Another Pop Group Tells Romney to Stop Using Its Song; New York Times, 8/16/12

James C. McKinley, Jr., New York Times; Another Pop Group Tells Romney to Stop Using Its Song:

"A publicist for the Silversun Pickups said the band does not agree that the use of the song is covered under the blanket licenses. Copyright experts say such licenses, usually bought by restaurants and other businesses that play recorded music, do protect the campaign from many copyright complaints, but a politician can still be sued under the federal trademark law for false advertising if the use of the song implies that the musician has endorsed the candidate."

Divergent Approaches To Copyright Reform Emerge In Europe; Intellectual Property Watch, 8/3/12

Dugie Standeford, Intellectual Property Watch; Divergent Approaches To Copyright Reform Emerge In Europe:

"Two very different views of copyright reform emerged this week, one from a report commissioned by the UK government, the other from a French citizens’ advocacy group. The former envisions an intricately linked system of digital rights exchanges and databases to streamline copyright licensing, the latter broad, “non-market” sharing of protected works between individuals, among other things. Whether either approach is feasible remains to be seen, and, as always, the devil’s in the details, lawyers say."

France will cut funding to its piracy police; paidContent, 8/3/12

Robert Andrews, paidContent; France will cut funding to its piracy police:

"France’s new culture minister is not yet promising to disband the country’s internet piracy enforcement agency, Hadopi. But she already is already planning to cut its budget and to dissuade it from kicking people off the internet."

With Key Filings in, Trials Loom In Google Book Cases; Publishers Weekly, 8/3/12

Andrew Albanese, Publishers Weekly; With Key Filings in, Trials Loom In Google Book Cases:

"With the battle lines now drawn, how is the fight shaping up? At this stage, observers say, the Authors Guild may be facing an uphill charge. “Google and HathiTrust have made a compelling case that digitization to support full-text search and long-term preservation is a fair use,” New York Law School professor James Grimmelmann told PW. On the other hand, he notes, in the HathiTrust case at least, the Authors Guild has simply not made “a convincing case” that there is harm to the copyright owners."

WIPO Still On Course For Instruments On Copyright Exceptions, Broadcasting; Intellectual Property Watch, 12

William New, Intellectual Property Watch; WIPO Still On Course For Instruments On Copyright Exceptions, Broadcasting:

"The World Intellectual Property Organization late last night reached agreement on a timeline for completing treaties – or instruments – on a range of copyright exceptions, including the possibility of a high-level negotiation for visually impaired and blind readers in 2013...

The 24th WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) met from 16-25 July.

The meeting addressed emerging instruments on broadcasters’ rights, and exceptions for visually impaired persons, libraries and archives, and educational and research institutions.

The conclusions document from the meeting shows the timelines of the different topics over the next biennium. The conclusions document is available here [pdf]."

An Upstart Free Course Provider Holds a Cookout to Meet Its Students; Chronicle of Higher Education, 7/29/12

Jeffrey R. Young, Chronicle of Higher Education; An Upstart Free Course Provider Holds a Cookout to Meet Its Students:

"Call it a "massive open cookout." Coursera, a company that is working with more than a dozen elite universities to help them run MOOC's, or massive open online courses, held its first official "meetup" here on Saturday for students and professors to connect in person over burgers, chips, and soda.

It was a chance for even the company itself to learn more about what motivates students to take its courses, which bear no official academic credit.

With some 900,000 students registered for its courses, everything the small company does seems to get big quickly. More than 1,100 people signed up for the cookout, and in the end about 650 made the trip".

Google Books hasn't cost authors a dime, company says; ArsTechnica.com, 7/27/12

Cyrus Farivar, ArsTechnica.com; Google Books hasn't cost authors a dime, company says:

"On Friday, Google filed for summary judgment in the Google Books case against the Authors' Guild, renewing its argument that the entire project constitutes fair use. That company argues therefore that it does not need permission from authors in order to scan substantial portions of their work...

More substantially, Google argues that Google Books is a transformative work, and that the company "copied no more of the books than was necessary to create a searchable index, and displays no more of the works than is necessary to allow readers to determine whether the book might be of interest to them."

