On April 7, the News/Media Alliance led an amicus brief in the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Second Appellate District, Division Three in support of petitioner in Variety Media, LLC v. The Superior Court of Los Angeles County. The suit involves allegations against a publisher brought under the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), claiming CIPA’s pen register prohibition extends to the use of standard online business technology.
The amicus brief supports Variety’s position regarding the scope of CIPA. The brief highlights that a tidal wave of overzealous CIPA lawsuits represents an unsustainable threat for media organizations, especially news organizations, and that the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), not CIPA, is the appropriate and contemporary California privacy rulemaking that should dictate the commercial processing of consumer data. It also explains why IP address tracking and metadata validation processes are necessary and common for website operators, and outside the scope of CIPA.
The brief argues that appellate review is necessary, and that the Court of Appeal should review and provide overdue clarity on how CIPA applies for web publishers using third-party technology that recognizes users’ IP addresses for routine functions. The brief was joined by Digital Content Next (DCN).
