Law Commons^™

Mickey Mouse – Finally Whistling His Way Into The Public Domain, Holly Lechner

Cybaris®

No abstract provided.

Hard Truths About Soft Ip, Amanda Levendowski

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

People routinely refer to copyright and trademark as “soft IP” to distinguish these practices from another area of intellectual property: patent. But the term reflects implicit biases against copyright and trademark doctrine and practioners. “Soft IP” implies that patent law alone is hard, even though patents are no more physically, metaphorically or intellectually hard than copyrights and trademarks. Despite stereotypes to the contrary, patents are not necessarily more practically hard: while the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office requires technical training for patent prosecutors, which excludes many women and people of color, no such experience is necessary for most patent litigators …

Reconceptualizing Open Access To Theses And Dissertations, Orit Fischman Afori, Dalit Ken-Dror Feldman

Joint PIJIP/TLS Research Paper Series

Theses and dissertations (TD) are academic research projects that are conducted by graduate students to acquire a high academic degree, such as a PhD. The perception of the written TD has evolved over the years, following changes concerning the purpose of advanced academic studies. Today, these academic fruits should meet a high standard of academic innovation, which is understood broadly as encompassing not only knowledge concerning basic science but also the knowledge that generates social and economic value for society.

The modern perception of TD has generated a call for their greater accessibility, as part of the Open Science movement. …

Comments On Council Draft 7 [Black Letter And Comments], Jane C. Ginsburg

Faculty Scholarship

CD7 adopts several of the suggestions in my comments on PD8; I appreciate those modifications. CD7 does not, however, respond to a number of other criticisms and suggestions regarding PD8. For the benefit of the Council, I reprise the suggestions that I consider to be most significant to ensuring the accuracy of the draft (page and line references have been changed to reflect CD7)

Keeping It Real: Property Analogies For Graffiti Infringement, Shelby Pickar-Dennis

University of Colorado Law Review

No abstract provided.

Twenty Years Of Us Digital Copyright: Adapting From Analogue, Jane C. Ginsburg

Faculty Scholarship

This review of the period 2001–21 in US copyright law will summarize digital-dominated developments concerning the scope of exclusive rights and exceptions and liability regimes. It will address several developments, all related to the impact of the internet on the exploitation of works of authorship. Digital storage and communications have called into question the scope of the exclusive rights set out in the US Copyright Act, and they have considerably expanded the reach of the fair use exemption. They have strained statutory and common law regimes of secondary liability and prompted the development of a ‘volition’ predicate to primary liability. …

Questions Of Intellectual Property And Fundamental Values In The Digital Age, Jessica Silbey

Faculty Scholarship

Today's intellectual property debates, in both law and the larger society, are a bellwether of changing justice needs in the twenty-first century. As the digital age democratizes technological opportunities, it brings intellectual property law into mainstream everyday culture. This generates debates about the relationship between the constitutional interest in "the progress of science and useful arts" and other fundamental values, such as equality, privacy, and distributive justice. These values, which were not explicitly part of intellectual property regimes in prior eras, are especially challenged in today's internet world.

The article (which was presented as the annual Nies Lecture in April …

A Logical Proof That The Common Good, Not Economics, Underlies Copyright, Michelle M. Wu

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

Copyright experts endlessly debate its purpose: economic or common good. Both sides cite to judicial language backing their interpretations, and the frequency and cost of litigation between those representing the two interests have noticeably increased over recent years.

This article aims at a simpler way to resolve the dispute, by taking a step back and starting with the definition of a government. The government of a democratic republic, particularly one described as “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” has a single purpose: to address the common concerns of its people.

The following philosophical argument is a …

Pengelolaan Royalti Dari Pencipta Lagu Yang Tidak Terdaftar Di Lembaga Manajemen Kolektif Oleh Lembaga Manajemen Kolektif Nasional, Mohamad Thaufiq Rachman

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

Royalty is a reward received by the author or owner of the related right concerning the utilization of their Economic Rights following Article 1 point 21 of Law No. 28, 2014 regarding Copyright ("UUHC 2014"). Royalty could also be interpreted as a form of appreciation for the Author's Works, such as song and/or music. Encouraging the spirit of industry players, including songwriters, is essential for continuous growth. As mentioned in the general explanation section of UUHC 2014, Copyright is the most important basis of the national creative economy. With the fulfillment of the protection and development of this creative economy, …