Disruptions: Innovations Snuffed Out by Craigslist; New York Times, 7/29/12

Nick Bilton, New York Times; Disruptions: Innovations Snuffed Out by Craigslist:

"“The listings are already out there. We’re finding them already on the Web and organizing them so other people don’t have to do the same thing twice,” said Greg Kidd, the chief executive of 3Taps. “And we’re not breaking any laws because we are pulling in the facts from the listing; everyone knows you can’t copyright facts.” Craigslist also named 3Taps in the lawsuit filed last week.

As intellectual property lawyers will tell you, Mr. Kidd is not off base: facts, like those in classified listings, cannot be copyrighted.

So why hasn’t anyone managed to unseat Craigslist, a site that has barely changed in close to two decades?

It has dug an effective moat by cultivating an exaggerated image of “doing good” that keeps its customers loyal, while behind the scenes, it bullies any rivals that come near and it stifles innovation."

How Fair Use Can Help Solve the Orphan Works Problem; 6/18/12

Jennifer Urban, Berkeley Technology Law Journal; How Fair Use Can Help Solve the Orphan Works Problem:

"This Article argues that legislation is not necessary to enable some uses of orphan works by nonprofit libraries and archives. Instead, the fair use doctrine in United States copyright law provides a partial solution. The Article addresses three basic questions: first, does fair use provide a viable basis on which libraries might digitize orphans? Second, does fair use provide a viable basis on which to make these orphans available to patrons or the public? Third, more generally, can or should fair use do any additional work in infringement analysis where the copyrighted work in question is an orphan?

The answer to each of these questions is yes."

The World's Nicest Cease-And-Desist Letter Ever Goes Viral, Sells Books; Forbes, 7/26/12

Avi Dan, Forbes; The World's Nicest Cease-And-Desist Letter Ever Goes Viral, Sells Books:

"Companies go to great lengths to protect their trademarks. The standard response for copyright infringement is to send a letter from a lawyer and threaten to sue. But the people at Jack Daniel’s, one of America’s most iconic brands, opted for true southern hospitality toward Patrick Wensink, an obscure Louisville-based author of a new satirical novel, Broken Piano For President."

In Sweden, Taking File Sharing to Heart. And to Church; New York Times, 7/25/12

John Tagliabue, New York Times; In Sweden, Taking File Sharing to Heart. And to Church:

"People almost everywhere are file sharing these days, using computers to download music, films, books or other materials, often ignoring copyrights. In Sweden, however, it is a religion. Really.

Even as this Scandinavian country, like other nations across Europe, bows to pressure from big media concerns to stop file sharing, a Swedish government agency this year registered as a bona fide religion a church whose central dogma is that file sharing is sacred.

“For me it is a kind of believing in deeper values than worldly values,” said Isak Gerson, a philosophy student at Uppsala University who helped found the church in 2010 and bears the title chief missionary. “You have it in your backbone.”

Kopimism — the name comes from a Swedish spelling of the words “copy me” — claims more than 8,000 faithful who have signed up on the church’s Web site. It has applied for the right to perform marriages and to receive subsidies awarded to religious organizations by the state, and it has bid, thus far unsuccessfully, to buy a church building, even though most church activities are conducted online...

“I think we see it as a theological remix,” Mr. Gerson said. “Christianity took from Judaism and turned it into something new, and the Muslims did the same. We are part of a tradition.”"

Why Do the Chinese Copy So Much?; International Herald Tribune, 7/25/12

Didi Kirsten Tatlow, International Herald Tribune; Why Do the Chinese Copy So Much? :

"As news spread in Austria and around the world that a copy of the medieval town’s market square, a church and other important buildings had been erected in Boluo, Guangdong province (part of a bigger development designed to attract wealthy buyers to expensive villas built by Minmetals Land), a debate began in media and in private conversations: Was it OK for the Chinese to do this? And why do they copy so much, anyway?

As I report in my latest Page Two column, the Chinese didn’t ask permission: five Chinese architects walked around incognito, photographing the town, then returned to Boluo where the town square was copied at high speed.

And it’s not just a question of architecture and iPads.

In China, academic journals are riddled with plagiarism."

