[jason_wang]

So practically speaking, this California law will have a national effect.

Since it is near impossible to determine if a visitor is a California resident or not, sites/apps will just implement the necessary notices and features to comply with DNT for everyone.

[nknighthb]

California has ~12% of the US population and a slightly larger share of the national economy. Its laws have long had national effects. In fact, as the 12th largest economy in the world, I think you could safely say its laws have international effects.

[coin]

I would think that this law has no enforcement outside of California for websites that are outside of California. As a non-California resident operating a website not in California, I am not subject California law. This is the same basis used for not collecting out of state sale tax.

[jason_wang]

I didn't mean the DNT law will be enforced nationally. I meant the effect will be national since a site will just implement the necessary changes once for all its visitors.

[anigbrowl]

Think again. If you serve customers in California, you can most certainly have to deal with California law: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minimum_contacts

[coin]

Is a CA visitor to my non-CA website considered a "customer"?

[anigbrowl]

Insofar as you offer some kind of commercial service (I don't know what your website is about), sure. The idea of minimum contacts is to give the public a way of seeking legal redress within their own state; otherwise all firms would set up in some business-friendly state like Delaware and the only way to sue them would be in Delaware court.

Of course, this is potentially very expensive, since you could have to deal with up to 51 legal regimes (50 states + federal court, if we omit places like Puerto Rico and so on). That's why firms often aim for compliance with the strictest regulatory regime in widespread use, so as to minimize the legal risks. As pointed out elsewhere in the thread, this is why the CA template is likely to eventually become law in other states. Hence the phrase 'as California goes, so goes the nation' - CA policy often ends up as national policy 20-30 years down the line.

[jordo37]

I believe that if a user is in California, they will be able to bring a civil suit under California law against you/ your company.