and gender rights.

"We are told India is a democracy. But if our right to privacy is violated, doesn't that raise questions?" she told an Indian online outlet. 

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Drug companies reach opioids settlement ahead of landmark US trial

CLEVELAND — Three leading American drug distributors and an Israeli drugmaker blamed for a deadly US opioid epidemic settled a bellwether civil lawsuit with 2 Ohio counties Monday, just hours before they were to go on trial, a federal judge announced.

The $260 million deal set the basis for a broader potential multi-billion dollar payout to some 2,700 addiction-ravaged communities nationwide that had signed on to the Cleveland lawsuit, the first in a federal court to address the causes of the crisis. 

Officials from Ohio's Summit and Cuyahoga counties -- which include the cities of Akron and Cleveland -- said they would be able to almost immediately begin boosting funds to address the massive fallout from the crisis.

The addiction epidemic has placed huge burdens on hospitals and emergency services, and on families supporting addicts and caring for children with addicted parents or parents who have died.

"Cuyahoga County has seen thousands of people die over the last several years. It's a tragedy. Summit County is no different," said Cuyahoga prosecutor Michael O'Malley.

"Our hearts go out to the families who have been touched by this," said Ilene Shapiro, the chief executive of Summit County.

"Whatever we can do to help these families rebuild and get as healthy as they can and move forward is what we are trying to do."

HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DEATHS 

The settlement involved the 3 leading US drug distributors, some of the largest companies in the country -- Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen, and McKesson Corp.

It also included Israel's Teva, one of the world's largest generic drug manufacturers.

Pharmacy chain Walgreens opted out of the deal and will go to trial at a later date, said Federal District Judge Dan Polster. A small Ohio distributor also settled in a separate deal.

A trial would have examined allegations that the makers of the prescription painkillers and pharmaceutical distributors pushed billions of pills into communities without due care over 2 decades, making it excessively easy for patients to become addicted and creating a permanent demand.

The companies reaped tens of billions of dollars in profits while overdose deaths soared above 400,000 over 2 decades -- more than 70,000 in 2017 alone.

Plaintiffs had amassed large amounts of evidence showing that the companies knew they were fomenting an epidemic of addiction.

The deal, though, does not require the companies to admit wrongdoing.

"While the companies strongly dispute the allegations made by the two counties, they believe settling the bellwether trial is an important stepping stone to achieving a global resolution and delivering meaningful relief," the giant distributors said in a statement.

The prospects of more litigation sent the shares of the 3 distributors tumbling. AmerisourceBergen fell 3.4 percent, McKesson lost 3.2 percent, and Cardinal Health lost 2.2 percent.

Teva gained 8.8 percent on the relatively small cash payout it will make to the two countries, $20 million.

Walgreens meanwhile lost 1.5 percent as it planned to fight in court.

TALKS CONTINUE 

Talks continued with the broader group of plaintiffs for a settlement likely worth tens of billions of dollars in cash and in-kind payments, mainly free drugs for treating addiction.

Negotiations for a global deal worth a reported $48 billion -- but only $18 billion in cash -- broke down Friday amid differences between some states and smaller communities over the total value and how the money would be distributed.

Officials from 4 states who had backed the tentative deal on Friday called the 2-counties agreement "an important step," but said a global settlement could take weeks.

"The global resolution on the table will distribute funds fairly between states, counties and cities while also ensuring that these companies change their business practices to prevent a public health crisis like this from ever happening again," said the attorneys general of North Carolina, Tennessee, Pennsylvania and Texas.

Major drug manufacturers and distributors have already struck deals worth billions of dollars with states and local governments around the country to compensate them for the costs of the epidemic.

A study by the Society of Actuaries estimated that the opioid epidemic cost the US economy at least $631 billion from 2015 to 2018. 

In August, Purdue Pharma, the producer of OxyContin, one of the leading painkillers driving the addiction epidemic, reached a deal with 29 states and territories to compensate them. 

Purdue said the deal would cost it $10 billion and force it into bankruptcy, but critics in states and localities that opposed the deal say it is worth much less, and demanded the family that built Purdue, the Sacklers, pay billions more out of their own fortune.

In an Oklahoma trial in August, drug maker Johnson & Johnson was ordered to pay $572 million to compensate the state.

The company then reached a separate deal in the Cleveland case to pay the 2 counties $20.4 million.

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Court to hear Russian's claim that Apple 'turned him gay'

MOSCOW - A Moscow court on Thursday holds a preliminary hearing in the case of a Russian man who is suing US tech giant Apple for allegedly turning him gay.

