TG Daily Top-10: Tech lawsuits of 2006

4 - Blind shoppers sue Target for accessibility

Many of us take web shopping for granted, but this simple task can be very difficult for the visually impaired. The National Federation of the Blind sued retail giant Target because its website wasn't readable by the screen-reading software that is normally used by blind people. The NFB sued under the Americans with Disabilities Act and claim Target's website is practically unusable.

Stretching the Americans with Disabilities Act to include online shopping sites is an interesting twist because the law predated most of the known Internet when it took effect in 1992. The economic consequences for companies could be tremendous. The NFB, if successful with the Target lawsuit, could be emboldened to go after other shopping websites.

Some websites will spend thousands of Dollars reworking site layouts, but others will unfortunately look the other way. We sometimes forget that there are millions of people out there that aren't blessed with eye sight and this is a case where a lawsuit here or there could actually do some good. Someone slap me for saying that.

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Blind web surfers sue Target for accessibility

3 - Sony sues Lik-Sang out of existence

Lawsuits may become a way of life for some tech companies, but it's not often that you see a company sued out of existence. Sony successfully sued Hong Kong-based gaming retailer Lik-Sang for reselling Sony PlayStation Portables from Asia to the United Kingdom as well as games and electronics to the U.S. Sony claimed the sales were a violation of their trademark, but Lik-Sang argued that it was merely redistributing the devices to the PSP-starved masses in Europe.

Lik-Sang reinvented itself from its shady mod-chip past into a reseller of handheld game units and games. Nintendo and Sony have usually played favorites to their home country by releasing games and consoles weeks or even months before other regions. Indeed, some games are only available in Japan. Citing a Hong Kong law stating that market goods can be freely distributed, Lik-Sang bought Nintendo and Sony goods and resold them to the United States and the UK.

Sony argued that the resold PSPs could have electrical problems, but Lik-Sang countered by saying the units fully met all EU and UK consumer safety regulations. In the end Sony won out and on October 24th, 2006 Lik-Sang stopped taking orders and went out of business.

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Lik-Sang sued out of existence by Sony