Every day, at just about every event that could be of interest to the national and international media, there is at least one Getty photographer, snapping away, all the while knowing that countless websites, Facebook posts, Tweets, and Tumblr posts will probably soon be sharing some of these pics without paying or providing any credit. But after years of trying to combat photo thieves, the mammoth photo agency realizes there is no use fighting the trend. [More]
copyright
Sick Of Fighting Photo Thieves, Getty Makes Images Available For Free Embed
By 3.6.14
Celebrate Public Domain Day… By Realizing That Not A Single Published Work Will Become Public Domain Until 2019
By 1.2.14
As happens every January, various pieces of literature, scholarship, film, music, plays, and other copyrighted works of art enter into the public domain, meaning the public has the right to publish, perform, use, and display these works without seeking permission. That is, except in the U.S., where not a single published work will be joining the public domain until 2019. [More]
Porn Troll Lawyers Hit With Legal Fees For Bullying Defendant
By 10.31.13
Back in 2012, John Steele of Prenda Law — a firm that specializes in threatening to sue alleged porn file-sharers in order to force a settlement — was publicly bragging about his success, referring to himself in an interview as “the original copyright troll.” Recently, things haven’t gone so well, due in no small part to a disastrous attempt to sue Comcast and AT&T for phony claims of “hacking” one of their client’s websites. [More]
YouTube Copyright Bots Finally Tick Off Someone Who Understands Copyright Law
By 9.30.13
Harvard law professor and Creative Commons co-founder Lawrence Lessig knows a thing or two about copyright law. So when a record company demanded that he remove a video from YouTube that featured one of their artists’ songs, he not only fought back to keep the clip online, but has now sued that record company in the hopes of getting it, and others, to stop using auto-scanning technology to take advantage of consumers who may not know their rights. [More]
Comcast Letter Indicates Porn Troll Lawyers Planted Material On Pirate Bay
By 8.19.13
Not even a year ago, lawyer John Steele was touting himself as the “original copyright troll,” talking up his efforts to fight online porn pirates. Now his law firm is on the other end of legal boot, accused of planting copyrighted content online with the sole purpose of tracking — and threatening to sue — the people who shared those files. [More]
Latest News About Xbox One And Used Games Only Muddies The Waters
By 6.7.13
Among the major concerns Xbox users had about the unveiling of Microsoft’s newest console, the Xbox One, was whether or not gamers would be able to play used games. Some retailers who make mountains of cash selling old games also have reason to worry. The company is now attempting to clear up those concerns, but it is really just making the picture murkier and testing the boundaries of copyright law. [More]
Supreme Court Says Reselling Books Bought Overseas Does Not Violate Copyright
By 3.19.13
The legality of “gray market” books and other media just got slightly less gray, with the Supreme Court ruling that a person who buys books overseas has the right to resell those books here in the U.S. without violating a publisher’s copyright. [More]
Apple, Amazon Looking To Sell Used Digital Content
By 3.8.13
When you purchase a digital download, do you actually own it? Some say yes, others say you’re just licensing its use from the copyright holder. This argument is only going to get more heated with news that both Apple and Amazon are looking into how to go about re-selling “used” digital content. [More]
Is YouTube's Content ID System Leading To False Copyright Claims?
By 2.27.12
We’ve heard the stories about people’s YouTube videos being tagged for copyright violations because someone in the background is playing a song that’s recognizable to some automated system that scans online videos. But certainly no one can come after you for the barely audible sound of birds, right? [More]
Studio Dismisses More Than 21,000 Sued For Downloading "Hurt Locker"
By 10.4.11
The studio that produced The Hurt Locker sued 24,583 unnamed people for illegally downloading the film. Now more than 21,000 of those John Does can breathe a little easier because the studio has dismissed them from the suit, leaving more than 2,300 in its sights. [More]
Authors Guild Sues Universities For Amassing Digital Book Library
By 9.13.11
Authors who believe they are being ripped off by institutions of higher learning are taking four universities to court for scanning about 7 million copyright-protected books into a digital library, allowing students and faculty to download out-of-print work. [More]
Hells Angels Sue L.A. T-Shirt Maker For Copyright Infringement
By 8.26.11
It seems the Hells Angels aren’t cool with the idea of an L.A. fashion boutique slapping its name on a t-shirt. The notorious motorcycle club is suing the designer and several online retailers for copyright infringement. The shirt in question bears the message: “My boyfriend’s a Hells Angel.” [More]
Magazine That Stole Writer's Story Likely Shutting Down; Blames Writer
By 11.17.10
Some people don’t know when to leave bad enough alone. Earlier this month, we brought you the story of a freelance writer who not only found out that a small cooking magazine had lifted her entire story without permission or payment, but then insulted the author saying she should have paid them for the tiny bit of editing they did on her text before printing it. Now the editor at the magazine says it’s likely curtains for the publication — and you’ll never guess who she’s blaming. [More]
Magazine Copies Entire Story From Web, Tells Writer She Should Pay Them For Publishing It
By 11.4.10
A writer was recently surprised to find that a piece she’d written about apple pies for a website in 2005 had been picked up wholesale by a small cooking magazine without anyone telling her. She was even more surprised by the reaction she received from one of the mag’s editors. [More]
College Libraries Save Money By Ignoring Netflix Terms Of Use
By 9.22.10
Plenty of Americans have cut their household entertainment budgets by subscribing to Netflix instead of seeing movies in theaters or purchasing DVDs. Now, some college libraries are doing the same thing, sort of. They’re using rented DVDs or streaming video instead of purchasing the movies that professors assign. Is this a violation of Netflix’s terms of use? Yes. But the librarians don’t particularly care, and Netflix doesn’t seem to, either. Yet. As a Netflix spokesman said, “We just don’t want to be pursuing libraries.” [More]
Nintendo To Fansites: Don't Advertise Our Games For Free (Updated)
By 9.21.10
Nintendo’s legal team is on a quest to stop Pokémon fan sites from posting screenshots from its games. [More]
Companies Can Forbid You To Resell Your Software, Court Rules
By 9.13.10
A California court has ruled that software makers can forbid buyers from reselling a copy of a program they bought. This is not about people making illegal copies of games, this is about buying a CD with a program on it and not being able to resell that CD. Expect this to go to appeal, but watch out, Gamestop. [More]
Is That Video Of Your Dancing Baby Violating Sony's Copyright?
By 8.4.10
From its earliest days, YouTube was constructed on a foundation of three things — hilarious kittens, stupid teenagers and dancing babies. But now that YouTube plays host to the likes of Oprah, heaven forbid any of your videos have Sony music playing in the background, lest the copyright police come after you. [More]