He is seeking 1 million rubles ($15,560) in damages from Apple for sending him a cryptocurrency known as GayCoin instead of the Bitcoin he had ordered.

The bizarre civil suit has been filed in a country where casual homophobia is prevalent and a law banning "propaganda" of gay relationships to minors has stifled public activism.

Representatives of the two sides are set to meet a judge at Moscow's Presnensky district court for a preliminary hearing behind closed doors starting at 9:40 am (0640 GMT).

The plaintiff, named in court papers only by his surname Razumilov, was not planning to attend in order to protect his privacy, his lawyer said.

In his complaint, seen by AFP, he says the GayCoin cryptocurrency arrived with a note saying, "Don't judge until you try."

The complaint says Razumilov downloaded a cryptocurrency app from Apple Store but received a transfer of 69 of the GayCoin instead of the Bitcoins he ordered.

"I thought, in truth, how can I judge something without trying? I decided to try same-sex relationships," the complainant wrote.

"I decided to try single-sex relations. Two months later, I can say that I have got stuck in intimate relations with a representative of my sex and I can't manage to get back."

'Harm and suffering'

The man is suing for damages for "moral harm and mental suffering".

"For him, this is a big blow to his reputation, because he doesn't know how to tell his parents and he knows that he won't be understood," his lawyer Sapizhat Gusnieva told AFP.

"We live in Russia after all, so these things are complicated."

She said that her client had ended up breaking up a stable heterosexual relationship with his girlfriend.

Groups campaigning for gay rights in Russia point to ongoing repercussions from the homophobic law banning "propaganda" of gay relationships to minors, which allows for discrimination against gay people.

Russia only decriminalized homosexuality in 1993 after the end of the Soviet Union and it was considered a mental illness until 1999.

In July the European Court of Human Rights ruled against Russia over its refusal to register three associations defending LGBT rights.

Lawyer Gusnieva argued that suing Apple is justified in this case, despite the alleged exchange taking place on a third-party app.

"Apple allowed this company to work with them. They let people download the app. So they will have to answer for it," she said.

She said that on Thursday she would ask Apple for contacts of the company that put the GayCoin currency online.

Apple's representatives in Russia did not respond to AFP's requests for comment.

bur-alf-am/mm/rlp

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Volkswagen faces first mammoth diesel lawsuit on home turf

BRAUNSCHEIG, Germany - Car behemoth Volkswagen will face a German court Monday, as hundreds of thousands of owners of manipulated diesel cars demand compensation 4 years after the country's largest post-war industrial scandal erupted.

The first hearing in what is likely to be a grinding, years-long trial opens at 0800 GMT in Brunswick (4 p.m. in Manila), around 30 kilometers (19 miles) from VW headquarters in the northern city of Wolfsburg.

Around 450,000 people have joined a first-of-its-kind grouped proceeding, introduced by lawmakers after the "dieselgate" emissions cheating scandal broke in 2015.

Consumer rights group VZBV, representing the plaintiffs, says the German carmaker deliberately harmed buyers by installing motor control software that allowed vehicles to pollute far more on the road than under lab conditions.

The trial is Germany's largest so far in the tentacular diesel scandal, which last week saw VW chief executive Herbert Diess charged with market manipulation over his role.

50 QUESTIONS FOR JUDGES

In the mass lawsuit, the most important of around 50 questions for judges is whether Volkswagen "caused harm" by acting "dishonestly".

Klaus Mueller of VZBV said he is "convinced" the car firm did, while VW says "clients did not suffer harm."

"Hundreds of thousands of cars are used" on the roads without problem, VW lawyer Martine de Lind van Wijngaarden said.

Even if judges find in favor of plaintiffs, there will not be an immediate compensation payment.

Rather, every owner registered in the trial will have to claim individually.

VW thinks a final judgement could arrive in 2023 at the earliest, if the case is appealed all the way to the Federal Court of Justice.

Individual proceedings could then take at least another year -- in the court of first instance.

By then, the cars' market value could have eroded to a negligible amount, making a buyback cheaper for the firm.

To avoid such delays, the VZBV says it is "open" to an out-of-court settlement but "in that case, VW would have to pay a significant sum after all," Mueller told AFP.

Given the wide variety of cases under the group action umbrella, VW finds a mass settlement "hard to imagine."

In early July, judges noted in a preliminary opinion that some owners listed among the plaintiffs were living abroad.