Perlindungan Hak Cipta Terhadap Penggandaan Permainan Video (Copyright Protection Against Video Game Copying), Ahmad Fajri Wibowo

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

Copyright protection provides legal protection to creative industries. One of the creative industries that need to be protected is the video game industry. The development of video games in Indonesia is very fast, therefore legal protection is needed to maintain the development of the video game industry. Basically a video game is an object of creation contained in Law Number 28 of 2014 concerning copyright. In the development of the video game industry, there are problems that occur such as the number of illegal copies of video games. Thus, copyright protection plays a very important role in maintaining the video …

Perlindungan Hukum Atas Ulos Sebagai Ekspresi Budaya Tradisional, Yoshua Ruselvelt P Sidabutar

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

Traditional cultural expressions are a way of life for the Indonesian nation that teaches traditions, wisdom, values, communal knowledge packaged and passed on to posterity through tales, legends, arts and ceremonies which gradually form the social norms and way of life of the Indonesian nation. Indonesia is a country that consists of various tribes and cultures so that it has priceless Traditional Cultural Expressions and really needs to be protected. One form of traditional cultural expression in Indonesia is ulos cloth, which is a fabric product that is known internationally. This research uses juridical-normative legal research, where in collecting writing …

Perlindungan Hak Cipta Atas Konten Webinar Serta Akibat Hukum Merekam Dan Menggungah Konten Webinar Tanpa Persetujuan, Nabila Nabila

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

The Covid-19 pandemic period has changed the pattern of daily activities from normal to new normal. For example, seminars, which are usually, conducted face-to-face, change to online or what are known as webinars. The legal aspect that is closely related to webinars is the legal aspect of copyright. Organizing online seminars is considered easier because neither the participants nor the speakers need to leave the house to continue carrying out the seminar. Supported by technological developments, this webinar can also be recorded so that participants who are late for the webinar can still know the material presented through the recorded …

Perlindungan Hukum Terhadap Bentuk Fiksasi Dalam Karya Musik Berdasarkan Perkembangan Undang-Undang Hak Cipta, Boy Brian E.S

"Dharmasisya” Jurnal Program Magister Hukum FHUI

This journal aims to discuss the protection of copyright law against tapes converted into the form of a sound recording or a tool shaped CD (Compact Disc), in addition it is to discuss how enforcement against violations fixation in a piece of music that is poured into a recording tool so that it can be enjoyed through the CD. This journal will discuss about the forms of piracy which often occur in the field of copyright songs and music. In this journal will be discussed also about violations in the field of copyright songs or music that will be penalized …

How Sample Clearance Has Affected Hip-Hop Music-Making, Bryan J. Brewster

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

This paper will explain how sample clearance has impacted hip-hop music-making. It will explain what a sample is and show the historical significance of sampling in hip-hop. I will briefly discuss the basics of copyright and the process of clearing a sample. This paper will also look into legal cases of copyright infringement to show the impact of specific cases and analyze data to determine if the amount of sample clearance has changed because of the decisions of the courts. The main goal of this paper is to highlight the significance of sampling in hip-hop, the inherent challenges of legally …

The Higher-Cost Problem: How The Case Act Addresses The History Of Inequity In The American Copyright Regime, Michael Newell

University of Miami Law Review

The legislative history of copyright law in the United States and its judicial interpretation resulted in a complex web of statutes and doctrine theoretically meant to further the constitutional goal of “promot[ing] the Progress of Science and the useful Arts.” But because of its complexity, enforcing rights against infringers in federal court became prohibitively expensive for most. The American copyright regime simultaneously allowed the music industry to unfairly profit from the creativity of the under-resourced—particularly, musicians of color.

