Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Publication Type
Articles 1 - 11 of 11
Full-Text Articles in Law
Redefining The Transformative Use Of Copyrighted Works: Toward A Fair Use Standard In The Digital Environment, Jisuk Woo
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
This paper analyzes the transformative use factor in fair use analysis of copyright law. The author argues that, in the changing information environment stimulated by digital information technology, the end user's creativity in their activities of using works of authorship should be the focus in applying the principle of transformative use rather than the subsequent creation of transformed work as found in the lower court cases after Campbell.
Play It Again, Sam: Webcasters’ Sound Recording Complement As An Unconstitutional Restraint On Free Speech, Amanda S. Reid
Play It Again, Sam: Webcasters’ Sound Recording Complement As An Unconstitutional Restraint On Free Speech, Amanda S. Reid
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
Music embodies two copyrights: one for the words and notes, and another for the particular sound recording. Copyright law provides for a compulsory license that enables a Webcaster to transmit songs without first negotiating price and permission, provided a royalty fee is paid. A condition for being eligible for the statutory license is compliance with the "sound recording performance complement," which limits the number of songs that may be played during a three-hour period to no more than three songs from one album, and no more than two songs back to back. This Article argues that the "sound recording performance …
Are You Still Settling For Cable? A Case For Broader Application Of The Fcc’S Over-The-Air Reception Devices Rule, Lavonda N. Reed-Huff
Are You Still Settling For Cable? A Case For Broader Application Of The Fcc’S Over-The-Air Reception Devices Rule, Lavonda N. Reed-Huff
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
Many renters in the United States have no choice when it comes to selecting a video or communications service provider for their residence, due to their inability to install satellite dishes on their rental property. Because of this lack of choice, many must rely on traditional broadcast television, cable service and traditional telephone dial-up for receiving video programming and accessing advanced technologies such as the Internet. Others simply go without service altogether. While the FCC has attempted to address this problem, the rule they have promulgated, known as the "OTARD Rule," fails to go far enough to make video and …
Can The Right Of Publicity Afford Free Speech - A New Right Of Publicity Test For First Amendment Cases, Jason K. Levine
Can The Right Of Publicity Afford Free Speech - A New Right Of Publicity Test For First Amendment Cases, Jason K. Levine
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
The right of publicity finds itself increasingly threatened by the First Amendment. Recent decisions at both the state and federal levels have served to highlight the confusion and lack of uniformity. For example, the Ninth Circuit recently held that an artist could not sell T-shirts with a charcoal drawing of the Three Stooges without permission, yet shortly thereafter the Sixth Circuit rejected Tiger Woods' attempt to prevent an artist from selling a painting of him winning a golf tournament, on essentially the same grounds. The author argues that the right of publicity and the First Amendment can co-exist, but that …
Holding The Spymasters Accountable After 9/11: A Proposed Model For Cia Disclosure Requirements Under The Freedom Of Information Act, Martin E. Halstuk
Holding The Spymasters Accountable After 9/11: A Proposed Model For Cia Disclosure Requirements Under The Freedom Of Information Act, Martin E. Halstuk
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
For the last two decades, near-blanket CIA secrecy has gone largely unchecked, principally because of CIA v. Sims, a sweeping 1985 U.S. Supreme Court decision that exempted the Agency from virtually any disclosure requirements under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The uncurbed secrecy that the Court has sanctioned effectively blocks public and press efforts to evaluate CIA performance, thus making Agency accountability difficult, if not impossible. The well-publicized missteps and failures by the CIA in connection with the 9/11 terrorist attacks illustrate the follies of how excessive secrecy can conceal grave problems in Agency management. This article argues that …
Cross Burning Revisited: What The Supreme Court Should Have Done In Virginia V. Black And Why It Didn’T, W. Wat Hopkins
Cross Burning Revisited: What The Supreme Court Should Have Done In Virginia V. Black And Why It Didn’T, W. Wat Hopkins
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
The Supreme Court of the United States, in R.A. V. v. St. Paul, created a complicated framework of law that, despite years of case law to the contrary, would allow a court to hold a law banning cross burning to be constitutional, even if the law was not content-neutral. The ruling caused considerable problems in cases involving cross burning that reached lower appellate courts. In Virginia v. Black, the Court had the opportunity to resolve the problem, but refused to do so. Instead, the Court restructured the law related to intimidating and threatening speech, creating even more ambiguity. Under the …
Sharing And Stealing, Jessica Litman
Sharing And Stealing, Jessica Litman
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
The purpose of copyright is to encourage the creation and mass dissemination of a wide variety of works. Until recently, most means of mass dissemination required a significant capital investment. The lion's share of the economic proceeds of copyrights were therefore channeled to publishers and distributors, and the law was designed to facilitate that. Digital distribution invites us to reconsider all of the assumptions underlying that model. We are still in the early history of the networked digital environment, but already we've seen experiments with both direct and consumer-to-consumer distribution of works of authorship. One remarkable example of the difference …
Picking Up The Pieces Of Grokster: A New Approach To File Sharing, Tom Graves
Picking Up The Pieces Of Grokster: A New Approach To File Sharing, Tom Graves
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
The introduction of peer-to-peer file-sharing has created a plethora of new legal issues regarding the creation and distribution of music recordings. The music, however, is only half of the story. The case of MGM Studios v. Grokster addresses the tension between promoting progress in music and protecting the development of new technologies. Although it may be time to revisit the judicial standard for vicarious and contributory copyright infringement in the file-sharing context, a new legislative framework must ultimately be found. The creators of music should be compensated for their work, but not at the unnecessary expense of new and useful …
But We Have To Protect Our Source: How Electronic Voting Companies' Proprietary Code Ruins Elections, Andrew Massey
But We Have To Protect Our Source: How Electronic Voting Companies' Proprietary Code Ruins Elections, Andrew Massey
UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal
In the wake of the disastrous 2000 Presidential election, reformers turned to touch-screen electronic voting machines, or DREs, to avoid repeating Florida's experience with endless recounts and hanging chads. As soon as DREs were introduced, however, criticism quickly mounted, focusing on the machines' error-ridden code, inability to perform recounts, and susceptibility to hacking. This note explores how the problems associated with DREs stem directly from their reliance on proprietary source code. This note puts forth the argument that proprietary code place's electronic voting companies' intellectual property rights ahead of the public's need for an accountable and transparent voting system. In …
The Open Source Biotechnology Movement: Is It Patent Misuse?, Robin Feldman
The Open Source Biotechnology Movement: Is It Patent Misuse?, Robin Feldman
Faculty Scholarship
No abstract provided.
Consolidating The Diffuse Paths To Trade Dress Functionality: Encountering Traffix On The Way To Sears, Margreth Barrett
Consolidating The Diffuse Paths To Trade Dress Functionality: Encountering Traffix On The Way To Sears, Margreth Barrett
Faculty Scholarship
No abstract provided.