That could mean German law does not apply to them.

Volkswagen said 2 percent of those listed live abroad and 10 percent are duplicate entries.

Alongside the grouped proceeding, 61,000 individual lawsuits have been filed in Germany, and some have already led to out-of-court settlements.

30 BILLION EUROS

Since 2015, when Volkswagen admitted to manipulating 11 million vehicles worldwide to fool emissions tests, the scandal has cost the group over 30 billion euros ($33 billion) in fines, compensation and legal costs.

Most of that sum -- $22 billion -- has gone to the US, while in Germany VW has so far paid just 2.3 billion dollars spread across three fines.

Alongside car owners, investors are claiming damages for losses they suffered when the group's share price plummeted after it came clean.

And earlier this week, chief executive Herbert Diess and supervisory board chief Hans Dieter Poetsch were charged with market manipulation.

Former chief executive Martin Winterkorn, who stepped down over the scandal, has been also charged with fraud.

Away from the legal battlegrounds, "dieselgate" has sped up the fuel's decline from its status as lower-carbon alternative to petrol, favored with government subsidies.

In Germany, its market share among new registrations has fallen from 46 to 33 percent, and the level of nitrogen oxides (NOx) emitted by the cars risks earning them bans from some city centers.

The diesel scandal is "part of the group's history" just like the famous Beetle and Golf models, says VW brand chief Ralf Brandstaetter.

But he adds the company has "profoundly changed," investing 30 billion euros in a new electric range to "regain society's respect."

"The diesel crisis was a catalyst for our transformation," Brandstaetter told AFP in a recent interview.

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Facebook wins dismissal of investor lawsuit over privacy breach

NEW YORK, United States - Facebook Inc and its chief executive Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday won dismissal of an investor lawsuit accusing them of deceiving investors about the likely impact of a privacy breach on its stock price, though the investors will be have a chance to refile their case.

US District Judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California said the investors had failed to allege that Facebook or its executives knowingly made false statements that led to investor losses.

Facebook and lawyers for the investors could not immediately be reached for comment.

The class action lawsuit, which was consolidated from several investor complaints filed since last year, also targeted Facebook chief organization officer Sheryl Sandberg and chief financial officer David Wehner.

The investors focus on a privacy breach, first reported in December 2015, that allowed Cambridge Analytica, a British political consulting firm, to access data for an estimated 87 million Facebook users.

In March 2018, multiple media outlets reported that Facebook was still allowing third parties to access user data, and that data from the Cambridge Analytica breach had been used in connection with US President Donald Trump's campaign. The reports caused the company's stock price to drop more than 18 percent in two weeks.

In July 2018, Facebook's stock price dropped sharply again, by nearly 19 percent, immediately after the company revealed in its quarterly earnings report that growth in the number of active users was slowing and total revenues was declining.

The investors claimed in their lawsuit that Facebook and its executives made dozens of statements downplaying the effect that the Cambridge Analytica leak and related user privacy issues would have on its stock price.

Davila, however, said Thursday that they had failed to identify specific instances of the company or its executives knowingly making false statements. He noted that some were forward-looking predictions and others were general expressions of optimism, which generally cannot be the basis for securities fraud lawsuits.

The judge gave the investors until Oct. 26 to file a new version of their complaint, saying it was "possible plaintiffs can cure their allegations by alleging, among other things, more particular facts as to why statements by the individual defendants were false when made."

Facebook is separately facing a nationwide lawsuit from users seeking to hold the company liable under various state and federal laws for allowing third parties, including Cambrdige Analytica, to access their data.

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Judge narrows Woody Allen lawsuit against Amazon for quitting movie deal

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal judge in Manhattan on Wednesday narrowed Woody Allen’s $68 million lawsuit against Amazon.com Inc for backing out of a four-picture production and distribution agreement and refusing to distribute a film he had already completed.

U.S. District Judge Denise Cote’s dismissal of four of Allen’s eight claims means the filmmaker will have to show that Amazon wrongly abandoned agreements for individual films.

She dismissed claims covering two alleged breaches of the Aug. 2017 multi-picture agreement, an unjust enrichment claim, and an alleged breach related to the first film, the completed “A Rainy Day in New York.”

Allen, 83, had sued two Amazon units in February, claiming they could not abandon their distribution plans because of a “baseless” allegation that he had molested his adopted daughter Dylan Farrow in 1992.

The allegation had gained renewed prominence in the #MeToo movement, which began in late 2017.