This Note discusses the disparate impact of the American copyright regime. Then, the Note discusses the Copyright Alternatives in the Small-Claims Enforcement …

Proving Copying, Shyamkrishna Balganesh, Peter S. Menell

William & Mary Law Review

Proof that a defendant actually copied from a copyrighted work is a critical part of a claim for copyright infringement. Indeed, absent such copying, there is no infringement. The most common method of proving copying involves the use of circumstantial evidence, consisting of proof that a defendant had “access” to the protected work, and a showing of “similarities” between the copy and the protected work. In inferring copying from the combination of such evidence, courts have for many decades developed a framework known as the “inverse ratio rule,” which allows them to modulate the level of proof needed on access …

The 14th Annual Sir Hugh Laddie Lecture - Mr. Justice Laddie And His Intellectual Property Cases: Of Millefeuilles And A Fish Called Elvis, David Vaver

Articles & Book Chapters

For me, it was a trip through the judgments of a master craftsman who could succinctly summarize the dispute before him; weigh the conflicting evidence; say what rang true and what did not; state the applicable law, often from first principles set in their historical and policy context; and end by saying who won and lost and what to do. Copyright law might be "over-strong", as he suggested in a 1996 lecture;14 but when he had to decide whether a TV documentary critical of cheque-book journalism could freely use another channel's footage to make its point, Laddie J. said his …

The Status Of Reproduction Rights Organisations (Rros) In Africa, Desmond Oriakhogba, Dick Kawooya

Joint PIJIP/TLS Research Paper Series

This report is based on desk research conducted from June 2021 to May 2022 by way of a survey of publicly available information on Reproduction Rights Organisations (RROs) in all 55 African Union (AU) member states. It is the first of a two-part study. The second part of the study will be conducted as empirical research where data will be obtained from relevant stakeholders in the collective management systems of African countries to address key issues flagged in this report as requiring further evidence.

This report examines the current status of RROs in Africa to help inform policy and legislative …

Creativity Without Ip? Vindication And Challenges In The Video Game Industry, Bj Ard

Washington and Lee Law Review

This Article intervenes in the longstanding debate over whether creative production is possible without exhaustive copyright protection. Intellectual property (IP) scholars have identified “negative spaces” like comedy and tattoo art where creativity thrives without IP, but critics dismiss these examples as niche. The video game industry allows for fresh headway. It is now the largest sector in entertainment—with revenues greater than Hollywood, streaming, and music combined—yet IP does not protect key game elements from duplication. Participants navigate this absence using non-IP strategies like those identified in negative-space industries: AAA developers invest in copy-resistant features while indie game developers rely on …

Research Exceptions In Comparative Copyright, Sean Flynn, Luca Schirru, Michael Palmedo, Andrés Izquierdo

Joint PIJIP/TLS Research Paper Series

This Article categorizes the world’s copyright laws according to the degree to which they provide exceptions to copyright exclusivity for research uses. We classify countries based on the degree to which they have a research exception in their law that is sufficiently open to be able to permit reproduction and communications of copyrighted work needed for academic (i.e. non-commercial) text and data mining (TDM) research. We show that nearly every copyright law has at least one exception that promotes uses for research purposes. We find six different approaches to the provision of research exceptions that implicate application to TDM. Notably, …

Reforming Copyright Or Toward Another Science? A More Human Rights-Oriented Approach Under The Rebspa In Constructing A "Right To Research" For Scholarly Publishing, Klaus Beiter

Joint PIJIP/TLS Research Paper Series

This article identifies copyright impediments existing in the sphere of science, to then make (tentative) suggestions as to how these may be overcome. It focuses on scholarly publishing only, and here primarily on digital content, specifically asking whether expensive commercial scholarly publishers continue to “add value” to research in the digital era. The deficits of copyright law and potential solutions thereto are assessed in the light of the right of everyone “to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications” (REBSPA) as laid down in Article 15(1)(b) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) of …

Database Floklore Dalam Undang-Undang Tentang Hak Cipta Dan Undang-Undang Tentang Pemajuan Kebudayaan, Lora Sinta Sulistiorini

Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan

Law 28/2014 on Copyright and Law 5/2017 on Cultural Promotion have a major role in regulating and protecting floklore. This can be seen from the norms that regulate the mechanism for protecting floklore in Article 38 paragraph (2) of the Copyright Law, which states that the state is obliged to make an inventory, maintain, and maintain traditional cultural expressions.law a quo also regulates the procedures for recording as contained in Articles 66-72. Not only that, the Law for the Advancement of Culture also regulates the floklore database through Articles 16-26 of a quo. The two laws then raise the question, …

Letting Anarchy Loose On The World: The Anarchist Cookbook And How Copyright Fails The Author, Debora Halbert

