Intellectual Property

Supreme Court Rules 9-0 for Monsanto in Seed-Patent Case

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously this morning that an Indiana farmer violated Monsanto's patents on genetically modified "Roundup Ready" soybean seeds. The case, Bowman v. Monsanto, hinged on whether the farmer, Vernon Bowman, ought to pay Monsanto for seeds that he purchased from a grain el ... More >>

Saint Louis University: Administration Threatens Legal Action Over Professor's Survey

Here's one way to pretty much guarantee negative publicity, courtesy of Saint Louis University officials. SLU's legal counsel, in an apparent attempt to stop a faculty survey on the embattled university president Father Lawrence Biondi, has threatened legal action against the professor drafting th ... More >>

Pain Pills: The heated copyright debate over a St. Louisan's power-pop compilation

Eternal Summers

8 p.m. Tuesday, December 4. Firebird, 2706 Olive Street.

The New Cold War: On the frontlines of the costliest battle in the high-tech world

Think Tank Ranks St. Louis High in "Creative Class" Output...Not!

The other day a colleague forwarded along a link citing a study in which St. Louis was ranked no. 4 in the nation for our Creative Class* contributions to the nation's greater good. Or so it first appeared. In a short paper titled "Is your Region ... Creative, Innovative, Productive, ... or Just P ... More >>

Mizzou J-School Leader's Testimony Could Hurt Apple in Huge Lawsuit Against Samsung

In what Wired magazine is calling "the patent case of the century," Apple is suing Samsung for "slavishly" copying Apple's tech and design as seen in -- among other things -- the iPad. Apple believes Samsung is trampling on its patent rights. The local-ish connection is this:   Earlier this wee ... More >>

[Kim Dotcom Arrest Video: Update] The Eight Most Eyebrow-Raising Elements of the Megaupload Shutdown

Editor's Update, 8/9/12: Video of the raid on former Megaupload CEO Kim Dotcom's enormous New Zealand home in January has just emerged -- you can watch it above. The report, from 3 News in New Zealand, includes testimony from Dotcom -- who is accused of the largest copyright infringement in U.S. hi ... More >>

Steve Penn, Fired Columnist, Sues Kansas City Star, Says He's Not a Plagiarist

Former Kansas City Star columnist Steve Penn filed a ballsy little lawsuit this week. First off, as a journalist, Penn surely knows how difficult it is to prove that his former employer defamed him, as it is with all defamation cases. But the crux of his complaint is even more controversial. Penn ... More >>

Illegal Downloading Is Wrong, But I Do It Anyway

Art and life co-habitate, informing, imitating, and enriching each other constantly. Each week in Better Living Through Music, RFT Music writer Ryan Wasoba explores this symbiotic relationship. Question: If you were in the middle of a riot, streets overrun with people freaking out, smashing windows ... More >>

Oral Argument: Ladue-Based Creator of Tongue Vibrators Sues Chinese-Knockoff Vendors

When Jeff Klearman of Ladue went surfing online for tongue vibrators this past year, the only part of him to become roused was his ire. Several websites, he discovered, were selling tongue vibrator models dubbed, "The Tiggler." But Klearman owns the "Tiggler" trademark, as well as the patents on the ... More >>

Mo. Attorney General To Release Dome Plans Despite Objections From Rams, CVC

Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster said yesterday that his office plans to release details of plans to renovate the Edward Jones Dome regardless of a confidentiality agreement that has kept the proposal out of public view. Per the deal that brought the Rams to St. Louis from Los Angeles, the Ram ... More >>

Organic Farmers' Suit Against Monsanto Dismissed (and Dissed) by Federal Judge

​A federal district court judge in New York threw out a lawsuit yesterday brought by pro-organic groups against St. Louis- based Monsanto, scolding the plaintiffs for their "tactics." Some 60 seed companies, family farmers and other organic folks filed suit last March. Their stated goal was to ere ... More >>

Wanna Start a Business? St. Louis is One of the Best Places to Do It

With the recession still in full swing and likely to continue for several more years, it seems like it would be a foolhardy proposition to start up a small business. But there is something infinitely appealing in working for yourself -- particularly since that makes you immune to layoffs. And accord ... More >>

SOPA Protests Keep Kids From Researching SummerSlam

​Attention, high school students: You have to read the book now. Tonight at midnight, Wikipedia shuts down for 24 hours to protest both House Bill 3261, more commonly known as the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), and its related bill in the Senate, the PROTECT IP ACT (PIPA). SOPA and PIPA have raise ... More >>