Allen has long denied the allegation, which was also made by Farrow’s mother Mia Farrow, who appeared in a dozen of his films and was his longtime partner. He has not been charged.

Lawyers for Allen did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Amazon’s lawyer Moez Kaba declined to comment.

Cote said Allen and his Gravier Productions Inc failed to allege an “actionable breach” of his so-called multi-picture acquisition agreement, or MAA.

“The MAA provides certain benefits to Amazon, such as an exclusive ‘first look’ at Allen’s subsequent literary and visual materials and the right to publicize the parties’ agreements, but the plaintiffs do not allege that they suffered damages from the termination of these provisions,” the judge wrote.

Allen had originally sued Amazon Content Services LLC and Amazon Studios LLC. The latter is no longer a defendant because it had faced only the now-dismissed unjust enrichment claim.

Allen has won four Oscars, including best director for 1977’s “Annie Hall,” which also won best picture, and several actresses have won Oscars for work in his movies.

But the filmmaker has seen modest commercial returns for many of his films since his bitter breakup with Mia Farrow. Some actors and actresses have expressed regret for appearing in his films after Dylan Farrow’s allegation gained renewed attention.

Variety said in May that Amazon had returned to Allen the domestic distribution rights for “A Rainy Day in New York.” The film is being released in Europe, according to media reports.

The case is Gravier Productions Inc et al v Amazon Content Services LLC et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 19-01169.

Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; editing by Bill Berkrot

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Lil Nas X is sued for $25 million for alleged song theft

(Reuters) - Lil Nas X, the rapper who shot to fame this year with the blockbuster “Old Town Road,” has been sued by a California music publisher for $25 million for allegedly stealing from a 1982 Bobby Caldwell song for another of his songs.

In a complaint filed on Wednesday, The Music Force LLC said Lil Nas X borrowed without permission from Caldwell’s R&B song “Carry On” for his own song with the same title, which he then posted to YouTube and streaming platforms such as Spotify and SoundCloud.

The plaintiff also sued Lil Nas X’s new record label, Sony Music, saying it chose not to properly vet the 20-year-old’s music because it was “far more important” to preserve the chance to generate millions of dollars of revenue from his career.

Representatives of Lil Nas X and Sony could not immediately be reached on Thursday for comment.

The Culver City-based plaintiff is seeking at least $10 million in compensatory damages, in part for “confusion in the marketplace,” plus at least $15 million in punitive damages reflecting Lil Nas X’s alleged “greed and malicious intent.”

Lil Nas X, whose given name is Montero Lamar Hill, this week saw “Old Town Road” log its 16th week atop the Billboard Hot 100, tying the record for the longest No. 1 stint in the chart’s 61-year history.

“Old Town Road,” which features country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, shares the record with Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day” in 1995-1996, and Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber’s “Despacito” in 2017.

The lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles federal court.

The case is The Music Force LLC v Sony Music Holdings Inc et al, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, No. 19-06430.

Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Matthew Lewis

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Huawei files lawsuit vs US Commerce Department over seized equipment

WASHINGTON - Huawei Technologies Co Inc filed a lawsuit against the US Commerce Department on Friday challenging whether telecommunications equipment it sent from China to the United States, and then back to China, is covered by Export Administration Regulations, according to a court filing.

The lawsuit is the latest salvo in a battle between the US government and Huawei. Washington says the Chinese company's telecommunications gear could be used by Beijing to spy. Huawei denies that is the case.

In the lawsuit, Huawei said that it shipped telecommunications equipment from China, including a computer server and Ethernet switch, to a testing laboratory in California. After the testing was done, the equipment was shipped back to China. No application for a license was made because none was needed, the lawsuit claims.

But the equipment was seized in Alaska by the US government, and no decision has been made about whether a license is required to ship it, the filing said.

"The equipment, to the best of HT USA's knowledge, remains in a bureaucratic limbo in an Alaskan warehouse," Huawei said in its lawsuit.

The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Huawei contends that the equipment did not require a license because it did not fall into a controlled category and because it was made outside the United States and was being returned to the same country from which it came.

Huawei asked for the equipment to be either released for shipment or for the Commerce Department to decide that it was shipped illegally.

In May, the Trump administration added Huawei to the entity list, barring it from buying needed US parts and components without US government approval. US President Donald Trump has said the United States could resolve complaints about Huawei as part of a trade deal.

Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou, daughter of the company's founder, has been detained in Canada since December on a US warrant. She is fighting extradition on charges that she misled global banks about Huawei's relationship with a company operating in Iran.

