Written by: Joseph M. DiCioccio There have been many attempts over the last few years to address online copyright infringement. The most recent effort is the Copyright Alert System (“CAS”), which was rolled out in February 2013 as a system created to educate and alert the public about the dangers and harm caused by copyright… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Copyright Infringement
Subscribe to Copyright Infringement RSS FeedNinth Circuit Expands Personal Jurisdiction over Willful Copyright Infringers
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Fashion, LitigationMy colleagues in our Litigation practice, Harvey Saferstein and Nada I. Shamonki, recently authored an alert “Another Shoe Drops in Washington: Ninth Circuit Expands Personal Jurisdiction over Willful Copyright Infringers”. On December 17, in Washington Shoe Co. v. A-Z Sporting Goods, Inc., the Ninth Circuit expanded the exercise by Federal District Courts of personal jurisdiction over… Continue Reading
U.S. Supreme Court Hears Arguments in the First Sale Case
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, First SaleWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller Despite Hurricane Sandy, the US Supreme Court heard arguments on Monday, October 29, 2012 on whether the “first-sale doctrine” of US copyright law applies to goods made outside the US. The substance of the case, as we reported to you previously, is the specific language in the first-zero rule which… Continue Reading
Update: S. 3523 Passes U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Fashion, Legislation, Trademark InfringementWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller The bill to extend intellectual property protection to the fashion industry, S. 3523, the substance of which we reported recently, has passed the US Senate Judiciary Committee without amendment. By voice vote on September 20, the bill passed with Senators Lee (R-Utah), Kyl (R-Ariz), Cornyn (R-Texas) and Coburn (R-Okla.) voting… Continue Reading
An Update: The Cost Of An Illegal Download
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Damages, Fair Use, Litigation, Music, Statutory DamagesWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller As you may recall, we asked the question in a recent blog post “Are You Willing to Pay $22,500 to Download A Song? ” Well, we now ask “Are you willing to pay $9250 to download a song?”
S. 3523: Louboutin, Lululemon, and Fashion Design: Finally Getting Some Respect?
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Fashion, Legislation, TrademarkWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller A few weeks ago, the Second Circuit’s ruling in the Louboutin decision made clear that color as a trademark can be protected in the fashion industry. Recently, Lululemon has sued Calvin Klein for design patent infringement over the design of yoga pants. And just before Fashion Week in New York City, New York… Continue Reading
Further to the “Copying from the Internet” Issue…..
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Damages, Fair Use, LitigationWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller In our August 14th blog, we explained why just because you can copy something from the Internet, doesn’t mean you should copy from the Internet. A case on this very issue that has been around for several years involved the well-known “Hope” poster of President Obama’s face made during the… Continue Reading
The U.S. Government Supports Textbook Publisher in First Sale Case
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, First SaleWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller As previously reported, the U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving the territorial limits of the first sale doctrine under U.S. copyright law. Oral arguments in that case have been set for October 29. The U.S. solicitor general, in an amicus brief filed in support of the… Continue Reading
Video Interview: Discussing Sony BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum with LXBN TV
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Damages, Statutory DamagesWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller Following up on my post on the subject, I had the opportunity to speak with Colin O’Keefe of LXBN regarding Song BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum. In the brief interview, I explain the background of the case and why Tenenbaum ended up being ordered to pay such a hefty price for… Continue Reading
The U.S. Supreme Court Grants Cert to Decide Scope of First Sale Doctrine
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, First Sale, LitigationWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller The U.S. Supreme Court has granted cert in order to decide an issue of great importance to all businesses involved in manufacturing and distributing products throughout the world, particularly those involved in retailing and importation, namely, whether foreign made works intended for sale outside the U.S., in which the copyright… Continue Reading
Politician Settling Case for Unauthorized Use of Music at Campaign Events
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, MusicWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller It appears that Newt Gingrich and Frankie Sullivan, a member of the rock band Survivor, and his company Rude Music , have reached a tentative settlement in the latter’s copyright infringement suits against Gingrich for use of the song “Eye of the Tiger” during Gingrich’s presidential campaign bid. In Rude… Continue Reading
Are You Willing to Pay $22,500 to Download A Song?
