copyright law

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Judge Weighs In on Legal Fight Over Banana Art

Joe Morford fails to show Maurizio Cattelan's 'Comedian' copied his earlier creation

(Newser) - The Italian artist who stuck a banana to a wall with duct tape wasn't copying the work of a contemporary who taped a banana and an orange to two panels and called it art years earlier. A US district judge for the Southern District of Florida ruled against California-based...

This Isn't Your Mother's Winnie the Pooh
This Isn't Your Mother's
Winnie the Pooh
MOVIE TRAILER

This Isn't Your Mother's Winnie the Pooh

Public domain rules allow for this gory adaptation

(Newser) - This is why you should always read the reviews carefully before taking your kids to the theater. The trailer for a new Winnie the Pooh movie, based on the lovable bear created by UK author AA Milne, dropped Wednesday. But in this nearly two-minute sneak peek at Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and ...

Not-So-Great Vibrations for Brian Wilson, Ex Lead to Suit

Marilyn Wilson-Rutherford says she's entitled to more cash after Wilson sold song rights to UMPG

(Newser) - Marilyn Wilson-Rutherford was married to Brian Wilson from 1964 to 1978, a 14-year stretch during which the Beach Boys co-founder helped write some of the group's biggest hits, including "Good Vibrations," "California Girls," and "Wouldn't It Be Nice." Now, a year after...

Winnie the Pooh, Hemingway Lose Copyright Protections

AA Milne's children's classic and the novel ' The Sun Also Rises' enter public domain

(Newser) - Winnie the Pooh and The Sun Also Rises are going public. AA Milne's beloved children's book and Ernest Hemingway's classic novel, along with films starring Buster Keaton and Greta Garbo are among the works from 1926 whose copyrights expire Saturday, putting them in the public domain as...

Disney Sues to Keep Rights to Avengers Characters

Lawyer for creators, heirs has filed notices of copyright termination

(Newser) - A battle between high-powered lawyers is looming over the legal rights to some of Marvel's best-known characters, including Iron Man, Thor, Spider-Man, and Black Widow. Disney, owner of Marvel Entertainment, has filed lawsuits in a bid to retain full control of the characters, the Guardian reports. The suits were...

Star Drops Trump Suit Over 'Rockin' in the Free World'

President, whose rallies have played the song, said he 'didn’t love it anyway'

(Newser) - Neil Young has dropped his copyright infringement lawsuit against President Trump, whose rallies have played songs including "Rockin' in the Free World" and "Devil’s Sidewalk." Young, who said Trump rallies have used his songs since 2015 without a license, filed the suit in New York after...

Carrie Underwood Gets Sued Over Football Theme

Another songwriter, Heidi Merrill, says 'Game On' was ripped off from her

(Newser) - Singer Heidi Merrill says she wrote Game On, with the help of three other songwriters, in 2016 and took it to Carrie Underwood's producer. He wasn't interested. Two years later, Merrill says in a new lawsuit, a similar song of the same title played during the opening of...

No Accounting for Taste. No Copyrighting, Either

European court says a cheese can't copyright its flavor

(Newser) - You can copyright lots of things, but not the way food tastes. That's according to the European Court of Justice, which was asked to rule on a case involving spreadable Dutch cheeses. Food producer Levola Hengelo, which began selling cream cheese and herb dip Heks'nkaas in 2011, argued...

'Happy Birthday' Lawyers Score $4.6M in Fees

Judge awards money after copyright case

(Newser) - The lawyers who helped bring the song "Happy Birthday" into the public domain will be handsomely rewarded. A judge this week awarded the legal team $4.6 million after last year's successful copyright lawsuit , reports Courthouse News Service . The money will come out of a $14 million class-action...

'Happy Birthday' May Finally Belong to All

Warner Music agrees to pay $14M in proposed settlement

(Newser) - "Happy Birthday to You" will finally be in the public domain if a proposed settlement is approved. Warner Music has announced it won't fight a move to make rights to the song public and will spend $14 million to end a class-action lawsuit in search of royalties paid...

