Marvel Settles Fight Over Spider-Man, Doctor Strange Rights; The Hollywood Reporter, December 8, 2023

Ashley Cullins, The Hollywood Reporter; Marvel Settles Fight Over Spider-Man, Doctor Strange Rights

"It looks like Marvel won’t be bringing its battle over the rights to Spider-Man and Doctor Strange into the new year. Attorneys for the company and the estate of Steve Ditko on Wednesday notified the court that they’ve reached an amicable settlement and expect a stipulation of dismissal with prejudice to be filed in the coming weeks.

This all started back in 2021, when Marvel filed a series of lawsuits in response to copyright termination notices from Larry Lieber and the estates of Gene Colan, Steve Ditko, Don Heck and Don Rico. A very long list of characters were at issue, including Iron Man, Captain America, Black Widow, Hulk and Thor. In June, all but one of the matters settled."

Marvel settles with four artists in superhero copyright fight; Reuters, June 9, 2023

 Blake Brittain, Reuters; Marvel settles with four artists in superhero copyright fight

"The filings said Marvel would drop its lawsuits against Larry Lieber and the estates of Don Heck, Gene Colan and Don Rico with prejudice, which means they cannot be refiled. A Disney spokesperson and an attorney for the artists said they had reached an "amicable resolution."

Marvel did not appear to have settled with the estate of comic book artist Steve Ditko, which is seeking to reclaim his share of copyrights in Spider-Man and Doctor Strange. Both sides asked a Manhattan federal court for pretrial wins in that case last month.

Under the Copyright Act, a creator can terminate a copyright assignment after decades in certain circumstances. Marvel sued the artists, who wrote and illustrated Marvel comics in the 1950s, 60s and 70s, after they sought to terminate and reclaim copyrights related to several superheroes."

Marvel, artist's estate ask for pre-trial wins in superhero copyright fight; Reuters, May 22, 2023

 Blake Brittain, Reuters; Marvel, artist's estate ask for pre-trial wins in superhero copyright fight

"Walt Disney Co’s Marvel and the estate of artist Steve Ditko both asked a Manhattan federal judge on Friday to hand them a win without waiting for trial in their copyright dispute over rights to superheroes Spider-Man and Doctor Strange."

The Spider-Man Problem; NPR, Planet Money, January 28, 2022

KENNY MALONE, NPR, Planet Money; The Spider-Man Problem

"When Marvel licensed the Spider-Man film rights to Sony Pictures in the 1990s, the deal made sense — Marvel didn't make movies yet, and their business was mainly about making comic books and toys. Years later, though, the deal would come back to haunt Marvel, and it would start a long tug of war between Sony and Marvel over who had creative cinematic control for Marvel's most popular superhero."

Ryan Reynolds taunts Disney with ‘Winnie-the-Screwed’ ad as copyright battles heat up; Fast Company, January 3, 2022

JEFF BEER, Fast Company; Ryan Reynolds taunts Disney with ‘Winnie-the-Screwed’ ad as copyright battles heat up

Mint Mobile finds a way to make the copyrights of a 1926 classic children’s tale about your cellular bill.

"The new Mint Mobile ad is typical Reynolds ad fare, quickly and creatively tapping into a broader cultural conversation for one of his brands. That cultural conversation, however, is only going to get louder, especially for Disney. While it is symbolic that the original Mickey Mouse cartoon, Steamboat Willie, is up for public domain two years from now, more pressing are the copyright issues facing key Marvel characters this year.

As reported last fall, multiple former Marvel creators and their estates are challenging Disney with ongoing copyright termination cases around characters like Thor, Spider-Man, Iron Man, and Dr. Strange. These cases, which could go as high as the Supreme Court (as it almost did back in 2014, when the company reached a settlement with the estate of Jack Kirby), stem from the Copyright Revision Act of 1976, which provided an opportunity for authors or their heirs to regain ownership of a product after a given number of years."

