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Full-Text Articles in Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law

Give Or Take—Is The Droit De Suite A Taking Without Just Compensation?, Jeremy Cohen Jan 2024

Give Or Take—Is The Droit De Suite A Taking Without Just Compensation?, Jeremy Cohen

Pepperdine Law Review

The Constitution mandates Congress to protect the arts and sciences directly by creating an exclusive right called copyright. However, visual artists such as painters, sculptors, and photographers in the United States still cannot participate in the significant profits from the secondary sales of their copyrighted works at public and private auctions. In over eighty countries worldwide, the droit de suite, also known as the Artist Resale Royalty (ARR), grants visual artists such royalties. Unfortunately, the United States currently lacks such a royalty, despite multiple unsuccessful attempts by Congress to pass federal legislation. Although California enacted its own version of the …


Know When To Hold Them, When To Fold Them, And When To Walk Away: Tiktoks Are Professional Sports Franchises' Ace In Collective Bargaining Negotiations, Angelica Varona Apr 2023

Know When To Hold Them, When To Fold Them, And When To Walk Away: Tiktoks Are Professional Sports Franchises' Ace In Collective Bargaining Negotiations, Angelica Varona

Pepperdine Law Review

TikTok, the social media app, has become both a central force in entertainment, creating a slew of influencers and young celebrities, as well as an important tool in all things branding and marketing. Athletes have recognized the value of social media and fan engagement and have taken to becoming content-creators on the platform. The growing presence of professional athletes on the app brings up important issues of copyrightability and ownership of the content they are producing. This Comment considers the nature of athlete content-creation on TikTok as well as the employment scheme and contractual responsibilities that form a part of …


De-Gentrified Black Genius: Blockchain, Copyright, And The Disintermediation Of Creativity, Tonya M. Evans Apr 2022

De-Gentrified Black Genius: Blockchain, Copyright, And The Disintermediation Of Creativity, Tonya M. Evans

Pepperdine Law Review

In a 2016 acceptance speech during the Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards, actor and activist Jesse Williams used the phrase “gentrifying our genius” to refer to the insidious process of misappropriating the cultural and artistic productions of Black creators, inventors, and innovators. In that speech, he poignantly and unapologetically condemned racial discrimination and cultural misappropriation. This Article chronicles the nefarious history of the creative disempowerment of creators of color and then imagines an empowering future for those who successfully exploit their creations by fully leveraging copyright ownership and transfer termination. To that end, I reference the considerable scholarship of Professor …


Reflections On Music Copyright Justice, Peter S. Menell Apr 2022

Reflections On Music Copyright Justice, Peter S. Menell

Pepperdine Law Review

The digital revolution has upended many aspects of the copyright system, particularly as it relates to music. Drawing on creative, jurisprudential, technological, and social science insights, this article explores the broad range of music copyright justice concerns, ranging from file sharing to royalty distribution, copyright infringement standards, and the creation of music mashups.


Thieves In The Temple: The Scandal Of Copyright Registration And African- American Artists, Kevin J. Greene Apr 2022

Thieves In The Temple: The Scandal Of Copyright Registration And African- American Artists, Kevin J. Greene

Pepperdine Law Review

Copyright registration is the currency of copyright transactions in music, film, and television and is essential for pursuing infringement claims and ownership disputes. Despite copyright registration’s outsized reach across the copyright spectrum and importance to the copyright industries, the U.S. Copyright Office does not verify claims of copyright authorship or ownership. No express mechanism exists to challenge false copyright registrations in the Copyright Office, and the penalties for falsely claiming copyright authorship are paltry in comparison to the potential gains. This Article contends that lax copyright registration standards call into question the legitimacy of the registration system and that the …


Songwriters V. Spotify: Is Spotify The Problem Or A Symptom Of The Problem?, Mariana L. Orbay Aug 2021

Songwriters V. Spotify: Is Spotify The Problem Or A Symptom Of The Problem?, Mariana L. Orbay

