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  • Barton LLP, Senior Associate, Corporate Transactions, Technology Transactions 
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The Most Important Bitcoin News of the Week: SEC Statement

Today when reading the morning headlines, I noticed the following three articles, all expressing skepticism about the current state of bitcoin growth - all from sources that have been typically fairly 'pro' bitcoin:

Wired: BitCoin is Soaring - Here is Why It's Not Ready for the Big Time 

Ars Technica: I used to be a bitcoin bull—here’s why that changed

Preethi Kasireddy: Fundamental challenges with public blockchains

These all discuss a number of technical challenges to BitCoin and are all very well written and worth the read. However, not one of them mentions the single biggest thing to happen in BitCoin news this quarter, which is the statement from SEC Chairman Jay Clayton released as of this Monday, December 11, 2017, entitled:

Statement on Cryptocurrencies and Initial Coin Offerings

A few choice tidbits:

Tokens and offerings that incorporate features and marketing efforts that emphasize the potential for profits based on the entrepreneurial or managerial efforts of others …
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Why Stack Overflow Doesn’t Care About Ad Blockers – Stack Overflow Blog – A destination for all things related to development at Stack Overflow

As an interesting follow-on to Wired's article earlier today, see the this post by StackOverflow regarding its advertising policy:

But really: anything that doesn’t speak specifically to the Stack Overflow audience is not permitted. We also don’t accept rich media like animated ads, expandable ads, or video, which are the norm for most publishers today. This strict policy means we leave money on the table, but our team wants to protect Stack Overflow from those kinds of ads, as they run the risk of alienating that established trust.For those of you that don't know, StackOverflow is a forum where users go to post software development / programming questions and answers. It is one of the single most valuable resources available to any developer out there - I have used it more times than I care to count. To put it mildly, they have very high street cred, and this policy seems totally consistent with that reputation.



Well done, StackOverflow.
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Contract Drafting: Software Development Agreements

Recently, I was presented with a form software development Agreement. I asked a junior associate to give it a markup for outstanding issues as a learning exercise. It reminded me that many critical areas of contract drafting are simply not taught in law school, so consider this a first in a series of tips and pointers for drafting practical agreements.

Software development contracts are a lot like other creative development agreements, in that a person or corporation is creating a new work and transferring the IP rights to its employer. As a result, here are a few things to consider in any contract that controls the transfer of IP rights:


Clearly define "Intellectual Property." Make sure that such definition includes not just copyright, but trademark, trade secret, and all patent rights. This definition covers what will, and will not, be owned by the client at the end of the engagement. Work for Hire. As a client, you will want to ensure that all materials are being made as w…
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