Name Dispute Remains a Matter of Taste

This no longer exists. Don't even mention it.​This week's review of twinOak Wood Fired Fare (1201 Strassner Drive, Brentwood; 314-644-2772) mentions the controversy surrounding the restaurant's original name, Taste Wood Fired Fare. In discussing the dispute between what is now twinOak and Gera ... More >>

Bill to Make Streaming Content a Felony: Here's How To Understand, Track and Get Involved

​Bill S. 978 would make unauthorized streaming of copyrighted content a felony with a penalty of up to five years in prison. Specifically, it would incriminate those who disseminate ("publicly perform" in the language of the bill) copyrighted material ten or more times in a 180 day span. The ... More >>

Percy Schmeiser: David Versus Monsanto

2:45 p.m. Sunday, November 14 at Plaza Frontenac

Jive & Wail in Maplewood Closes; Lawsuits Still Pending

jiveandwail.com​The Jive & Wail's Maplewood outpost has closed. The corner storefront has "For Lease" signs on it, and no mention of the establishment appears on the venue's website. In July, the limited liability company that runs the Maplewood location, and its owner, Stephen L. Benner, wer ... More >>

This Town Ain't Big Enough For Two Best of St. Louises

There can be only one.​Every fall, as you, our devoted readers, surely know, Riverfront Times puts out a massive Best of St. Louis issue that contains more than 400 listings for the best stuff in St. Louis.Earlier this summer, Max Bemberg, Ben DeMeyer and Alex Luft, a trio of St. Louisans, decided ... More >>

A to Z Gets a Cease-and-Desist Letter for...Linking to a Blog?

Timothy Norris/LA WeeklyLady Gaga in LA, 12/23/09​​Last Thursday, to preview Lady Gaga's show at the Fox that night, I posted about a Nirvana-Lady Gaga mashup floating around the Internet. In that post, I embedded the YouTube video and a link to the where the mashup originated: a blog post on th ... More >>

Video: Paula Deen Hit in the Face with a Ham

When I first heard about this, I assumed some crazed animal-rights protestor had chucked a ham at Paula Deen on account of her ties with Smithfield. Nope. Just this. Ouch.Update @ 3 p.m.: Ah, the copyright police have struck YouTube again, it seems. You can see the original here.

Do You Have a Facesquatting Problem?

moar funny picturesThousands of Facebook users made a mad dash to reserve their unique Facebook URL's on Friday night. Did you get yours? Oh wait ... you mean you had better things to do late on a Friday night? This seemingly over-hyped event seemed to go off without a hitch. Facebook didn't crash a ... More >>

Two Guys Walk into a Bar

Space-time will never be the same

Intro to Art

Listen, look and learn

Nine Inch Nails Releases The Slip, A *Free* New Full-Length Album

Same Ol' Song: Club owners owe royalties for music played on their premises

The Felice Brothers

8 p.m. Friday, February 29. The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Boulevard

Yoko Ono Responds to Lennon Murphy's Alleged Lawsuit

You Play, They Pay: Internet Radio's Demise?

Czech Mate for Anheuser-Busch

Zoo™ Suit

The Saint Louis Zoo's new baby cheetahs are cute; its lawsuits are not. Plus: Jerry Lewis Bey writes his memoir from prison, a single girl sounds off, and a local blogger finds herself in deep doo-doo.

You Play, They Pay

How much should it cost Internet radio operators like Jim and Wanda Atkinson to satisfy your cravings for streaming rock & roll?

They'd Only Just Begun

Washington U. gags on a plan to screen a controversial Karen Carpenter biopic

Sentimental Journey

Unreal cares enough to send the very best; plus, we get our five minutes of TV fame and continue the hard-hitting sandwich reportage

Peer-to-Peer Pressure

Wash. U. students find a way around their Kazaa conundrum

Gland of Opportunity

Dr. William J. Catalona built an unrivaled repository of blood and tissue samples. Washington University wants to keep it. Now a judge will decide: Who owns the prostates?

Morning Has Broken

Two years in the making, Western Robot's Music for a Morning's Work defies categorization: It's not punk, prog, jazz or rock -- just sublime.

Custody Battle

Marvel Comics isn't going to give up Captain America without a fight

John Ashcroft's Drug Money