Video Games Update
Recent developments in video game cases and law.
Internet Piracy Update
Recent cases in Internet piracy of to the entertainment law community.
<b>Decision of Note:</b> Court Jurisdiction Over Accountants In Film-Deal Suit
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ruled it had personal jurisdiction over accountants allegedly in-volved in a scheme to defraud in a film-production investment.
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Clause & Effect
Mandatory forum selection clauses are 'prima facie valid and should be enforced unless enforcement is shown by the resisting party to be 'unreasonable' under the circumstances. ... Plaintiff has failed to demonstrate that enforcement of the instant forum selection clause is 'unreasonable.'
Courthouse Steps
Recently filed cases in entertainment law, straight from the steps of the Los Angeles Superior Court.
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Counsel Concerns
Motion to Withdraw<br>Section 1927 Sanctions
Bankruptcy Filing Allows Artist to Reject Agreement to Collect Artist's Royalties
Artists have sometimes used bankruptcy filings to end personal service agreements, such as recording contracts, and even as a tool in renegotiating deals. A key issue has been whether an artist's bankruptcy terminated such an agreement. The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, Poughkeepsie Division, has now decided that an artist in bankruptcy may reject an agreement he or she entered into for a third party to collect the artist's royalties.
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Spyware Suits Shed Light On DMCA Concerns
Last November, when millions of music lovers were shocked to discover that Sony BMG Music Entertainment had installed spyware-type software on over 4.7 million CDs, Princeton University computer science professors Edward Felten and J. Alex Halderman weren't surprised. The two computer-security experts uncovered Sony BMG's secret software ' designed to prevent CD piracy ' about a month before the public. But fearing copyright lawsuits from Sony BMG, Felten and Halderman say they kept their findings as hidden as the software. They aren't keeping quiet anymore. In December, the researchers filed a comment at the U.S. Copyright Office seeking an exemption from the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), the law that they say stifles their work.
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