Shortly after her detention, Chinese authorities detained two Canadians citizens, charging them with espionage.

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Developers sue Apple over app store fees

SAN FRANCISCO, United States - A lawsuit filed Tuesday by developers alleges Apple is abusing its monopoly position in its online marketplace to extract excessive fees from those creating iPhone applications.

The lawsuit, which was filed in federal court in California, claims Apple cornered the market with its iOS App Store, collecting a 30 percent commission on all app sales and in-app purchases.

The complaint comes as Apple holds its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Jose, California and just weeks after the US Supreme Court allowed a consumer lawsuit against Apple on similar grounds to proceed.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs, who are seeking class-action status for the suit, said Apple requires developers selling products through the App Store to pay an annual fee of $99, which hurts small and new developers.

They also said that by keeping all iOS apps into 1 marketplace -- some 2 million were available last year -- consumers never see most apps.

"Between Apple's 30 percent cut of all App Store sales, the annual fee of $99 and pricing mandates, Apple blatantly abuses its market power to the detriment of developers, who are forced to use the only platform available to them to sell their iOS app," said Steve Berman of the law firm Hagens Berman, which is representing the plaintiffs.

"In a competitive landscape, this simply would not happen."

The lawsuit seeks to force Apple to end its monopoly and allow competition in the distribution of iOS apps.

It also seeks to end Apple's pricing requirement including the minimum price mandate of 99 cents for paid apps.

Apple did not immediately respond to a query on the lawsuit.

In the past, Apple has defended its control of the App Store, saying it enables the iPhone maker to protect against malicious software and maintain quality standards.

Last month, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that consumers could proceed with a separate lawsuit on app pricing, rejecting Apple's argument that consumers lacked standing because the tech giant was merely an intermediary with app developers.

The class-action lawsuit from 2011 maintains that Apple abuses its monopoly position, resulting in higher prices.

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Huawei confirms lawsuit against US government as tensions escalate

HONG KONG - Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd on Thursday said it is suing the US government over a section of a defense bill passed into law last year that restricted its business in the United States.

Huawei in a statement said it has filed a complaint in a US district court in Texas challenging its addition to the US National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The firm claims the restrictions targeting Huawei are "unconstitutional."

"The US Congress has repeatedly failed to produce any evidence to support its restrictions on Huawei products," said Huawei's Rotating Chairman Guo Ping in the statement.

The move comes as Washington tries to persuade allies to ban Huawei from business alleging espionage risks. Huawei has repeatedly denied the claims.

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Michael Jackson estate sues HBO over documentary

LOS ANGELES - Michael Jackson's estate filed a $100 million lawsuit against HBO on Thursday over plans to air a documentary that alleges the singer sexually abused two young boys.

The 53-page suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, claims HBO was violating a "non-disparagement" agreement by airing "Leaving Neverland," which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this year.

"Michael Jackson is innocent. Period," the suit says. "In 2005, Michael Jackson was subjected to a trial -- where rules of evidence and law were applied before a neutral judge and jury and where both sides were heard -- and he was exonerated by a sophisticated jury.

"Ten years after his passing, there are still those out to profit from his enormous worldwide success and take advantage of his eccentricities," it adds.

The four-hour, two-part documentary that is set to air next month includes the testimonies of two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who say the King of Pop sexually abused them when they were seven and 10.

In a statement, HBO said it planned to broadcast the documentary as scheduled.

"Despite the desperate lengths taken to undermine the film, our plans remain unchanged," the statement sent to AFP reads. "HBO will move forward with the airing of 'Leaving Neverland,' the two-part documentary on March 3rd and 4th.

"This will allow everyone the opportunity to assess the film and the claims in it for themselves."

The lawsuit contends that HBO in 1992 aired a concert in Bucharest from Jackson's "Dangerous" world tour and at the time signed non-disparagement provisions that prevent the streaming service from harming Jackson's reputation.

"In violation of both basic norms of documentary journalism and the explicit terms of the agreement, HBO has disparaged Jackson's legacy by airing a one-sided hit piece against Jackson based exclusively on the false accounts of two proven, serial perjurers," the suit states.

It asks the court to compel HBO to take part in a non-confidential arbitration that could cost the company $100 million if found liable.

Jackson, who died on June 25, 2009 after being given an overdose of the anesthetic propofol, faced multiple allegations of child sex abuse during his lifetime.

In addition to his 2005 acquittal the performer paid a $15 million court settlement in 1994 over allegations involving another child.

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