DMCA Abuse?
March 01, 2004
After someone electronically lifted embarrassing e-mails from Diebold Inc. and posted them online, the company responded with a tactic that more and more companies are using to put a lid on Internet distribution of sensitive information: Diebold sent cease-and-desist notices to organizations hosting Web sites and forums that had published, or even linked, to the e-mails. The messages portrayed participants in Diebold's electronic voting business confirming their critics' worst nightmares about security vulnerabilities. Information may want to be free. But specialists say that sending such notices under the 5-year-old DMCA succeeds, in the vast majority of cases, in promptly curtailing online distribution. The technique is so effective, critics contend, that it is often abused in situations where no copyright protection applies or ' as with the Diebold case ' there would be a strong fair use defense.
Record Industry Still Pursuing File-Sharers
March 01, 2004
The U.S. music industry recently sued 531 more individuals for online copyright infringement through anonymous "John Doe" styled suits. The RIAA, continuing to cite digital piracy as a major cause of slumping CD sales for the third year in a row, announced that it filed five separate lawsuits against 531 users of undisclosed Internet Service Providers.
Profile: Marc Friedland
February 01, 2004
Over the last 2 weeks, television has given the general public an opportunity to witness two milestone celebrity birthday parties. First came Oprah's 50th, which she televised on her daytime show. Then came Entertainment Tonight and Good Morning America with John Travolta's Surprise 50th birthday party bash in Mexico. Long before these parties took shape, one individual had the daunting challenge of creating the invitations that would monogram these events. I think it is fair to say that when Hollywood types want to make an impression, they will look high and low to seek out the most creative and innovative types to deliver whatever it is that they wish to convey. There seems to be a trend in Hollywood when it comes to selecting an individual to trademark and distinguish an event, and that trend is to select Marc Friedland, who has come to be known as the "stationer to the stars."
Trademark Exploitation on the Internet: Don't Be Branded a Usurper
February 01, 2004
While the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act adequately addresses the legal difficulties associated with bad-faith registration of trademarked names by nontrademark holders, e-exploitation of trademarks is still a problem for trademark holders.
Bit Parts
February 01, 2004
Recent developments in entertainment law.
Clause & Effect: <b>Non-Monetary Benefits' Impact on Royalty Rights</b>
February 01, 2004
A right to net-profits participation from entertainment products has often been criticized as meaning little, given the many disputes that have arisen over non-payment. Even producers of highly successful products may argue that their ventures netted little or no net profits. Thus, revenue participants who obtain the right to a percentage of gross or adjusted-gross profits are usually considered in a better position than net-profits participants. Still, a right to gross profits has its pitfalls. A key issue is what revenues belong in the gross-profit pool.
Courthouse Steps
February 01, 2004
Recently filed cases in entertainment law, straight from the steps of the Los Angeles Superior Court.
Attorney Fees Update
February 01, 2004
Depending on the circumstances and the law, parties on either side of an entertainment suit may ask a court for an award of attorney fees. Following are court rulings from recent months that deal with this and related concerns. In this and future issues, <i>Entertainment Law & Finance</i> will report on such relevant rulings in Attorney-Fee Updates.
Cameo Clips
February 01, 2004
Recent cases in entertainment law.
Creative Dilemma: Determining Authorship Rights in Studio Session Works
February 01, 2004
A recording session is generally a team effort, with artist, engineer and producer working together to create sound recording masters. However, unless set forth in written agreements, just who owns the rights in the works may not be clear. For example, what if an engineer with creative input claims to be a joint author? Even less clear may be who owns the rights if a visitor to a recording session becomes a contributor to a track. Such situations may raise claims of joint authorship and/or copyright infringement, among other things. (A joint copyright owner can't sue a co-owner for infringement, but a court may recognize a joint authorship claim as a distinct alternative from an infringement claim in the same case.) Defendants in these actions may claim an implied license, that the visitor's contribution wasn't original enough to be copyrightable or that the contribution was a work-for-hire under that the defendants own. These arguments were recently tested in a case involving a recording session for the popular hip-hop artist Jay-Z.
