Following the uncertainty created by earlier rulings, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has handed down another judgment on when hyperlinking will be unlawful. The ruling focuses on Article 3(1) of the InfoSoc Directive and, in particular, the meaning of “communication to the public”. The question before the Court was – when … Continue Reading
This morning, the Supreme Court issued its most recent ruling in Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., unanimously holding that the “objective reasonableness” of an unsuccessful litigant’s position should be accorded “substantial weight” when awarding attorneys’ fees in copyright cases. The Court, however, also noted that this factor is not dispositive and district courts … Continue Reading
The UK government has announced its intention to increase the maximum custodial sentence for online copyright infringement from two years to ten years. This will match the current maximum sentence for copyright infringement in physical goods. Maximum sentence The government first consulted on this proposal in July 2015. The overwhelming majority of respondents were against … Continue Reading
The UK government has confirmed that section 52 of the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 will be repealed with effect from 28 July 2016. By this date, businesses that trade in replica goods in reliance on s52 will need to have depleted their stocks and adapted their business model. Section 52 Section 52 provides … Continue Reading
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), Europe’s highest court, has been advised to rule that providing hyperlinks to freely accessible copyright protected content placed on the internet without the author’s consent should not be copyright infringement (GS Media v (1) Sanoma (2) Playboy Enterprises (3) Britt Dekker). The facts of the GS … Continue Reading
Since at least the 1950s, humans have taken an interest in the claimed artistic abilities of animals. Give a primate a paintbrush, and you may get a masterpiece in abstract creativity. Train an elephant to hold a paintbrush in its trunk, and you may even get a self-portrait. But who owns the copyrights to these works … Continue Reading
Do you remember hearing the phrase “don’t rely on your parents to do your dirty work”? The district judge in a recent DMCA case may have had this principle in mind when he held that a website owner could not rely on its parent company’s DMCA agent designation to shield itself from a copyright infringement claim. The … Continue Reading
In a recent decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that a certain yoga sequence developed by legendary yoga teacher Bikram Choudhury was not eligible for copyright protection. The Court’s decision was based on the fundamental copyright principle known as the “idea/expression dichotomy,” which states that copyright protection is limited to … Continue Reading
Not everyone knows that the U.S. Copyright Act contains “mandatory deposit provisions,” which require that copies of most copyrighted works be sent to the Copyright Office. Those who are aware of these provisions may believe that they only apply to works that are the subject of a federal copyright application. Although a common misconception, this … Continue Reading
A recent Judgment rendered by the Spanish Supreme Court has clarified the problems arisen by the exploitation by a Spanish editorial (ENOKIA, S.L.) of the works of G.K Chesterton, which were considered as public domain as the protection period imposed by law had expired. The holder of the rights, the entity “The Royal Literary Fund” … Continue Reading
The Ninth Circuit today held en banc that an actor in a movie does not have a copyright interest in his or her performance. In February 2014, a divided panel of the Ninth Circuit overruled the district court and found that an actor in a controversial film about the prophet Mohammed had a copyright interest … Continue Reading
This summer we reported on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that held that Aereo Inc.’s broadcast television Internet streaming service constituted an unauthorized public performance in violation of the U.S. Copyright Act. As background, prior to that ruling, Aereo’s business allowed subscribers to watch broadcast television programs on the Internet, within seconds after the programs were broadcast over … Continue Reading
Quick off the heels to changes to the parody rules (see here), yet more changes to UK copyright law come into force today (29 October) allowing, for the first time, the use of certain copyright works without the consent of the copyright owner. The problem of orphan works For some years now, the EU has been concerned … Continue Reading
The UK Intellectual Property Office has launched a consultation on when section 52 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 should be repealed. Section 52 Section 52 provides that, when a work protected by artistic copyright has been exploited industrially (by making and selling more than 50 copies), the copyright term is automatically reduced … Continue Reading
We are pleased to share with you our quarterly bulletin – Hot Topics in Intellectual Property and Technology. This bulletin highlights some topical developments in the UK in the areas of intellectual property and technology, contract, data privacy, trade secrets and advertising and media. Our Hot Topics briefing is intended to keep you abreast of key … Continue Reading
In today’s world, the global exploitation of copyright is part of daily business, and of great importance, for many companies. But the legal system has difficulties keeping pace with the increasing global connection of markets. Taking a closer look at the international harmonization of copyright laws, it is surprising to see how many issues around … Continue Reading
In a recent judgment, Europe’s highest court in civil matters, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), expanded the scope of the EU Customs Regulation. It ruled that EU customs authorities have the power under the Regulation to seize and detain goods suspected of infringing intellectual property (‘IP’) rights where those goods have … Continue Reading
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a much-anticipated ruling in the latest chapter of the saga of copyright infringement cases related to new technology. In American Broadcasting Cos., Inc. v. Aereo, Inc., the Court held that Aereo’s broadcast television Internet streaming service constituted an unauthorized public performance in violation of the Copyright Act. … Continue Reading
Our Spring edition of Hot Topics in Intellectual Property and Technology is now available. This is the second of our quarterly bulletins highlighting some topical developments in the UK in the areas of intellectual property and technology, contract, data privacy, trade secrets and advertising and media. Topics covered in this edition include: Reforms to UK … Continue Reading
By way of follow up to our post on 8 May on the new UK copyright exceptions, the government has confirmed that the new exception for personal copies for private use (and another new exception allowing use of a copyright work for the purposes of caricature, parody and pastiche) will, in fact, be implemented. It had … Continue Reading
The UK copyright system is set for a shake-up. On 1 June, reforms to the copyright exceptions will come into force. The exceptions say what third parties may do in relation to copyright works without infringing copyright. The reforms will widen the exceptions, to the benefit of consumers and businesses that innovate but perhaps to … Continue Reading
Internet Service Providers now have greater freedom to decide how to block user access to infringing content. This follows a recent ruling of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in the case of UPC Telekabel. In this case, Constantin Film Verleih GmbH (Constantin) and Wega Flimproduktionsgesellschaft mbH (Wega) applied in the Austrian courts … Continue Reading
Running an international prize promotion is an increasingly popular way for brands to engage with their consumers. Given the obvious benefits of the Internet, brands and their advisors often seek to operate those promotions through third party social media platforms, such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, or on bespoke platforms. While there are many benefits … Continue Reading
Most companies by now have made their footprint in social media, including on leading platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. With 500 million Tweets being sent per day, companies need to get creative to come up with enough content to engage their consumers. One popular technique is to send Tweets that contain links to third-party content, along … Continue Reading