Pepperdine Law Review

Today, streaming is the prevailing mode of music consumption. Yet, streaming services are struggling to turn a profit, as songwriters also face significant financial challenges in the streaming era. All the while, record labels are collecting the majority of streaming revenue and seeing record profits. The 2018 Music Modernization Act attempted to address songwriters’ and streaming services’ financial problems by altering the factors considered by the Copyright Royalty Board in determining the mechanical royalty rates owed by streaming platforms to songwriters. A proper application of this newly instated factor test necessitates considering both songwriters’ and streaming services’ business operations and …


The New Era Of Nfl Antitrust Law, The Sunday Ticket Package: Was The Ninth Circuit Ruling A Touchdown Or A Penalty?, Maya Rustom Mar 2021

The New Era Of Nfl Antitrust Law, The Sunday Ticket Package: Was The Ninth Circuit Ruling A Touchdown Or A Penalty?, Maya Rustom

Pepperdine Law Review

Americans love football, but every year thousands of fans are forced to pay exorbitant annual fees if they chose to have access to out-of-market games. In other words, if fans don’t live in the territory of their favorite team, they can either pay an excessive annual fee to watch their team play or miss out on the majority of games every season. This arrangement is a result of DirecTV’s Sunday Ticket Package, which is an exclusive distributorship agreement with the NFL that prevents fans from watching live out-of-market games unless they pay the annual subscription fee. This Comment addresses and …


Protecting The First Amendment Rights Of Video Games From Lanham Act And Right Of Publicity Claims, Yen-Shyang Tseng Mar 2021

Protecting The First Amendment Rights Of Video Games From Lanham Act And Right Of Publicity Claims, Yen-Shyang Tseng

Pepperdine Law Review

In 2013 and 2015, the Ninth Circuit decided two nearly identical cases in which professional football players alleged a video game publisher used their likenesses without authorization in a game that simulates real football games. One plaintiff brought a false endorsement claim under the Lanham Act, while others brought state law right of publicity claims. That made all the difference. The Ninth Circuit found the First Amendment protected the game against the false endorsement claim, but not against the right of publicity claims. These contradictory results stem from court’s application of the Rogers v. Grimaldi test to Lanham Act claims …


No Safe Spaces: A Distorted Image Of A Clear Problem, Michael Conklin Jul 2020

No Safe Spaces: A Distorted Image Of A Clear Problem, Michael Conklin

Pepperdine Law Review

This is a critical analysis of the documentary No Safe Spaces. The movie features comedian Adam Carolla and conservative talk show host Dennis Prager. Depending on the source, the movie is either the most necessary and prescient documentary ever or the most harmful. Unfortunately, the polarizing nature of the reviews largely fall along partisan political lines, with conservatives praising the movie and liberals criticizing it. This partisan result could have likely been minimized if the movie communicated a more bipartisan tone. To further complicate things, the movie does not provide a clear thesis of what it is trying to promote. …


Creative Destruction: Copyright's Fair Use Doctrine And The Moral Right Of Integrity, Cathay Y. N. Smith Jun 2020

Creative Destruction: Copyright's Fair Use Doctrine And The Moral Right Of Integrity, Cathay Y. N. Smith

Pepperdine Law Review

This Paper explores the role of copyright’s fair use doctrine as a limit on the moral right of integrity. The moral right of integrity gives an author the right to prevent any distortion, modification, or mutilation of their work that prejudices their honor or reputation. Actions that have been found to violate an author’s moral right of integrity include, for instance, altering a mural by painting clothing over nude figures, selling separated panels of a single work of art, and displaying sculptures with holiday ribbons. At the same time, copyright’s fair use doctrine allows follow-on creators to transform original works …


The Blue Devil's In The Details: How A Free Market Approach To Compensating College Athletes Would Work, David A. Grenardo Apr 2019

The Blue Devil's In The Details: How A Free Market Approach To Compensating College Athletes Would Work, David A. Grenardo

