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Challenges to Evidence of Copyright Ownership
There has been a long-term debate over whether sound recordings can be copyright works made for hire. Sound recordings don't appear in the list of works for hire set out in §101 of the Copyright Act of 1976, though record labels argue recordings can be deemed so as a "compilation" or a "contribution to a collective work," per §101. Twenty years ago, Congress moved to formally designate sound recordings as works for hire via the Intellectual Property and Communications Omnibus Reform Act of 1999 (IPCORA) — though artists were able to convince Congress to repeal the legislation.
In Sony Music Entertainment v. Cox Communications Inc., 1:18-cv-950 (E.D.Va. 2019), several dozen record companies and music publishers sued the Internet service provider both for contributory infringement and vicarious liability based on direct infringement of 7,068 of the plaintiffs' recordings and 3,452 of their songs by the ISP's customers.
To establish ownership of the copyrights at issue, the plaintiffs presented certificates of registration from the Copyright Office, entries from the federal online Copyright Catalog, copies of merger and acquisition agreements, and declarations from company executives. Cox Communications disputed the sufficiency of some of the evidence of copyright ownership, including as to 238 sound recordings claimed by the record companies in copyright registration applications as works made for hire.
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Major Differences In UK, U.S. Copyright Laws
This article highlights how copyright law in the United Kingdom differs from U.S. copyright law, and points out differences that may be crucial to entertainment and media businesses familiar with U.S law that are interested in operating in the United Kingdom or under UK law. The article also briefly addresses contrasts in UK and U.S. trademark law.
The Article 8 Opt In
The Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.
Strategy vs. Tactics: Two Sides of a Difficult Coin
With each successive large-scale cyber attack, it is slowly becoming clear that ransomware attacks are targeting the critical infrastructure of the most powerful country on the planet. Understanding the strategy, and tactics of our opponents, as well as the strategy and the tactics we implement as a response are vital to victory.
Legal Possession: What Does It Mean?
Possession of real property is a matter of physical fact. Having the right or legal entitlement to possession is not "possession," possession is "the fact of having or holding property in one's power." That power means having physical dominion and control over the property.
The Stranger to the Deed Rule
In 1987, a unanimous Court of Appeals reaffirmed the vitality of the "stranger to the deed" rule, which holds that if a grantor executes a deed to a grantee purporting to create an easement in a third party, the easement is invalid. Daniello v. Wagner, decided by the Second Department on November 29th, makes it clear that not all grantors (or their lawyers) have received the Court of Appeals' message, suggesting that the rule needs re-examination.