If Three Constitutes Company, Add Lawyers to Make It a Crowd; New York Times, 7/17/12

Patrick Healy, New York Times; If Three Constitutes Company, Add Lawyers to Make It a Crowd:

"Most playwrights have jitters on opening night, but David Adjmi was in a panic amid the festivities last month for “3C,” his darkly comic deconstruction of the 1970s sitcom “Three’s Company.” That same day he learned that the copyright owner of “Three’s Company” had sent a cease-and-desist letter to the play’s producers charging that Mr. Adjmi had infringed on the copyright by borrowing so many elements from the TV series, including its premise about a man who pretends to be gay to live with two female roommates.

The show went on — but the copyright fight remains far from resolved.

At issue is whether “3C” is enough of a parody of “Three’s Company” to be protected under First Amendment exceptions to copyright law — specifically, under the legal doctrine of fair use, which allows artists to use copyrighted work to lampoon or critique the material, as the international hit “Forbidden Broadway” has done for years with its sendups of famous musicals."

Survey Shows Growing Strength of E-Books; New York Times, 7/18/12

Julie Bosman, New York Times; Survey Shows Growing Strength of E-Books:

"E-books continued their surge in 2011, surpassing hardcover books and paperbacks to become the dominant format for adult fiction last year, according to a new survey of publishers released Wednesday...

Over all, digital books kept up their explosive growth in 2011, the survey confirmed. Publishers’ net revenue from sales of e-books more than doubled last year, reaching $2.07 billion, up from $869 million in 2010. E-books accounted for 15.5 percent of publishers’ revenues."

Yes, video of Obama belting out "I'm so in love with you" is fair use; ArsTechnica.com, 7/17/12

Timothy B. Lee, ArsTechnica.com; Yes, video of Obama belting out "I'm so in love with you" is fair use:

"The music publisher BMG Rights Management appears to have used the DMCA takedown process to remove another video of the commander-in-chief belting out "I'm so in love with you." The video, one of many uploaded in the wake of an event at the Apollo Theater earlier this year, was made by YouTube user sNewsCast...

Unfortunately, the law doesn't give YouTube much latitude to stand up for fair use if it wants to hold onto the protection of the DMCA safe harbor. The notice-and-takedown procedure requires YouTube to leave an allegedly infringing work offline for at least 10 days, even if the uploader files a counter-notice stating that the work is not infringing."

Music publisher uses DMCA to take down Romney ad of Obama crooning; ArsTechnica, 7/16/12

Timothy B. Lee, ArsTechnica; Music publisher uses DMCA to take down Romney ad of Obama crooning:

"But YouTube chief counsel Zahavah Levine fired back with a letter pointing out that trying to assess fair use on a case-by-case basis at YouTube's scale would be extremely difficult. In many cases, YouTube doesn't even have the information it would need to assess whether a particular clip is fair use. Given that declining to take down a clip could expose the site to liability, YouTube has decided to play it safe and comply with the DMCA's takedown procedure. No exceptions, even for presidential candidates.

In 2008, YouTube expressed the hope that whichever candidate won the White House would help to reform the DMCA's takedown process to avoid this kind of problem. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Instead, Congress nearly passed the Stop Online Piracy Act, which would have given incumbent copyright holders even broader powers to take down content they didn't like."

Universities Reshaping Education on the Web; New York Times, 7/17/12

Tamar Lewin, New York Times; Universities Reshaping Education on the Web:

"As part of a seismic shift in online learning that is reshaping higher education, Coursera, a year-old company founded by two Stanford University computer scientists, will announce on Tuesday that a dozen major research universities are joining the venture. In the fall, Coursera will offer 100 or more free massive open online courses, or MOOCs, that are expected to draw millions of students and adult learners globally...

This is the tsunami,” said Richard A. DeMillo, the director of the Center for 21st Century Universities at Georgia Tech. “It’s all so new that everyone’s feeling their way around, but the potential upside for this experiment is so big that it’s hard for me to imagine any large research university that wouldn’t want to be involved.”"

More Copyright Treaties Sprouting At WIPO; Intellectual Property Watch, 7/16/12

William New, Intellectual Property Watch; More Copyright Treaties Sprouting At WIPO:

"Flush with the success of last month’s agreement on a new treaty on audiovisual performances, World Intellectual Property Organization members this week are propagating other possible legal instruments on aspects of copyright. Mainly under consideration this week are exceptions to copyright, along with broadcasters’ rights, and on the first day of the meeting, new proposals emerged on exceptions for educational and research institutions."

