A story which seems to drag on forever now is closed?
The auction site ran by Yahoo was ordered by a French court to stop providing auctions of Nazi memorabilia to the french public in violation to French law. Yahoo! stopped since their French assests were threatened but then compained that their rights to free speech were being violated by the French.
This case was an excellent example of a culture clash. It provides a look at the difference between European and US free speech regulation. Whether corporation should have speech rights. Whether free speech means speech without any limitations. American legislation tends to grant speech rights to corporations and is disinclined to limit free speech – nomatter the cost. European law (if there is such a thing) tends not to grant speech rights to corportations and is very much inclined to limit speech rights.
The case also demands a re-appraisal of the view that the Internet cannot be controlled by governments. It shows that the US cannot control the internet through its legislation.
It also shows the different approach a multi-national corporation takes towards governments. The difference between Yahoo!’s attitude to the French compared to the Chinese governments is an excellent example of the way in which multinationals act.
Anyway Yahoo! has now lost its lawsuit were it claims that the French courts violated the companies rights to sell Nazi memorabilia. The Yahoo! Case has been a central part of cyberlaw since 2000 – is it all over now?
Source: The Register