Filmmakers Sue: No, 'Happy Birthday' Isn't Copyrighted
 'Smoking Gun' Found in 
 'Happy Birthday' Lawsuit 
in case you missed it

'Smoking Gun' Found in 'Happy Birthday' Lawsuit

They're presenting evidence that song is in the public domain, not owned by Warner

(Newser) - In what the New York Times called the "lawsuit of the ages" when it was first filed two years ago, a new development is making the case even juicier with "smoking-gun evidence" that one of the world's most popular songs is in fact in the public domain,...

Why MLK's Family Sues People Over 'the Dream'

To protect its copyright, which lasts until 2039

(Newser) - The new film Selma avoided quoting Martin Luther King's civil-rights speeches because his family owns the copyrights and has sued over them—and it's all perfectly legal, Politico reports. The MLK estate has successfully sued USA Today, CBS News, and the Emmy-winning documentary series Eyes on the Prize,...

Bar Owner Fined $21K— Over Karaoke

Her establishment wasn't registered with BMI

(Newser) - A few weeks after some newly-returned vets sang patriotic Toby Keith songs at a Colorado Springs bar's karaoke night in 2012, the bar owner found herself slapped with a $21,000 fine for not having permission to play the songs in her bar. LeShawn Carey registered the Carey-On Saloon...

Sherlock Holmes in Public Domain, Says Judge

Or at least, all his stories from before 1923

(Newser) - Are you dying to share your Sherlock Holmes fanfic with the world? Well, that's just become (sorry, we have to do this by law), elementary, my dear reader. A federal judge has ruled that Holmes, Watson, and all 50 stories they appeared in before Jan. 1, 1923, are now...

Piracy-Fighting Plan: Teach Copyright Law to Little Kids

MPAA backs planned 'Be a Creator' program

(Newser) - The Motion Picture Association of America wants young people to know that piracy is a crime—and the group is hoping to get the message out early. It's teaming up with the Recording Industry Association of America and Internet service providers to push an anti-piracy program in elementary schools,...

'I Have a Dream' © All Rights Reserved
 'I Have a Dream' 
 © All Rights Reserved 
OPINION

'I Have a Dream' © All Rights Reserved

Martin Luther King's family keeps tight control of historic speech: Lauren Williams

(Newser) - With the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King's iconic speech on the National Mall coming up, Lauren Williams at Mother Jones has a dream of her own. "I have a dream," she writes, that black and white children will be able "to sit down together at...

Court Sides With Student on Textbook Copyright

Publisher loses case at Supreme Court over resales

(Newser) - The Supreme Court ruled today that textbooks and other goods made and sold abroad can be re-sold online and in discount stores without violating US copyright law. The outcome was a huge relief to eBay, Costco, and other businesses that trade in products made outside the US. In a 6-3...

Japan's New Fine for Illegal Downloads: 2 Years in Jail

New penalties take effect today

(Newser) - Japan is really cracking down on online piracy: As of today, anyone who possesses illegally downloaded music or movies could go to prison for as long as two years, CNN reports. They also face fines of nearly $26,000. Possessing content that infringes on copyright laws has been illegal in...

Pinterest Reassures Users Over Copyright Concerns

Social networking site releases statement

(Newser) - Pinterest is quickly following up on the copyright concerns that were recently raised by a lawyer and photographer, whose blog post on the potential issues went viral on the social networking site . "Pinterest is a platform for people to share their interests through collections of images, videos, commentary, and...

Why You May Want to Think Twice Before Using Pinterest

After copyright concerns raised, site wants to avoid becoming 'next Napster'

(Newser) - Pinterest quickly racked up millions of users, all of whom love sharing Internet finds by "pinning" images to the website. But one Pinterest user, who also happens to be a photographer and lawyer, delved into copyright law and the site's terms of use—and discovered that Pinterest protects...

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