Reforming Copyright Is Possible; Chronicle of Higher Education, 7/9/12

Pamela Samuelson, Chronicle of Higher Education; Reforming Copyright Is Possible:

"The failure of the Google Book settlement, however, has not killed the dream of a comprehensive digital library accessible to the public. Indeed, it has inspired an alternative that would avoid the risks of monopoly control. A coalition of nonprofit libraries, archives, and universities has formed to create a Digital Public Library of America, which is scheduled to launch its services in April 2013. The San Francisco Public Library recently sponsored a second major planning session for the DPLA, which drew 400 participants. Major foundations, as well as private donors, are providing financial support. The DPLA aims to be a portal through which the public can access vast stores of knowledge online. Free, forever."

Even at a Comics Event, You Can’t Defy Gravitas; New York Times, 7/13/12

Michael Cieply, New York Times; Even at a Comics Event, You Can’t Defy Gravitas:

"Topics for panels at this year’s conference at the San Diego Convention Center include comics and the plight of indigenous peoples, feminist writers and censorship, progressive politics in comics and of course the many financial and copyright issues created by the explosion in Hollywood’s interest.

As a certain archvillain might ask: Why so serious?

“It’s frightening,” said Lisa Vizcarra, a science teacher at Carquinez Middle School in Crockett, Calif. Ms. Vizcarra, who seemed to set the day’s tone, was speaking to a Comic-Con audience about a looming pedagogical crisis: Students, distracted by video, are no longer responding to comics as an educational tool, even as schools increasingly use them in their curriculums...

On the opposite end of the sprawling convention hall, at a seminar called “The Comic Book Law School,” Michael L. Lovitz, a copyright lawyer, was hammering away on another serious matter: the ins and outs of work for hire, the employment term that has become a critical legal issue in multimillion-dollar battles over the ownership of characters like Superman and the Fantastic Four."

Extradition Suspect Calculated the Savings From Piracy; New York Times, 7/13/12

Somini Sengupta, New York Times; Extradition Suspect Calculated the Savings From Piracy:

"Helpfully for the authorities, Mr. O’Dwyer also did the math for his users, spelling out, according to the Justice Department, exactly how much money its users were saving. It reminded users that they could have spent up to $10 on a movie ticket, $10 on “a typical US nacho-Coke or popcorn-Coke combo,” and another $5 on “typical US parking.”

Part of the Justice Department’s case against Mr. O’Dwyer seems to be show that he sought to make it as simple as possible to watch movies and shows available on other sites, including copyrighted material...

Meanwhile, Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikimedia, who has stepped up to defend Mr. O’Dwyer from extradition, was quoted by The Hill, a Washington-based news site, as offering the entertainment industry some unsolicited advice: Make it easier for consumers to buy content online."

Gay Couple Eyes Lawsuit After Finding Pic on 'Hate Group' Mailer; Good Morning America via Yahoo News, 7/12/12

Susan Donaldson James, Good Morning America via Yahoo News; Gay Couple Eyes Lawsuit After Finding Pic on 'Hate Group' Mailer:

"[Southern Poverty Law Center lawyer Christine Sun] said Public Advocate has 10 days to respond to her letter and then SPLC will make legal copyright claims for Hill and state law privacy claims and infliction of emotion distress on behalf of Edwards and Tom Privitere.

"Beyond a lawsuit ... we decided to get involved because these actions are truly reprehensible -- to take a personal photo of the happiest day in a couple's life and use it in a homophobic attack ad," said Sun. "It's demonizing, unfair and unjustifiable."

The couple learned the photo had been taken without authorization from a friend who saw it in a mailer from Sen. White and called them in June."

Rostrum defends Mac Miller; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 7/13/12

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Rostrum defends Mac Miller:

"Pittsburgh rapper Mac Miller's record label Rostrum Records said Friday Miller did not unlawfully sample and distribute New York rapper Lord Finesse's beat, "Hip 2 Da Game," in Miller's tune "Kool Aid & Frozen Pizza.""