Pepperdine Law Review

Everyone involved in the business of major college athletics, except the athletes, receives compensation based on a free market system. The National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) cap on athlete compensation violates antitrust law, and athletes should be allowed to earn their free market value as everyone else does in this country. This Article provides a detailed approach to compensating college athletes under a free market model, which includes a salary cap, the terms of a proposed standard player’s contract, a discussion of who can represent players, and payment simulations for football and basketball teams. A free market approach would not …


Putting Public Law Into "Private" Sport, Dionne L. Koller May 2016

Putting Public Law Into "Private" Sport, Dionne L. Koller

Pepperdine Law Review

Across all levels of sport — professional, Olympic, intercollegiate, interscholastic, and youth recreational — the prevailing view is that the government should not take an active role in regulating athletics. As a result, there are relatively few federal or state statutes directed at regulating sports, and those that are aimed at sports primarily serve to support the professional sports industry. Moreover, courts show great deference to sports leagues and administrators, most often applying law in a way that insulates and empowers them. This creates a climate where leagues and administrators are permitted wide latitude to structure and conduct their respective …


The End Of An Era: The Mounting Challenges To The Ncaa’S Model Of Amateurism, John Niemeyer Jul 2015

The End Of An Era: The Mounting Challenges To The Ncaa’S Model Of Amateurism, John Niemeyer

Pepperdine Law Review

In the six years between 2006 and 2012, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), a nonprofit organization made up of universities, doubled its net assets to its current, unprecedented level of over $566 million. In 2012 alone, the organization retained a $71 million surplus after it disbursed a majority of its revenue to the NCAA member universities. It was able to make this much money largely because of the television revenue earned from the highly popular and entertaining sports of men’s football and men’s basketball. One would think that if a nonprofit organization could retain $71 million at the end …


Will Ticket Scalpers Meet The Same Fate As Spinal Tap Drummers? The Sale And Resale Of Concert And Sports Tickets, Gregory M. Stein Feb 2015

Will Ticket Scalpers Meet The Same Fate As Spinal Tap Drummers? The Sale And Resale Of Concert And Sports Tickets, Gregory M. Stein

Pepperdine Law Review

Some people purchase concert or sports tickets for their own entertainment and then are unable to use their tickets. They may have a scheduling conflict, or their favorite team may be underperforming. Other people buy tickets with the intention of giving them as gifts. Still others purchase with the goal of reselling the tickets at a profit. This Article examines the transferability of tickets to performances and sporting events. What, exactly, is a “ticket”? What property and contract rights does the initial ticket holder acquire? Does the holder have the legal power to transfer these rights? To what extent can …


Dick Woodson's Revenge: The Evolution Of Salary Arbitration In Major League Baseball, Edward Silverman Dec 2014

Dick Woodson's Revenge: The Evolution Of Salary Arbitration In Major League Baseball, Edward Silverman

Pepperdine Law Review

This paper examines the evolution of salary arbitration in professional baseball through the lens of the original 1974 Dick Woodson salary arbitration. Part II discusses the general development of labor relations in professional baseball, with an emphasis on how and why salary arbitration came to be implemented. Part III focuses specifically on Dick Woodson’s salary arbitration and how that experience shaped the immediate evolution of the practice and informed the current state of affairs in Major League Baseball (“MLB”). Part IV discusses MLB’s salary arbitration rules and how the process actually works. Part V addresses prevailing criticisms of baseball style …


Do You Believe He Can Fly? Royce White And Reasonable Accommodations Under The Americans With Disabilities Act For Nba Players With Anxiety Disorder And Fear Of Flying, Michael A. Mccann Apr 2014

Do You Believe He Can Fly? Royce White And Reasonable Accommodations Under The Americans With Disabilities Act For Nba Players With Anxiety Disorder And Fear Of Flying, Michael A. Mccann

