In an opinion yesterday, Judge Hellerstein dismissed a suit claiming that the popular novel The Art of Fielding unlawfully misappropriated elements of the story from an unpublished novel called Bucky’s 9th. After reading both works, Judge Hellerstein found they were not substantially similar: When read in context, the portions or features of TOAF that are … Continue Reading
This week, the owner of the copyright for Marvin Gaye’s hit song “Let’s Get It On” filed a complaint against English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran. The complaint alleges that Sheeran’s song “Thinking Out Loud” copies large parts of Gaye’s work, including its vocal melodies, bass lines, chord progression, and harmonic rhythm. “Thinking Out Loud” was nominated … Continue Reading
In the copyright case over the use of images of real NBA players’ tattoos in the NBA 2K video game (see our prior coverage here), Judge Swain on Friday denied defendants’ motion for judgment on the pleadings. She concluded that more discovery was needed to determine whether the tattoos were such a “de minimis” part … Continue Reading
In an opinion today, the Second Circuit held that the “fair use” defense under copyright law did not apply to a service called “TVEyes” that allows users to search transcripts of cable news and other TV shows, and then watch clips up to 10 minutes long (called the “Watch” function). The decision was a reversal … Continue Reading
Last week, Judge Hellerstein ruled that a parody of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas!” constituted fair use and did not infringe on the defendant’s copyright or related trademarks. The plaintiff, New York playwright Matthew Lombardo, brought the suit against Dr. Seuss Enterprises over his “one actress 75-minute comedic play featuring a rather down-and-out 45 year-old … Continue Reading
In an opinion last week, Judge Rakoff ruled that children’s illustrated versions of classic novels called “KinderGuides” infringed the copyrights associated with the original works. He rejected the defendants’ arguments that the removal of adults themes and addition of commentary rendered the publishing of the Guides “fair use”:… Continue Reading
Last week, Judge Cote granted a motion for summary judgment challenging the copyright for the civil rights anthem “We Shall Overcome.” Plaintiffs, the We Shall Overcome Foundation, argued that the similarities between the copyrighted song and a 1948 version in the public domain meant that the first verse of the famous song was not sufficiently original … Continue Reading
Take-Two, the maker of the video game NBA 2K, argues in a motion filed yesterday that its display of certain player tattoos in the game is transformative “fair use,” and therefore does not violate the rights of a licensee, plaintiff Solid Oak: Take-Two is not a rival tattooist that has replicated a creative design and … Continue Reading
In an opinion Wednesday, Judge Kaplan awarded attorneys’ fees to news networks that broadcast brief excerpts of the plaintiff’s live-streaming on Facebook of his partner’s childbirth. Alongside the broadcasts, the networks offered “social commentary about the phenomenon of someone publicly live-streaming a life event that traditionally is considered personal.” Judge Kaplan dismissed the plaintiff’s copyright claims on fair … Continue Reading
In an opinion last week, Judge Pauley granted Drake and his co-defendants summary judgment in a case accusing them of copyright infringement. The case arose from the fact that Drake’s song “Pound Cake” opens with about 35 seconds of spoken words that are similar to a spoken word recording called “Jimmy Smith Rap,” by the jazz artist … Continue Reading
Yesterday, Judge Wood dismissed an attempt by internet service provider (ISP) Windstream to secure a declaratory judgment that its status as an ISP meant that it lacked the necessary knowledge and ability to secondarily infringe copyrights under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The defendant, music publisher BMG, argued that the court lacked jurisdiction to issue … Continue Reading
Sir Paul McCartney aims to reclaim his rights to popular Beatles songs in a complaint filed yesterday. The complaint seeks a declaratory judgment that his copyright termination notices are valid ahead of the 2018 expiration of the Copyright Act’s term for pre-1978 copyrights – 56 years after McCartney and John Lennon began composing together in 1962. Sony/ATV … Continue Reading
Today, the New York Court of Appeals, in response to a question certified from the Second Circuit (after being certified for interlocutory review by Judge McMahon), held that New York common-law copyright law does not recognize a right of public performance for creators of sound recordings predating the 1972 federal Copyright Act. The question was certified … Continue Reading
In an opinion yesterday, Judge Cote granted in part and denied in part a motion to dismiss a case challenging the copyright to “We Shall Overcome,” the unofficial anthem of the U.S. civil rights movement. (See our prior post on the case here.) The defendant copyright owners argued that the copyrighted song was sufficiently different from … Continue Reading
In a opinion yesterday, Judge Carter dismissed claims by a plaintiff alleging that he created the logo for Jay-Z’s record label Roc-A-Fella, and is owed money under a contract and under the copyright laws. The logo is depicted below:… Continue Reading
Yesterday, Judge Rakoff dismissed claims that Beyoncé’s “Lemonade” infringed on the short film “Palinoia” through similarities in images, audio, and “total concept and feel.” According to the plaintiff, elements such as a character with his or her head down near a wall with graffiti (elements that appear in scenes from both films, though with many other differences … Continue Reading
Today, Judge Castel dismissed RICO claims brought against Alibaba Group Holding by a group of luxury goods makers including Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent. The complaint accused Alibaba of providing services and a market platform to merchants that Alibaba should have known were selling counterfeit goods. Judge Castel specifically considered the plaintiffs’ claims that Alibaba’s … Continue Reading
Yesterday, Judge Swain dismissed claims by Solid Oak Sketches, LLC alleging that Take-Two Interactive Software and other defendants infringed Solid Oak’s copyrights by prominently featuring eight tattoos of five NBA players (including LeBron James and Kobe Bryant) in Take-Two’s popular NBA 2K16 video game (see previous coverage here). Judge Swain held that the plaintiffs could not recover under … Continue Reading
In an opinion Wednesday, Judge Failla found that the website Gossip Cop was liable for posting screen grabs of copyrighted photos from other websites, and rejected Gossip Cop’s argument that doing so was “fair use.” Gossip Cop’s fair use argument was premised on the fact that it commented on whether the underlying news stories associated … Continue Reading
The New York Court of Appeals has accepted a certified question from the Second Circuit regarding whether New York copyright holders for pre-1972 recordings (governed by state copyright law, and not the federal Copyright Act) have a right to exclusive public performance of those recordings. The case, initially before Judge McMahon, arose after Sirius XM played songs by The Turtles (including the … Continue Reading
Last week, the We Shall Overcome Foundation filed a complaint on behalf of a purported class challenging the copyright of “We Shall Overcome,” the unofficial anthem of the U.S. civil rights movement. The We Shall Overcome Foundation attempted to use the song in a documentary film, and the defendant copyright holders denied the request. The complaint argues that the song has the same lyrics … Continue Reading
In a complaint filed yesterday, a New York portrait artist has asserted claims against former drug executive Martin Shkreli over artwork used for the Wu-Tang Clan album “Once Upon a Time in Shaolin.” According to the complaint, the plaintiff created portraits of Wu-Tang Clan members for use on a fan website – but did not grant … Continue Reading
In a complaint filed yesterday, Solid Oak Sketches, LLC alleges that Take-Two Interactive Software and other defendants infringed Solid Oak’s copyrights by prominently featuring eight tattoos of five NBA players (including LeBron James and Kobe Bryant) in Take-Two’s popular NBA 2K16 video game. Solid Oak Sketches entered into copyright license agreements with each of the artists … Continue Reading
In an opinion yesterday, Judge Swain dismissed artist Maya Hayuk’s claim that, after she rejected a request from Starbucks for her to create material for a new ad campaign, Starbucks simply copied the “core” of her art for the campaign anyway. Below is one example of the actual campaign compared to the plaitniff’s art: More are here.… Continue Reading