Lord Finesse hits Mac Miller with $10 million copyright lawsuit; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 7/12/12

Scott Mervis, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Lord Finesse hits Mac Miller with $10 million copyright lawsuit:

"Mac Miller is facing a $10 million lawsuit over "Kool Aid and Frozen Pizza," a track he recorded on his way to fame two years when he was 18.

Lord Finesse, a 42-year-old rapper and producer from New York who has worked with the Notorious B.I.G., alleges that the Pittsburgh rapper unlawfully used his 1995 "Hip 2 Da Game" beat for a song that appeared on Miller's mixtape "K.I.D.S."

The complaint, filed Monday in the United States District Court Southern District of New York, claims that Miller, whose legal name is Malcolm McCormick, his label Rostrum Records and mixtape website DatPiff.com "willfully infringed [Finesse's] exclusive copyrights." It further alleges unfair competition, unjust enrichment, interference and deceptive trade practices."

Why we are breaking the Pirate Bay ban; Guardian, 7/11/12

Loz Kaye, Guardian; Why we are breaking the Pirate Bay ban:

"If the government is unwilling to act, it falls to the rest of us. Since April the Pirate party has provided a proxy – pirateparty.org.uk – allowing people to connect to Pirate Bay. Initially this was in support of our sister party in the Netherlands where there is a similar crackdown. However, it has become a political protest to highlight the futility of the UK injunction and impotency of the coalition.

This proxy continues to be a legitimate route for those affected by the court orders. Not surprisingly to anyone who knows how the internet (or human nature) works, we have also experienced a huge Streisand effect. The Pirate party's website is now in the top 500 websites in the UK – above any other political party. If the aim was to change people's behaviour, the most noticeable change we have seen is an upsurge in interest in our kind of politics. I doubt this was the BPI's intention.

We must not hand courts and governments censorship powers without public debate. The Lib Dems and Conservatives need to decide where policy is headed, not just make noises about digital rights. Until that point it is left to the Pirate party to defend them."

Kim Dotcom: I'll extradite myself to US if they give my money back; Guardian, 7/11/12

Toby Manhire, Guardian; Kim Dotcom: I'll extradite myself to US if they give my money back:

"The German-born New Zealand resident's remarks, in an email interview with the Guardian, follow Tuesday's announcement that his extradition hearing, scheduled to begin in less than a month, has been put back until April next year.

On Wednesday morning Dotcom laid down the gauntlet to the US department of justice, offering to travel to the US under his own steam and faces charges – with conditions. "Hey DOJ," Dotcom said on his Twitter account, "we will go to the US. No need for extradition. We want bail, funds unfrozen for lawyers and living expenses.""

U.S. Pursuing a Middleman in Web Piracy; New York Times, 7/12/12

Somini Sengupta, New York Times; U.S. Pursuing a Middleman in Web Piracy:

"Richard O’Dwyer, an enterprising 24-year-old college student from northern England, has found himself in the middle of a fierce battle between two of America’s great exports: Hollywood and the Internet.

At issue is a Web site he started that helped visitors find American movies and television shows online. Although the site did not serve up pirated content, American authorities say it provided links to sites that did. The Obama administration is seeking to extradite Mr. O’Dwyer from Britain on criminal charges of copyright infringement. The possible punishment: 10 years in a United States prison.

The case is the government’s most far-reaching effort so far to crack down on foreigners suspected of breaking American laws. It is unusual because it goes after a middleman, who the authorities say made a fair amount of money by pointing people to pirated content. Mr. O’Dwyer’s backers say the prosecution goes too far, squelching his free-speech right to publish links to other Web sites."

Home secretary upholds decision to extradite Richard O'Dwyer; Guardian, 7/9/12

James Ball and Alan Travis, Guardian; Home secretary upholds decision to extradite Richard O'Dwyer:

"The home secretary, Theresa May, has told the House of Commons that she will not revisit plans to extradite Sheffield Hallam student Richard O'Dwyer to the US on copyright charges, saying the decision had "already been taken".

O'Dwyer faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in a US jail for alleged copyright offences, for which the UK declined to press charges. The charges relate to a website, tvshack.net, which O'Dwyer when he was 19 and which linked to places to watch TV and films online."

