'Now for Something Completely Different'
September 16, 2003
No franchise agreement, despite its length and the genius of its drafting, anticipates all commercial realities and advances over its intended life span. For example, until the mid-to-late 1990s, the Internet was a novelty of the military, academia, and entertainment industry, and it formed no part of the commercial landscape for business format franchises. As franchise systems and methods of operation evolve in our technological society, how much of the future should the draftsperson attempt to enmesh in the agreement? Perhaps this issue is less of a concern than first thought. The answer may lie in a doctrine that is, ironically, viewed by franchisors with less favor.
<b>Decision of Note</b>California Further Defines Transformative Use
September 13, 2003
The California Supreme Court has held that the First Amendment protected D.C. Comics against a right of publicity claim brought by Johnny and Edgar Winter, well-known musicians from Texas, based on a series of comic books that incorporated the Winter brothers as characters, albeit transformed into the 'Autumn Brothers' as villainous half-worms.
Bit Parts
September 12, 2003
Recent developments in entertainment law.
Courthouse Steps
September 12, 2003
Recently filed cases in entertainment law, straight from the steps of the Los Angeles Superior Court.
<b>Clause & Effect</b>Enforcement of Contestant Confidentiality Agreements
September 12, 2003
With the increase in 'Survivor'-type reality TV shows ' and competition between program producers ' has come the need for greater protection of production secrets. Applicants and contestants for such reality programs are often asked to sign confidentiality agreements to prevent trade secrets from being divulged. But how binding is a confidentiality agreement if a contestant accuses a producer of manipulating a reality show's outcome?
Cameo Clips
September 12, 2003
Recent cases in entertainment law.
Copyright Law and the Non-Exclusive Rights to 'Link' and 'Crawl'
September 05, 2003
One of the most important issues faced by commercial purveyors of content on the Internet is how to protect their content. Much coffee and ink have been spilled over the question of how copyright, contract and tort law may be marshaled to maximize protection (or may be circumvented to minimize it).
<B><I>Practice Tip</B></I>Choosing a Storage Format, Part II: The World of DVDs
September 05, 2003
In the March issue of this newsletter, I wrote a column about the different methods of storage formats available today. In this month's column I would like to show you how a technology originally developed for the entertainment industry ' the DVD, can help you manage the ever increasing data storage requirements of today's businesses.
