Showing posts with label Ludlow Music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ludlow Music. Show all posts

Monday, March 2, 2020

‘This Land Is Your Land’ Is Still Private Property, Court Rules; The New York Times, Febraury 28, 2020

, The New York Times;
A federal judge shot down a challenge to the copyright of the Woody Guthrie folk anthem, blocking an attempt to put it in the public domain.

"First, “Happy Birthday to You” lost its copyright. Then “We Shall Overcome” became public domain as well.

But on Friday, Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” avoided what had been shaping up as a growing trend affecting the copyright owners of old songs, as the publishers of “This Land” defeated a challenge against it...

On Friday, Judge P. Kevin Castel of Federal District Court in Manhattan did not reach a decision on whether the song deserved to keep its copyright, because he said he didn’t have to. He ruled that there was no legal dispute for him to adjudicate: Satorii had already paid the license fee, and in exchange, the publisher had agreed to let Satorii do what it wanted with the song. The judge dismissed the case."

Monday, January 29, 2018

We Shall Overcome’ Is Put in Public Domain in a Copyright Settlement; New York Times, January 26, 2018

Christopher Mele, New York Times; 'We Shall Overcome’ Is Put in Public Domain in a Copyright Settlement

"The settlement was “an enormously important achievement” because others can now use the song without paying for it or seeking permission, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, Mark C. Rifkin, said in a telephone interview on Friday night. “We’re really thrilled to be part of an effort to give this song back to the public where it belongs,” he said.

The case is the latest one to cancel the copyright of a time-honored song that many people may well assume was available for anyone to sing: A judge invalidated the copyright on “Happy Birthday to You” in 2015."

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Publisher Seeks to Overcome Copyright Suit Over Famous Civil Rights Song; Hollywood Reporter, 7/18/16

Ashley Cullins, Hollywood Reporter; Publisher Seeks to Overcome Copyright Suit Over Famous Civil Rights Song:
"A documentary filmmaker, suing as the We Shall Overcome Foundation, filed a putative class action in April against Ludlow Music and the Richmond Organization, seeking a judgment that the song isn't copyrightable and that licensing fees collected for it must be returned. The lawsuit came after the filmmaker was denied a synch license to use an a cappella version of the song. In June, Lee Daniels' The Butler entered the fray, joining the suit because defendants had tried to charge $100,000 for use of the song in that film.
Plaintiffs argue "We Shall Overcome" is an adaptation of an African-American spiritual which is virtually identical to a 1948 composition called "We Will Overcome," the copyright for which expired in 1976. Therefore, they argue, that's when the unofficial anthem of the civil rights movement became part of the public domain."

Wednesday, April 13, 2016

‘We Shall Overcome’ Copyright May Be Overcome One Day; New York Times, 4/12/16

Ben Sisario, New York Times; ‘We Shall Overcome’ Copyright May Be Overcome One Day:
"Last year, a federal judge ruled that the long-claimed copyright to the song “Happy Birthday to You” was invalid. Now the same could happen for another iconic tune: “We Shall Overcome.”
On Tuesday, the We Shall Overcome Foundation, a nonprofit group that works with orphans and the poor, sued the music publishers who control “We Shall Overcome,” seeking a declaratory judgment that the song is not under copyright and is in the public domain.
The case, which was filed at Federal District Court in Manhattan and seeks class-action status, also asks for the return of an unspecified amount of licensing fees that the publishers, the Richmond Organization and Ludlow Music, have collected from the use of the song.
Like the “Happy Birthday” case, the “We Shall Overcome” suit tracks a famous piece of music through a murky early history and a complex paper trail of copyright registrations."