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Damages, Statutory DamagesWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller The August 23, 2012 decision in Song BMG Music Entertainment v. Tenenbaum, the most recent in this extended litigation, leaves no doubt that individuals who download music and distribute it without proper authorization through peer-to-peer file sharing sites are subject to liability for copyright infringement and payment of substantial statutory damages for… Continue Reading
Just Because You Can Copy It Does Not Mean That You May Copy It
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Damages, Digital Millenium Copyright Act, Fair Use, Pinterest, Safe HarborWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller In a number of recent cases, individual photographers have successfully sued third parties for unauthorized reproduction and use of photographs, particularly those from stock photography sources. Courts have found third party liability for willful and innocent copyright infringement for the use of individual photographs and have awarded damages to copyright… Continue Reading
Google Search Results Will Reflect Repeated Copyright Infringement
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Digital Millenium Copyright Act, Legislation, PIPAWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller On Friday, August 10, 2012, Google announced that it was changing its search algorithms so that websites with high numbers of valid copyright infringement removal notices would appear much lower in the search results. This announcement was greeted with strong approval by many online copyright content owners who have for… Continue Reading
Copyright Owners Using DMCA To Take Down URLs
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Digital Millenium Copyright Act, Notice and Takedown, PIPA, SOPAWritten by Susan Neuberger Weller At a conference held June 18 at Stanford University Law School – The 9th Annual Stanford Ecommerce Best Practices Conference – it was reported that copyright holders are increasingly using the Digital Millennium Copyright Act’s (“DMCA”) notice and takedown procedures to address copyright infringement on websites.
Viacom Lives to Fight Another Day in YouTube DMCA Suit
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Digital Millenium Copyright Act, Litigation, Red Flag Knowledge, Safe Harbor, Willful BlindnessWritten By Joseph M. DiCioccio The Second Circuit has vacated District Court (S.D.N.Y.) Judge Louis L. Stanton’s June 2010 dismissal of Viacom’s $1 billion copyright infringement suit against YouTube. In a thorough opinion, the Second Circuit remanded the case to the district court for further consideration of several key aspects of the case, including whether executives… Continue Reading
Pinterest Announces Changes To Its Terms Of Service
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, PinterestPinterest, the latest social media craze, announced on Friday night in an email to users that it intended to make certain changes to its Terms Of Service. The changes will not go into effect until April 6, 2012. Pinterest has come under fire for allowing (or arguably encouraging) its users to infringe the copyrights of others… Continue Reading
Rules for Use of Music at Political Campaign Events
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Fair Use, Music, Trademark, Trademark InfringementNational Public Radio had a story yesterday on politicians’ use (or misuse) of music at campaign events. It sets forth three seemingly simple rules for politicians to follow in order to avoid copyright and/or trademark based claims arising from such use: (1) know your venue; (2) know when to ask for permission; and (3) “know when to fold’em.” The American… Continue Reading
Copyright Lessons from the Campaign Trail: Romney, Gingrich and Fair Use
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Fair UseThis Republican primary season has provided lots of fodder for political blogs, but it has also provided a few gems relating to — what else — trademark issues. Now, U.S. copyright law is in the spotlight of the Republican primary campaign. First, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is considering whether to pull a television ad that is comprised… Continue Reading
UPDATE: SOPA and PIPA Legislation Stalled in Congress
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Legislation, PIPA, SOPA, UncategorizedFollowing this week’s Internet blackout by service providers and online resources opposed to the pending Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act, Congressional leader have announced a postponement on future action on the legislation. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid delayed a vote on PIPA scheduled for Tuesday. In the House, Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith responded… Continue Reading
The PROTECT IP ACT and the STOP ONLINE PIRACY ACT (SOPA): New Solutions to Stop Online Infringement and Piracy
Posted in Copyright, Copyright Infringement, Legislation, Trademark, UncategorizedWritten by Joe DiCioccio I recently had the pleasure of attending a very informative presentation given by the Media Law Resource Center on two very important pieces of legislation currently working their way through Congress. These contentious bills focus on curtailing online infringement and piracy in a creative way, by disabling access to the websites… Continue Reading
Righthaven Loses Another Battle Over Attorney’s Fees
Posted in 17 USC sec. 505, Attorney's Fees, Copyright Infringement, LitigationWritten By Joseph DiCioccio Righthaven, LLC is having a bad week. You’ll remember from our previous advisorythat Righthaven is a copyright holding company that, until recently, has filed hundreds of copyright infringement lawsuits. The lawsuits generally allege copyright infringement against websites that have posted all or portions of newspaper articles and photographs Righthaven claimed it… Continue Reading
17 U.S.C. Sec. 505 Means What It Says: Attorney’s Fees Award to Prevailing Party Discretionary
Posted in 17 USC sec. 505, Attorney's Fees, Copyright Infringement, Damages, LitigationSection 505 of the Copyright Act provides that, in a copyright infringement action, the court may “in its discretion” award costs to a prevailing party. In addition, the provision provides that the court ”may” award a prevailing party its reasonable attorney’s fees as part of the award of costs. Despite this language, many litigants have taken the position that… Continue Reading
New Copyright Litigation Techniques – New Tactics May Make Enforcement Cheaper and A More Effective Deterrent
Posted in Copyright, Copyright InfringementWritten by Joseph M. DiCioccio Over the past few years, starting with the Recording Industry Association of America’s (RIAA’s) well-publicized campaign to enforce the copyrights of its associated record companies, new types of copyright infringement litigation techniques have been tried all over the country. They seek to make enforcement more effective, more economically efficient,… Continue Reading