Acta didn't stand a chance in the age of the social internet; Guardian, 7/5/12

Charles Arthur, Guardian; Acta didn't stand a chance in the age of the social internet:

"The dismissal of Acta, the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, by the European parliament has left the treaty's opponents delighted, and its supporters – who principally work in the industries that rely on copyright and trademarks, whether virtual or physical, for their living – downhearted.

Acta's creators had the poor luck – or lack of foresight – to create their baby in what feels like the Jurassic age of the social internet. They also made the bad decision to negotiate it in secret – the sort of thing that drives conspiracy theorists wild, but which is also sure to get anyone's antennae a bit twitchy. After all, if an agreement is for everyone's good, then why do its terms have to be kept secret?"

Europe Moves to Aid Digital Music Industry; New York Times, 7/10/12

Eric Pfanner, New York Times; Europe Moves to Aid Digital Music Industry:

"The European Commission plans to introduce legislation on Wednesday to bolster the digital music market in Europe by streamlining the methods of agencies that collect royalties on behalf of copyright holders.

Michel Barnier, the internal market commissioner, is expected to propose a bill aimed at resolving problems at the 250 collecting societies that operate in the European Union, some of which are holding back growth in digital music."

Digital Notes: Grooveshark Wins a Battle, But Can It Win the War?; New York Times, 7/11/12

Ben Sisario, New York Times; Digital Notes: Grooveshark Wins a Battle, But Can It Win the War? :

"Grooveshark, an online service that streams millions of songs free, is fighting for its life in multiple lawsuits filed against it by the major powers of the business...

This week, Grooveshark’s parent company, Escape Media Group, won a glimmer of hope with a court decision that undercut one of the Universal Music Group’s two copyright infringement cases against it, and also opened the door for it to countersue the label for what could be millions of dollars in damages."

Judge Says Aereo, a TV Streaming Service, May Continue; New York Times, 7/11/12

Brian Stelter, New York Times; Judge Says Aereo, a TV Streaming Service, May Continue:

"One set of broadcasters, representing Fox, Tribune, Univision and PBS stations, said in a statement that the ruling asserted “that it is O.K. to misappropriate copyrighted material and retransmit it without compensation.” The stations said they would “continue to fight to protect our copyrights and expect to prevail on appeal.”"

Tech and Media Elite Are Likely to Debate Piracy; New York Times, 7/9/12

Amy Chozick, New York Times; Tech and Media Elite Are Likely to Debate Piracy:

"In the aftermath, Hollywood has increased its efforts to get online payment companies, cloud services and Internet service providers to voluntarily help curtail pirated movies, TV and music, particularly from foreign Web sites.

Months before the debates erupted in January, American Express, Discover, MasterCard, PayPal and Visa agreed on a set of best practices to reduce the sale of counterfeited pirated goods. In 2010, Yahoo, PayPal, GoDaddy, Google and others formed a nonprofit intended to combat the sale of illegal pharmaceuticals online, one issue SOPA and PIPA were initially meant to address.

The Sun Valley conference could provide a tranquil backdrop for the continued construction of a fence between media and technology.

“We thought about what’s in the long-term interest of the Internet ecosystem. And that’s a set of best practices that people feel comfortable with,” said Cary Sherman, chief executive of the Recording Industry Association of America."

European Parliament Rejects Anti-Piracy Treaty; New York Times, 7/4/12

Eric Pfanner, New York Times; European Parliament Rejects Anti-Piracy Treaty:

"European legislators on Wednesday rejected an international treaty to crack down on digital piracy, a vote that Internet freedom groups hailed as a victory for democracy but that media companies lamented as a setback for the creative industries.

Foes of the treaty said the vote, by an overwhelming margin in the European Parliament at Strasbourg, would probably end the prospects of European involvement in the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, or ACTA, which has been signed by the United States, Japan, Canada, Australia, South Korea and a number of individual E.U. members."

Megaupload Founder Goes From Arrest to Cult Hero; New York Times, 7/3/12

Jonathan Hutchison, New York Times; Megaupload Founder Goes From Arrest to Cult Hero:

"The Justice Department said the individuals and two companies — Megaupload and Vestor — had been charged with “engaging in a racketeering conspiracy, conspiring to commit copyright infringement, conspiring to commit money laundering and two substantive counts of criminal copyright infringement.”"

