In a controversial ruling, the 9th Circuit found that an actress had an independent copyright interest in her performance within a short film – a finding directly contrary to the majority view. Or at least, that is how many are interpreting the Court’s opinion. The unique facts of the case help explain the decision. The Read more about Of Fatwas and Copyrights[…]
In the modern world, intellectual property protection is becoming ever more important. We are constantly seeing headlines about billion dollar intellectual property disputes between tech giants like Google, Samsung and Apple. Most often, these articles jump right into the details that grab our attention and fail to explain what intellectual property is and how something Read more about Intellectual Property: the Types, the Benefits, and How We Can Help[…]
Last week, the 9th Circuit ruled that video game developer EA’s use of the likeness of former college athletes in its NCAA Football and NCAA Basketball video games was not protected under the First Amendment or under Copyright Law’s Fair Use Doctrine. The court also rejected EA’s claim that the use was protected under State Read more about Software Fair Use[…]
On March 19, 2013, the Supreme Court issued the much-anticipated decision in Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., holding 6 to 3 that Copyright First Sale Doctrine applies to “foreign-made works, and that the authorized manufacture and sale of a copyrighted work abroad exhausts the copyright owner’s rights to control the distribution of the Read more about Copyright First Sale Doctrine – Worldwide[…]
It was announced that the company suing thousands of BitTorrent movie downloaders under a profit making litigation scheme has dismissed thousands of alleged downloaders from suit, including those who downloaded The Hurt Locker. The makers of The Hurt Locker have now announced a cease-fire in the BitTorrent cases, together with the alleged sharers of Call Read more about Movie file-sharing suit dropped[…]
The White House released a white paper recommending increasing the penalties for intellectual property crimes. The recommendations involve increasing rights and penalties “so as to more effectively address the substantial harm caused by intellectual property crimes.” Recommended changes include: Increase prison term for counterfeit drug distributors; Increase prison terms for theft of trade secrets; Increase Read more about White House Recommends increasing the Criminal Penalties for Intellectual Property[…]
Copyright registration allows for recording of a creative work by depositing the work with the copyright office. By depositing the work, the artist preserves the work for future generations as part of our Public Domain. In exchange for depositing the work, the copyright office issues a registration certificate. Under copyright law, copies or phonorecords deposited Read more about Best Edition and Copyright Law[…]
A copyright owner’s right of distribution is limited by the first sale doctrine, which is an exception to the Copyright Act. The first sale doctrine is a legal principle that limits the rights to control content after a work has been sold for the first time. The first sale doctrine states that once a copyright Read more about The First Sale Doctrine under Copyright Law[…]
The Copyright Act defines a “collective work” as an assemblage into a collective whole of a number of individual contributions, each of which constitutes a separate and independent work, and gives as examples periodicals, anthologies, and encyclopedias. A collective work is also referred to as a “compilation.” Under the Copyright Act, copyright in a collective Read more about Copyrighting Collective Works[…]
One of the most important aspects of the patent application is the written description requirement. Under the written description requirement, the applicant must provide a clear description of what is being claimed for patent protection. It is what the inventor hopes to receive in exchange for what the disclosure. The written description requirement may be Read more about Patent Applications: Written Description[…]