Akron Law Review

The Anarchist Cookbook by William Powell remains one of the most controversial books in print, even 50 years after its first publication. The story to be told about its ongoing publication can teach us about the politics of authorship, ownership, publication, copyright assignments, the public domain, and the legacies our printed words leave behind. Later in life Powell regretted publishing the book and wished that it would be removed from publication and circulation but stated that he did not own the copyright and so could not control the book. However, even at his death the book remained in print and …

The Right-To-Education Responsibilities Of Book Publishing Companies, Emmanuel Kolawole Oke

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

The responsibilities of copyright owners, specifically book publishers, should be construed from a human rights perspective. Building on the work of John Ruggie and his ‘Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights,’ this paper contends that book publishers have a responsibility to respect human rights including the right to education. As it relates to copyright law, respecting the right to education entails respecting the measures that countries have incorporated into their national copyright laws to facilitate access to learning materials. Furthermore, corporate actors that own copyright in learning materials should not use litigation or the threat of litigation to try …

The Proposed Treaty For The Protection Of Broadcasting Organizations: Old Wine In A New Bottle?, Nehaa Chaudhari, Amulya Purshothama

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

This article analyses the proposed WIPO Treaty for Protection of Broadcasting Organizations (“Broadcast Treaty”) and argues that (a) The need for the Broadcast Treaty has not been fully established and b) even if there were such a need for the Broadcast Treaty (purportedly to help counter signal piracy), the proposed draft of the treaty deviates from this approach towards a ‘rights-based’ approach, creating a ‘paracopyright’ regime, potentially creating chilling effects on legitimate end uses of copyrightable material.

Fair Dealing Of Computer Programs In India, Rahul Matthan, Nikhil Narendran

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

This essay analyses the amendments to the Copyright Act introduced in 1994 that dealt with fair dealing provisions for computer programs. The authors identify fair dealing as a user right rather than a defense right on the basis of judicial decisions on the point. They discuss the statutory exceptions to copyright for the purposes for which the program was supplied and to achieve inter-operability of a program. The authors also discuss the restrictions upon such fair dealing provisions, such as their accrual only to the lawful possessor of the program and their use solely for the purpose of achieving the …

Beyond Copyright: Possible Solutions To An Internet Governance Regime, Meera Jayakumar, Hemangini Dadwal

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

There has been much debate over the general proposal that IP law should be re-designed to suit the climate of cyberspace.However, in this paper, we propose that the very premise of IP law in general, and copyright in particular, as it stands on its own, is redundant for the regulation of the internet. Consequently, we propose two regulatory solutions that can complement the present copyright law regime through improved control over access to data spread over the internet, viz., the Creative Commons approach and the Tier Model for internet regulation.

Of Square Pegs And Round Holes: Towards A New Paradigm Of Database Protection, Deepu Jacob, Prasan Dhar

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

This article looks at the question of the applicability of copyright law to the protection of databases. It features a detailed discussion of the EU Database Directive, which is the only comparable legal framework for the protection of databases. It then discusses some problems that the EU Directive encounters vis-à-vis public interest concerns, and outline why the EU Directive is unable to strike the right balance, both in principle and in practice. Next, it briefly studies database protection law as it exists in the United States, Australia, Canada and finally India, following which the need for protection of databases in …

Oxford University V. Rameshwari Photocopy Services - Reshaping The Copyright Discourse, Kartik Chawla

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

This essay analyses the judgment of the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court in the case of University of Oxford v. Rameshwari Photocopy Services3 from the perspective of fair use and the public domain, and the importance of the educational exceptions in contrast with the private property and trade-centric discourse of copyright. The essay is divided into five parts. After the introduction, the second chapter discusses the importance of commons in the core philosophy of copyright law, and how this has been subsumed by the private property discourse in the recent decades. The third chapter provides a brief summary …

Oxford University V. Rameshwari Photocopy Services - Reshaping The Copyright Discourse, Kartik Chawla

Indian Journal of Law and Technology

This essay analyses the judgment of the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court in the case of University of Oxford v. Rameshwari Photocopy Services3 from the perspective of fair use and the public domain, and the importance of the educational exceptions in contrast with the private property and trade-centric discourse of copyright. The essay is divided into five parts. After the introduction, the second chapter discusses the importance of commons in the core philosophy of copyright law, and how this has been subsumed by the private property discourse in the recent decades. The third chapter provides a brief summary …