Court Battles over Digital Television Distribution
Aereo Inc.'s pitch is this: With one of its tiny antennas, no bigger than a dime, viewers can watch television through the Internet. But this is erupting into a litigation nightmare for broadcasters. Appeals are pending in two federal courts over this type of technology, and at least one of the cases could well reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
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.
No Fair Use Seen In Artworks About Sid Vicious
The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California decided that artworks based on a photograph of the late, infamous Sex Pistols band member Sid Vicious weren't copyright fair uses.
Filmed Conversation with Celebrity
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently found that a woman who appears on camera for 16 seconds in an 82-minute documentary film about Joan Alexandra Molinsky Sanger Rosenberg (more commonly known as the comedian Joan Rivers), does not have a right to sue for invasion of privacy and misappropriation of her image under the Wisconsin Right of Privacy statute.
Factors in Assessing Statutory Damages for Digital Copyright Infringement
A recent federal district court award of $6.6 million in statutory damages to music publishers for the unlicensed use of song lyrics by the website LiveUniverse and its operator was hailed as the first of its type for owners of song lyrics, and thus a significant milestone for content owners in the digital era.
Factors in Assessing Statutory Damages for Digital Copyright Infringement
A recent federal district court award of $6.6 million in statutory damages to music publishers for the unlicensed use of song lyrics by the website LiveUniverse and its operator was hailed as the first of its type for owners of song lyrics, and thus a significant milestone for content owners in the digital era.
Bit Parts
Copyright Ownership Issue Properly Sent to Jury<br>1981 Merchandising Royalties Underpayment Claim Can Proceed<br>Replacement Rollers Members' Breach Claim Is Dismissed
Warner Bros. Wins Copyright Battle over Superman
O'Melveny & Myers scored a big win for Warner Brothers Entertainment Inc. in January 2013 in the company's ugly copyright battle with the heirs to the creators of Superman. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit decided that the heirs of now-deceased Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel signed away their rights to the Man of Steel in a 2001 agreement with Warner Brothers.
Evolving Court Views on Requests for ISP User Identities
When copyright suits are instituted over file-sharing infringements that take place over the Internet, the copyright owner may not know much about who the infringers are. Even in the best case, a plaintiff is unlikely to start with much more than an Internet Protocol (IP) address ' the number that identifies a computer or group of computers that may have been used to download or share all or part of an infringing file.
