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An Italian court decided that anyone who does anything, anywhere in the world that an Italian court can interpret as an infringement of Italian law can be prosecuted, tried, and convicted. Three Google executives, who do not reside or do business in Italy, have been convicted for purportedly allowing a video containing objectionable content to be posted on Google Video. The clip depicted a number of Italian teenage thugs bullying in Turin, an Italian city, another Italian child affected by Down syndrome. The clip was posted on the net by an Italian citizen. Although the case raises some important issues related to policing user generated content, it is clearly over-reaching. Italian law cannot and should not regulate business practices in the United States. As U.S. judges should not attempt to do the same in Italy. If Italian judges find American content objectionable they should put laws and technologies into place that regulate the behavior of Italians, including those who have posted the videos on Google’s servers, not of Americans.
An Italian court has convicted three Google executives in a trial over a video showing an autistic teenager being bullied. The Google employees were accused of breaking Italian law by allowing the video to be posted online. Judge Oscar Magi absolved the three of defamation but convicted them of privacy violations.The UK’s former Information Commissioner Richard Thomas said the case gave privacy laws a “bad name”. The three employees, Peter Fleischer, David Drummond and George De Los Reyes, received suspended six-month sentences, while a fourth defendant, product manager Arvind Desikan, was acquitted.
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OK,I take your point.
what about Mr. Madoff raising money from italian residents for his ponzi scheme in NY, through his local correspondents ?
would he be subject to italian law ?
Yes, they have. Some Italian magistrates still have a problem with the separation of powers. Like in ancient Rome, there are magistrates who tend to exercise also executive functions. As megalomania knows no limits, why not regulate business practices in the US, too?