Marvel Runs Into Copyright Issue, Forced to Change Villain Name; InsideTheMagic.com, January 4, 2022

Rebekah Barton, InsideTheMagic.com ; Marvel Runs Into Copyright Issue, Forced to Change Villain Name

"Now, however, fans have noticed something strange (no pun intended) about a recent merchandise leak. A new LEGO set for the Doctor Strange (2016) sequel seemingly features the Marvel Comics villain known as Shuma-Gorath.

However, in this case, the box art suggests that the tentacled creature will go by the name of Gargantos.

This seemingly pointless name change frustrated some fans on social media, but it seems that there may be a very good explanation that has to do with copyright law. As Twitter user @UpToTASK noted:

After doing some research on ̶G̵a̵r̵g̵a̵n̵t̵o̵s̵/Shuma-Gorath, I get it but I hate it. The name “Shuma-Gorath” was first created by Robert E. Howard for Conan [Conan the Barbarian]. And yea, that’s a WHOLE problem that can be avoided by simply changing the name. UGH that SUCKS. But at least it’s him?"

Avengers IP, Assemble: the wild, circuitous path to Marvel getting its own brands back; Polygon, March 23, 2019

Ross Miller, Polygon; Avengers IP, Assemble: the wild, circuitous path to Marvel getting its own brands back

"Since 1998, there have been over 50 films based on Marvel comic characters, from Blade (produced by New Line Cinema) through this month’s Captain Marvel. Only 21 of them have been considered canonical to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), with all but six exclusively produced and distributed by Marvel Studios. The others were produced and/or distributed by almost every major film company out there: Paramount, Universal, New Line, Warner Bros., Columbia/Sony Pictures, Lionsgate, and 20th Century Fox — the latter of which produced 16 Marvel IP-based films, with two more due out by the end of this year.

But now, with over $18 billion in worldwide box office grosses for the MCU alone and a long history of contractual negotiations, acquisitions, and at least one sandwich thrown, Marvel has reclaimed the rights to nearly its entire cast of characters. Here’s how it got here, and what’s left to collect."

Kitty Pryde Owns the Trademark on the X-Men; Bleeding Cool, July 4, 2018

Rich Johnston, Bleeding Cool; Kitty Pryde Owns the Trademark on the X-Men

"The X-Men own their own trademark, at least as far as it goes to creating superhero teams known as the X-Men. Which does suggest they could have sued the likes of X-Force, X-Factor, or other knock-off teams if they had wanted. Also…

…it looks like the trademark was registered by Charles Xavier and passed to Kitty when he died. Now that he is back as X — will he want the trademark back too? Registration Wars coming to a summer event near you soon…"

The marvellous world of superhero licensing ; Lexology, June 26, 2018

Amanda Morton - Phillips Ormonde Fitzpatrick, Lexology;

The marvellous world of superhero licensing

 "The manner by which each studio dealt with Quicksilver ended up being an intriguing case study in how shared IP rights in elements of a character could be similarly depicted in two separate media entities." 

Disney Can’t Use ‘Marvel’ in Disneyland Avengers Theme Park; Comic Book Resources, April 8, 2018

Kirsten Thompson, Comic Book Resources; Disney Can’t Use ‘Marvel’ in Disneyland Avengers Theme Park

"Disney California Adventure Park will be expanding in the next year or so and in the process, will be removing several attractions. The new space will showcase superheroes from Marvel Entertainment’s movies, comics, and video games. The Hulk, Iron Man, Spider-Man and other characters will be spotlighted. However, this theme park attraction won’t be called “Marvel Land,” even though such a title would encompass the entirety of the entertainment giant’s characters. This is due to legal fine print.

Although Marvel was purchased by Disney in 2009, there are still a myriad of licensing agreements with other movie studios that have to be followed. Some of these are with Disney’s rival, Universal Studios, and they put limits on the company’s intellectual property rights.

In particular, these agreements bar Disney from using certain Marvel characters in Disney theme parks east of the Mississippi River and prohibit them from using the word “Marvel” in the title of any other theme park land."

Judge Allows Copyright Lawsuit Against Marvel Over 'Iron Man 3' Poster; Hollywood Reporter, March 28, 2017

Eriq Gardner, Hollywood Reporter; Judge Allows Copyright Lawsuit Against Marvel Over 'Iron Man 3' Poster

"[District Judge J. Paul] Oetken agrees with Marvel that the idea of a "highly mechanized suit of armor" and the "fighting pose" are unprotectable elements, scenes a faire in the comic book or superhero genre.

