Copyright Infringement
Controversial Ninth Circuit Ruling May Limit the Availability of the DMCA Safe Harbor for Websites Relying on Moderators
A controversial ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals was issued last week, which has the potential to discourage websites from relying on moderators for user-generated content going forward. In the case of Mavrix Photographs LLC v. LiveJournal, Inc., No. 14-56596 (9th Cir. filed April 7, 2017), the Court ruled that agency law applied…
Read MoreLessons from the Copyright Infringement Verdict Against Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams
A verdict was reached earlier this week in the copyright infringement case between Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams and the children of Marvin Gaye, finding that the 2013 song “Blurred Lines” infringed on the copyright in Marvin Gaye’s 1977 song “Got to Give it Up.” Tech Times reported that Gaye’s children have been awarded $4…
Read MoreGetty Images Copyright Dispute Against Microsoft to Challenge Legality of Recently Released Widget
Getty Images made news in the copyright world this week by filing a complaint against Microsoft Corporation in the Southern District of New York for “infringing and facilitating the massive infringement of [its] copyrights” through its release of the new Bing Image Widget service. To review the full complaint, click here. The case is significant…
Read MoreLandmark Copyright Verdict Against Media Companies Serves as Cautionary Tale to All
In case you missed the headlines late last year, freelance photographer Daniel Morel was awarded a $1.2 million damage verdict against Agence France-Presse (“AFP”) and Getty Images after it was found that they willfully infringed Mr. Morel’s photos of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. The verdict caught my attention given the fact so many clients…
Read MoreSupreme Court to Hear Streaming TV Over the Internet Case
Like many cable and satellite TV consumers these days, I have been closely following the new options on the market for streaming TV service and hoping that the day will soon come when I can significantly reduce my monthly subscription costs without cutting off my access to live TV. With the cost of living…
Read MoreCopyright Office Seeking Comments on Possible Change to Small Claims Remedies
As an attorney who largely represents small businesses and entrepreneurs, I have often found myself in the tough position of explaining to someone with limited resources just how difficult it was going to be to go after an infringer. Either it is simply too cost-prohibitive to go after an infringer, or the client has the…
Read MoreGoogle Reaches Settlement with Book Publishers in Copyright Infringement Case
Google has reached a settlement with several major American publishing companies, including but not limited to McGraw-Hill, Pearson Education and Penguin, John Wiley & Sons and Simon & Schuster in a copyright infringement case challenging Google’s decision to scan the book collections of many major universities. The Los Angeles Times is reporting that the settlement…
Read MoreGoogle Announces Controversial Decision to Factor Receipt of DMCA Notices into Ranking of Websites
Google has just made a controversial announcement that it will now be factoring the number of “valid” DMCA notices that it receives on a particular website into how it ranks that website in its search results. The Wall Street Journal reported: Google’s move comes as Google itself is attempting to become a major seller and…
Read MoreAssociated Press Interview Offers Some Insight on its Plans to Police Blogosphere
As the Silicon Valley IP Licensing Blog has been reporting, the Associated Press has already initiated an effort to impose its view of what constitutes fair use on the blogosphere. However, I came across today an interesting interview by Ars Technica, which offers some insight on how the Associated Press plans to go about policing…
Read MoreBacklog Issues No Longer Limited to USPTO; Copyright Office Also Experiencing Long Delays
The Washington Post reported last week that the backlog issues, which once were limited to the Patent Office have now spilled over into the Copyright Office as well. According to the Washington Post, the delays mean that it now takes eighteen months instead of six months to receive a copyright registration, and the expectation is…
Read MoreBlogosphere Reacts to Licensing Terms for Amazon’s New Kindle Publishing for Blogs
Amazon has just released the beta of its new Kindle Publishing for Blogs, and the blogosphere is starting to react to Amazon’s new licensing terms in its terms and conditions. What are bloggers saying? Well, the early consensus seems to be that while the concept of blog content licensing to Kindle is good, the required…
Read MoreCopyright Infringement on the Internet: Problem is No Longer Confined to Entertainment industry
Have you done a search on the web lately to see if any of your company’s creative works have been infringed? Well, according to an article by The Mercury News discussing these new trends in digital piracy, publishers and authors are increasingly discovering that unauthorized copies of their works are being sold over the Internet…
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