Volume 25 - Number 12 | March 1, 2010
| March 2010 Issue in PDF Format … |
| Expansion of Right of Publicity Continues To Create Tensions with First Amendment By William Sloan Coats and Jennifer P. Gossain Broadly defined, the right of publicity is a person’s right to control the commercial use of his or her identity. It has been over half a century since the term "right of publicity" was first coined by Judge Jerome Frank in 1953. Since that time, courts have been struggling to define the scope of the right of publicity protection, and to resolve the inherent conflicts between the right of publicity and the freedom of expression embodied in the First Amendment. |
| Forum Selection Clause Applies To Merged TV Company By Stan Soocher The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York decided that a forum selection clause in a television broadcast agreement applied to a company within which the original signatory broadcaster later was merged. |
| Cameo Clips By Stan Soocher MUSIC COPYRIGHTS/INFRINGING ‘WORKS’ TRADEMARK INFRINGEMENT/RECORD LABEL NAMES TV COMPENSATION CLAIMS/FEDERAL PREEMPTION VIDEOGAME DEVELOPMENT/INJUNCTIVE RELIEF |
| Ticketmaster Lead Counsel on Live Nation Merger Issues By Amanda Bronstad The proposed merger between Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. and Live Nation Inc. won Justice Department approval in January 2010, following a year of negotiations. Steven Sletten of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher counseled Ticketmaster. In an interview, Sletten stated that he prepared his client to face a tough audience, both at the Justice Department and in the court of public opinion. |
| Expert Witnesses: Exclusion of Expert’s Survey Results By Stan Soocher The entertainment industry is awash with the exploitation of merchandise products. Experts use different methodologies to prove or disprove allegations of similarities between goods. In a trademark dispute over merchandise apparel sales, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York excluded a plaintiff’s expert’s report that relied on a "sequential array" survey method to try to show that the defendants’ merchandise created a likelihood of consumer confusion. |
| Bit Parts By Stan Soocher Complaint over Oral Agreement for TV-Network Work Is Dismissed Rulings on Song License Termination and on Assignment Recordation Suits Proceed over Use of College Athletes’ Indicia |