When it comes to the particularized expression of the idea, the judge notes some non-identical similarity — the hairstyles, the use of blue light, the color of the suits, etc. — with the ultimate conclusion that the works do share a similarity in their "total concept or feel" to survive a motion to dismiss."

According to the opinion (read here), "This is not a case where only non-copyrightable elements exist in the work, nor is it one where the Court can conclude, at this stage, that 'no reasonable jury, properly instructed, could find that the two works are substantially similar' based on their 'total concept and overall feel.'”

WATCH: X-MEN BATTLE THE AVENGERS IN EPIC SUPERCUT TRAILER; Comic Book Resources, 8/15/16

Marykate Jasper, Comic Book Resources; WATCH: X-MEN BATTLE THE AVENGERS IN EPIC SUPERCUT TRAILER:

[Some graphic language; NSFW]

"While comics readers got to see these teams fight in 2012's "Avengers Vs. X-Men" event and a number of other series, the cinematic universes have been kept separate due to Disney and Fox's competing rights. Thanks to this supercut, fans can experience a glimpse at the super-powered showdown they may never get to see on the big screen, featuring Storm taking on Iron Man, Wolverine challenging the Hulk, Jean Grey facing Scarlet Witch, and more!"

MARVEL & DC COMICS DROP CASE AGAINST SMALL BUSINESSMAN OVER USE OF THE WORD "SUPERHERO"; Comic Book Resources, 5/24/16

Meagan Damore, Comic Book Resources; MARVEL & DC COMICS DROP CASE AGAINST SMALL BUSINESSMAN OVER USE OF THE WORD "SUPERHERO":

"Marvel and DC Comics have officially dropped a case against small businessman Graham Jules over the use of the word "superhero." According to The Mirror, Jules can now legally use the word in his book title "Business Zero to Superhero."

When Jules attempted to publish his start-up manual, the two major comic book companies contested his use of "superhero," as the two publishers had jointly trademarked the word in 1979, covering a range of products, from comic books and playing cards to pencil sharpeners and glue. Their renewal of that mark in 2006 drew widespread attention, as well as scrutiny from those who question whether such a term should be allowed to be registered. They claimed Jules' title infringed on this trademark, while he argued that the word had become part of everyday language.

Avengers and X-Men wage war in action-packed fan trailer; Comic Book Resources, 5/20/16

Kevin Melrose, Comic Book Resources; Avengers and X-Men wage war in action-packed fan trailer:

"Fans at last saw Spider-Man introduced into the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Captain America: Civil War, but it will be a long, long time before they witness the X-Men do the same. Until then, they can watch this epic fan trailer, which pits Marvel’s mutants against Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, over and over and over again."

Without Copyright Infringement, Deadpool Doesn't Get Made; TechDirt.com, 2/16/16

Tim Cushing, TechDirt.com; Without Copyright Infringement, Deadpool Doesn't Get Made:

"Sure, leaking test footage isn't like leaking an entire film, but without that happening, nothing else does. The movie is never made and Fox doesn't have almost three times the budget grossed within the first four days of ticket sales. But because this leak happened, the studio is likely in control of a promising franchise, provided it can keep the lightning bottled and push forward without discarding everything that makes Deadpool Deadpool. And everyone involved can thank the unnamed person they won't rat out for shrugging off the insular "power" of copyright and mobilizing a fan base that is now making good on its promise to support the movie."

Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm & Sanrio slice into cake-frosting seller; ComicBookResources.com, 9/4/15

Kevin Melrose, ComicBookResources.com; Disney, Marvel, Lucasfilm & Sanrio slice into cake-frosting seller:

"Disney, Marvel and Lucasfilm have joined with Sanrio to stop a company from selling unlicensed cake frosting featuring their incredibly lucrative properties.