The Black Keys Sue Home Depot and Pizza Hut; New York Times, 6/22/12

James C. McKinley Jr., New York Times; The Black Keys Sue Home Depot and Pizza Hut:

"The Black Keys have sued both the Home Depot and Pizza Hut for copyright infringement, saying that the companies used musical elements from the band’s recent hits without permission in commercials, The Associated Press reported."

@KimDotcom Jokes of Money ‘Laundering’ and Tennis ‘Racketeering’; New York Times, 6/22/12

Ben Sisario, New York Times; @KimDotcom Jokes of Money ‘Laundering’ and Tennis ‘Racketeering’ :

"Mr. Dotcom’s defense team has gotten judges in New Zealand to relax the bail restrictions against him and to order the Federal Bureau of Investigation. to turn over its files on Megaupload (that part is now under “urgent review” by another court). In the latest twist, Mr. Dotcom — who was not allowed access to the Internet when he was first released from jail — apparently has started a Twitter feed, posting photos that lightly mock his case, and announcing his return to the world of cloud storage."

Japan Passes Jail-for-Downloaders Anti-Piracy Law; Wired.com, 6/21/12

Daniel Feit, Wired.com; Japan Passes Jail-for-Downloaders Anti-Piracy Law:

"Japan’s legislature has approved a bill revising the nation’s copyright law to add criminal penalties for downloading copyrighted material or backing up content from a DVD. The penalties will come into effect in October."

Unprecedented Vote: EU Parliament Trade Committee Rejects ACTA; Intellectual Property Watch, 6/21/12

Monika Ermert, Intellectual Property Watch; Unprecedented Vote: EU Parliament Trade Committee Rejects ACTA:

"In an unprecedented move, the European Parliament Committee on International Trade (INTA) today in Brussels passed a report recommending the rejection of the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). Never before has INTA voted to reject a trade agreement negotiated by the Union.

With a vote of 19 to 12 (no abstentions) INTA members followed the recommendation of British MEP David Martin (S&D Party Group)."

NPR Intern Gets an Earful After Blogging About 11,000 Songs, Almost None Paid For; New York Times, 6/19/12

Ben Sisario, New York Times; NPR Intern Gets an Earful After Blogging About 11,000 Songs, Almost None Paid For:

"In the NPR post, a 20-year-old intern named Emily White wrote that despite being “an avid music listener, concertgoer and college radio D.J.,” with an iTunes library of 11,000 songs, she has bought only 15 CDs in her life. “As monumental a role as musicians and albums have played in my life,” she wrote, “I’ve never invested money in them aside from concert tickets and T-shirts.”"

Fair Use, Art, Swiss Cheese and Me; New York Times, 6/16/12

Michael Rips, New York Times; Fair Use, Art, Swiss Cheese and Me:

"Patrick Cariou is not. He is an ethnographic photographer, and it is the sort of photographs he takes that have been some of the subjects of appropriation and subversion by the Pictures Generation. For this reason, the markets for Mr. Prince and Mr. Cariou are not just distinct; they are conflicting. In other words, no one heading out to purchase an ethnographic photograph by Mr. Cariou (or anyone else) was going to be diverted by the Prince show at Gagosian.

And that should be the answer to the legal question. Since Mr. Prince caused no economic injury to Mr. Cariou, despite his claims to the contrary, Mr. Prince should not be required to turn over his profits (or works)."

German court sentences founder of illegal movie downloading platform to prison term; Associated Press via Washington Post, 6/14/12

Associated Press via Washington Post; German court sentences founder of illegal movie downloading platform to prison term:

"A German court has convicted the founder of an illegal movie downloading platform of breaching copyright laws and sentenced him to four years and six months in prison."

MLA Shift on Copyright; Inside Higher Ed, 6/6/12

Scott Jaschik, Inside Higher Ed; MLA Shift on Copyright:

"Literary scholars on Twitter were offering praise Tuesday for an announcement by the Modern Language Association that it is adopting a new author agreement for its journals (including the flagship PMLA) that will leave copyright with authors, enabling them to post versions in open access repositories, or on individual or departmental websites. The reactions included "Fantastic," "Great open access news," "very cool and important" and "a watershed [for open access] in the humanities?""

