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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 that designed the tattoos.

The complaint alleges that tattoos “fit squarely” within the Copyright Act’s definitions of “pictorial, graphic, and sculptural works”:
Continue Reading Complaint Alleges Copyright Infringement for Video Game Featuring LeBron and Kobe’s Tattoos

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:

Starbucks ComparisonStarbucks Comparison2

More are here.Continue Reading Judge Swain Rejects Artist’s Copyright Claim Against Starbucks Over Ad Campaign

In an opinion yesterday, Judge Presksa granted judgment to the creator of a play called “3C” that parodies the 70’s TV show “Three’s Company.”  She found that the play fell within the bounds of “fair use” because (among other reasons) it was “transformative”:
Continue Reading Judge Preska Rejects Copyright Challenge to Play Parodying “Three’s Company”

In an opinion today, Judge McMahon granted an interlocutory appeal on the following question:

Under New York law, do the holders of common law copyrights in pre-1972 sound recordings have, as part of the bundle of rights attendant to their copyright, the right to exclusive public performance of those sound recordings?

She concluded, under the standards for interlocutory appeal, that there were substantial grounds for a difference of opinion on the issue:
Continue Reading Judge McMahon Grants Interlocutory Appeal of Case Challenging Sirius Radio’s Right to Broadcast Songs Predating 1972 Copyright Act

In an opinion  yesterday in the case challenging Sirius satellite radio’s ability to broadcast songs predating the 1972 copyright act (see prior posts here), Judge McMahon rejected Sirius’s argument that two members of the band the Turtles (known for “Happy Together” and other songs) gave Sirius and implied license, or otherwise waived their rights, by appearing as guests on Sirius radio and not objecting to the Turtles songs being played for years on Sirius.
Continue Reading Judge McMahon: Turtles’ Appearance as Guests on Sirius Radio Does Not Waive Copyright Claims

In an opinion Friday, Judge McMahon denied the satellite radio company Sirius’s motion for summary judgment in a proposed class action by members of the band The Turtles asserting New York common law copyright claims for songs recorded prior to the 1972 federal Copyright Act, which preempted later state law claims.  Further, since it appeared the facts were not in dispute, Judge McMahon ordered Sirius to show cause by December 5 why summary judgment should not be entered against it. Judge McMahon recognized that her ruling (and a recent similar one in California) would likely cause great disruption to satellite radio providers and others who have generally not paid to broadcast pre-1972 recordings, but said that those concerns should be directed to the legislative branches of government:
Continue Reading Judge McMahon Rules Against Sirius in Copyright Class Action Regarding Songs Predating 1972 Copyright Act

In a decision issued yesterday, Judge Furman dismissed a lawsuit alleging that director James Cameron infringed the copyrights of artist William Roger Dean in Cameron’s blockbuster movie Avatar.  The artist, whose work has graced the covers of many major rock albums, claimed that many of the movie’s fantastical settings are copied from 14 works he produced between 1972 and 2007.
Continue Reading Judge Furman: James Cameron’s Avatar Movie Does Not Infringe Copyright of Noted Rock Album Cover Artist

In an opinion dated yesterday, Judge Hellerstein ruled that a service called “TVEyes,” which “monitors and records all content broadcast by more than 1,400 television and radio stations twenty-four hours per day, seven days per week, and transforms the content into a searchable database for its subscribers,” was “fair use” under the copyright laws, and thus largely granted summary judgment against the plaintiff, Fox News. The decision was based on the fact that the service is “transformative”:
Continue Reading Judge Hellerstein Rules That Searchable TV Database Service is “Fair Use”

In a joint letter to the Court filed yesterday, online TV provider Aereo and the major broadcast networks laid out their positions on the next steps in their litigation following the Supreme Court’s recent ruling in favor of the broadcasters.  Despite the Supreme Court’s ruling, the battle appears set to rage on before Judge Nathan.
Continue Reading Another Wrinkle in Aereo Case: Did the Supreme Court Turn Aereo Into a Cable Company?