As first reported by THR, Esq., the entertainment giants filed a trademark- and copyright-infringement lawsuit against George and Danielle Wilson, whose Wilson Cake Imaging offers printed, edible frosting sheets and cake toppers depicting a wide range of characters and performers."

SCOTUSblog Founder Joins Marvel Superhero Appeal for Jack Kirby Estate (Exclusive); Hollywood Reporter, 7/29/14

Eriq Gardner, Hollywood Reporter; SCOTUSblog Founder Joins Marvel Superhero Appeal for Jack Kirby Estate (Exclusive) :

"In what might be yet another sign that Marvel should begin to fret that the U.S. Supreme Court could review a massive superhero rights dispute, the respected attorney Tom Goldstein is now co-representing Jack Kirby's family members. Goldstein is perhaps most famous for running the invaluable SCOTUSblog, which on July 21 highlighted Kirby v. Marvel Characters as its "Petition of the Day."

The dispute started when the family of comic book legend Kirby sent termination notices to Marvel and its licensees Sony, Fox and Universal over such superhero characters as Spider-Man, X-Men, Captain America, Iron Man, Incredible Hulk and others. The bid fell short when the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court's ruling that the former Marvel freelancer had contributed his materials as a "work made for hire." As such, Marvel was considered the statutory author, and Kirby (and his heirs) never had any termination rights under the 1976 Copyright Act.

The high court has been asked to review the 2nd Circuit opinion, and in recent months there's been signs that it could indeed be taken up: Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg told Marvel to respond to a cert petition after it initially declined to do so. Then Kirby's side got amicus support from the former director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the former U.S. register of copyrights and various Hollywood labor guilds."

Marvel Sends Cease-and-Desist to Anticipated Punisher Fan Film; ComicBookResources.com, 10/8/13

Steve Sunu, ComicBookResources.com; Marvel Sends Cease-and-Desist to Anticipated Punisher Fan Film: "In May, CBR debuted a teaser for the impressive Punisher fan-made film "The Dead Can't Be Distracted," based on Greg Rucka and Marco Checchetto's acclaimed run on Marvel Comics' "Punisher." Filmmaker Mike Pecci has updated fans about the status of the film on his personal website, and the news isn't good for those expecting the film to see the light of day. Marvel has sent Pecci a cease-and-desist letter, demanding that Pecci "immediately stop [the] unauthorized use, advertising, sale and/or distribution of any production of The Punisher or any other Marvel character-based films." "According to Marvel it would 'confuse the audience' into believing that it's an official Marvel production," Pecci said of his fan film."

Marvel Wins Court Battle Over Rights to Ghost Rider; New York Times, 12/29/11

George Gene Gustines, New York Times; Marvel Wins Court Battle Over Rights to Ghost Rider:

"A federal judge in New York has ruled that Marvel Entertainment owns the rights to Ghost Rider, a supernatural character possessed by a spirit of vengeance who first appeared in 1972. The character was the subject of a lawsuit by a writer seeking to cash in on lucrative movie rights, according to a report by The Associated Press."

Disney joins Marvel in copyright fight with Kirby family; ComicBookResources.com, 5/27/10

Kevin Melrose, ComicBookResources.com; Disney joins Marvel in copyright fight with Kirby family:

"The Walt Disney Co. has waded into the legal battle over many of Marvel's best-known characters, filing a memo in support of the publisher's efforts to dismiss copyright claims by the heirs of Jack Kirby.

Marvel sued the Kirby children in January, seeking to invalidate notices sent almost four months earlier to terminate copyrights to such characters as the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, Thor, the Incredible Hulk, the X-Men, Iron Man and Spider-Man. The Kirby family responded in March by suing Marvel and its new parent company Disney.

In the Disney memo, filed on Monday, the media giant asks the court to delay to delay ordering an accounting of profits from the properties Kirby created or co-created, arguing that the copyright claims of his heirs haven't been validated. Disney also seeks to dismiss the Kirby family's claims about unreturned original artwork and lack of credit in The Incredible Hulk and X-Men Origins: Wolverine films.

You can read the full complaint at THR, Esq."

http://robot6.comicbookresources.com/2010/05/disney-joins-marvel-in-copyright-fight-with-kirby-family/