Cloud • CDN • Servers • VPS DEFENDING FREE SPEECH May 16, 2024 — Washington, DC Today, the Woodhull Foundation and the Electronic Frontier Foundation submitted a brief to the United States Supreme Court urging the Justices to rule on TX’s unconstitutional age verification law. We filed in support of the constitutional challenge brought by the ACLU, the Free Speech Coalition, and others asking the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse a lower court ruling that, if left standing, would impermissively burden free speech online, involving the unconstitutional age-verification mandate in Texas’s H.B. 1181. Woodhull’s participation in this case was made possible by a generous donation from internet hosting provider MojoHost. As explained in the amicus brief filed in support of the Petitioners’ request that the Court review the decision from the Fifth Circuit upholding the law, imposing mandatory online age and identity verification to access adult content violates the First Amendment under well-established precedent. Ricci Levy, President & CEO of the Woodhull Freedom Foundation, explained, “We rely on the Court to ignore misinformation and, instead, rule based only on the law. The Supreme Court has repeatedly recognized the significant burden and risk created by requiring users to verify their age and identity to access protected content, rendering such requirements unconstitutional where less restrictive alternatives exist. In Ashcroft v. ACLU, the Court reaffirmed that the government cannot impose age verification on adults in the name of protecting children. If the true goal of these measures is to protect children from material that isn’t age-appropriate, which we fully support, other less intrusive options are already available to accomplish this goal – and must be used in order to protect the rights of adults. But if the real goal is to block adult access and shut down the adult content currently available, and if the Justices allow that to happen, then Democracy as we believe it to be is dead. A big thank you to MojoHost for donating the necessary funds to defray the legal fees and costs of filing a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court.” Brad Mitchell, President of MojoHost said, “As a parent, business owner and web host for 25 years I can’t remain silent while our constitution is violated in the name of child protection when I know for a fact that this bad legislation puts both our children and rights as Americans in peril. I am proud to support Woodhull and the EFF’s efforts in seeking this writ of certiorari. The action of inhibiting free speech does nothing to protect our children, it will only result in elevating worse content such as CSAM, copyright theft, and abusive materials from other jurisdictions outside of the United States where enforcement is impossible and viewing is freely available. It was a no-brainer to financially support these great organizations in combating outright speech suppression. Lawrence Walters of Walters Law Group commented, “The outcome of this case, if accepted, will have a monumental impact on freedom of speech, data privacy, and First Amendment law. We remain hopeful that the Justices will decide to grant certiorari and invalidate the blatantly unconstitutional Texas age verification law. I am grateful to be a part of the stellar legal team that drafted the amicus brief for Woodhull and EFF.” Corey Silverstein, of Silverstein Legal said, “I am very proud of being part of the legal team tasked by Woodhull and the EFF to combat this outright trampling of the First Amendment and existing Supreme Court precedent. Texas’ age verification bill needs to be stopped in its tracks and I am hopeful and confident that the justices of the Supreme Court will utilize their wisdom and grant certiorari and give the petitioner the opportunity to present its case as to why the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has made such a terrible error. Woodhull and the EFF are incredible organizations and their dedication to protecting free speech is unmatched.” Read the Official Woodhull Foundation PR

Recently, the renowned sex-tech company Lovense announced a series of legal victories in lawsuits aimed at protecting and advocating for its product trademarks, copyrights and patents. It is a clear expression that Lovense has formally expressed its attitude and determination towards intellectual property protection. Lovense is an innovation and technology-driven company that specializes in the design and manufacture of smart sex toys, aimed at enhancing the intimacy and sexual experiences of individuals and couples regardless of the distance between them. Established in 2010, Lovense has been at the forefront of integrating teledildonics with modern technology, creating a seamless blend of innovation and pleasure. Until now, Lovense holds nearly 300 patents worldwide, including utility and design, and provides over 30 different product categories and technical services to more than 20 million users globally, with the aim of providing users with better intimate experiences, especially for long-distance couples. In the statement, Lovense revealed multiple legal victories related to the infringement of its global most popular product–the Lush series, which has been counterfeited and sold worldwide. Since 2022, Lovense has initiated ongoing legal actions against over 250 companies worldwide involved in the infringement of the Lush series, resulting in a complete victory and compensation of nearly $20 million. Such large-scale lawsuits and ultimate victory, as well as Lovense’s firm stance throughout the legal process, demonstrate its strong commitment to protecting the intellectual property of its products and the willingness to take all necessary measures to protect its trademarks, patents, and copyrights, and to crack down on infringement and counterfeiting. Lovense has always placed a high priority on intellectual property protection, with a professional legal team and abundant resources dedicated to maintaining the patents, trademarks, and copyrights of Lovense products and technologies, and taking decisive action against all infringement and counterfeiting activities. Lovense remains committed to providing innovative, high-quality, and safe products to its users, and will continue to protect its brand’s intellectual property to ensure that users can enjoy the  genuine and reliable Lovense product experience. For more informations, please visit Lovense.