French Publisher Group Strikes Deal With Google Over E-Books; New York Times, 6/11/12

Eric Pfanner, New York Times; French Publisher Group Strikes Deal With Google Over E-Books:

"The French Publishers Association and the Société des Gens de Lettres, an authors’ group, dropped lawsuits in which they contended that Google’s book scanning in France violated copyright. Google agreed to set up a “framework” agreement under which publishers would be able to offer digital versions of their works for Google to sell...

Other digital book initiatives are under way in France; the Parliament recently passed a law authorizing the French National Library to scan so-called orphan works — out-of-print books whose copyright holder cannot be found — for an openly available digital repository. Orphan works would be automatically included unless the rights holders objected within six months."

EU Negotiators Tentatively Agree On Plan For Orphan Works; Intellectual Property Watch, 6/9/12

Dugie Standeford, Intellectual Property Watch; EU Negotiators Tentatively Agree On Plan For Orphan Works:

"The measure will give European libraries, archives, film heritage institutions, public broadcasters and other organisations the appropriate legal framework to enable them to provide online, cross-border access to their collections, including orphan works, Barnier said. Greater legal security could boost funding of digitisation projects, he said."

Gershwin Shows’ Tonys Fuel Plans for a Musical; New York Times, 6/14/12

Patrick Healy, New York Times; Gershwin Shows’ Tonys Fuel Plans for a Musical:

"Over the last year the trustees — mostly nephews and grandnephews of George and Ira — have been called greedy, unsophisticated and insensitive to the artistic integrity of the brothers’ work: essentially, that they were cashing in on the music before their copyrights expired. While the famous opera songs from “Porgy and Bess” will be available in the public domain in about two decades, the musical version of “Porgy and Bess” is its own licensable property that can generate income for Gershwin relatives for decades, as will the separate license for the other new Gershwin songbook musical on Broadway, “Nice Work if You Can Get It.”"

Libraries Are Not The Same as Manga Scanlation Sites; About.com

Robin Brenner, About.com; Libraries Are Not The Same as Manga Scanlation Sites:

"To stop this nonsense once and for all, I asked librarian, author and blogger Robin Brenner to explain why borrowing and reading manga from a library isn't the same as reading illegal, scanned versions of the same books. Here's her breakdown on the four reasons why libraries aren't the same as scanlation websites."

Lawyers in ‘Spider-Man’ Battle Spin Their Early Arguments; New York Times, 6/1/12

Patrick Healy, New York Times; Lawyers in ‘Spider-Man’ Battle Spin Their Early Arguments:

"Lawyers for the Broadway producers of “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” argued in federal court on Friday that the musical’s former director, Julie Taymor, had borrowed so many ideas from Spider-Man superhero lore that she was not entitled to copyright protection for her initial three-page script outline for the musical, which features characters and subplots from Spider-Man comics and movies. Ms. Taymor’s lawyers, who regard the outline as crucial to her copyright claims and battle for more than $1 million from the producers, countered that the document reflected what they termed originality and the singular vision that she had demonstrated as the Tony Award-winning director of “The Lion King.”"

Judge Allows Class-Action Suit Over Google’s Book Scanning; New York Times, 5/31/12

Julie Bosman, New York Times; Judge Allows Class-Action Suit Over Google’s Book Scanning:

"A federal judge in Manhattan granted class-action status on Thursday to authors suing Google over the company’s ambitious book-scanning project, allowing the long-stalled case to move forward...

James Grimmelmann, a professor at New York Law School who has studied the legal aspects of the case, said the judge’s decision “makes it very likely that we’re going to have a very high-stakes decision about Google’s book-scanning project.”"

Daddy, What Were Compact Discs?; New York Times, 5/30/12

Sam Grobart, New York Times; Daddy, What Were Compact Discs? :

"ONE day, when my children are a little older, I will gather them close and I will tell them about how I lived through the Great Format Wars.

I will recount to them a seemingly endless cycle of battles. From LP to cassette to minidisk (oh wait — not to minidisk) to CD. From Betamax to VHS to DVD to HD-DVD to Blu-ray. From punchcards to magnetic tape to floppy disks to zip drives to DVD-ROMs."