Written 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
Category Archives: Copyright Infringement
Subscribe to Copyright Infringement RSS FeedPinterest 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
H.R. 2511 Offers Legal Protections For Fashion Design
Posted in Copyright Infringement, Fashion, LegislationWritten by Joseph M. DiCioccio “Fashion is more usually a gentle progression of revisited ideas.” – British Fashion Designer Bruce Oldfield Perhaps no other industry is more cognizant of the need to build upon and reinterpret prior work than the fashion industry. The idea that designs must constantly change and evolve several times a year… Continue Reading