Pepperdine Law Review

This Article examines the legal ramifications of Royce White, a basketball player with general anxiety disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder, playing in the NBA. White's conditions cause him to have a fear of flying, thus making it difficult to play in the NBA. This subject is without precedent in sports law and, because of the unique aspects of an NBA playing career, lacks clear analogy to other employment circumstances. This dispute also illuminates broader legal and policy issues in the relationship between employment and mental illness. This Article argues that White would likely fail in a lawsuit against an NBA …


Foot Faults In Crunch Time: Temporal Variance In Sports Law And Antitrust Regulation, Jeffrey Standen Apr 2014

Foot Faults In Crunch Time: Temporal Variance In Sports Law And Antitrust Regulation, Jeffrey Standen

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.


The Penn State "Consent Decree": The Ncaa's Coercive Means Don't Justify Its Laudable Ends, But Is There A Legal Remedy?, Matthew J. Mitten Apr 2014

The Penn State "Consent Decree": The Ncaa's Coercive Means Don't Justify Its Laudable Ends, But Is There A Legal Remedy?, Matthew J. Mitten

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.


Head Injuries, Student Welfare, And Saving College Football: A Game Plan For The Ncaa, Rodney K. Smith Apr 2014

Head Injuries, Student Welfare, And Saving College Football: A Game Plan For The Ncaa, Rodney K. Smith

Pepperdine Law Review

This article sets forth a challenging but viable game plan for protecting the health and well-being of intercollegiate football players. Acting proactively will help revitalize the NCAA's brand of competitive, student-centered athletics. This article consists of three parts: The Problem of Head Injuries in College Football; Solving the Problem of Head Injuries in College Football; and Conclusion.


A Modest Proposal For Taming The Antitrust Beast, Gabe Feldman Apr 2014

A Modest Proposal For Taming The Antitrust Beast, Gabe Feldman

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.


An Antitrust Exemption For The Ncaa: Sound Policy Or Letting The Fox Loose In The Henhouse?, Daniel E. Lazaroff Apr 2014

An Antitrust Exemption For The Ncaa: Sound Policy Or Letting The Fox Loose In The Henhouse?, Daniel E. Lazaroff

Pepperdine Law Review

This Article focuses on the issues presented by the debate over granting the NCAA an exemption from federal antitrust law. Part II briefly describes the history of antitrust litigation involving the NCAA. Part III discusses some of the proposals for affording some type of antitrust immunity to the NCAA. Part IV explains the rationales utilized for some of the numerous antitrust exemptions Congress and the Supreme Court have created for some businesses and forms of commercial activity. Part V addresses the question of whether any of those rationales justifies providing the NCAA with a legislative or judicial antitrust exemption and …


Symposium Introduction: The New Normal In College Sports: Realigned And Reckoning, Maureen A. Weston Apr 2014

Symposium Introduction: The New Normal In College Sports: Realigned And Reckoning, Maureen A. Weston

Pepperdine Law Review

On Friday, April 5, 2013, Pepperdine University School of Law in Malibu, California convened the Pepperdine Law Review Symposium on The New Normal in College Sports: Realigned and Reckoning. Highlights included a conversation with institutional leaders of major intercollegiate athletic programs; a consideration of the possibility of an antitrust exemption for the NCAA; the impact of conference realignment, digital media, broadcasting, and commercialization; and other emerging hot topics in college sports.


Out Of Bounds Under The Sherman Act? Player Restraints In Professional Team Sports , Seth M. Goldstein May 2013

Out Of Bounds Under The Sherman Act? Player Restraints In Professional Team Sports , Seth M. Goldstein

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.


Real To Reel: The Hirsch Case And First Amendment Protection For Film-Makers' Confidential Sources Of Information , Stephen F. Rohde May 2013

Real To Reel: The Hirsch Case And First Amendment Protection For Film-Makers' Confidential Sources Of Information , Stephen F. Rohde

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.


Copyright And The Musical Arrangement: An Analysis Of The Law And Problems Pertaining To This Specialized Form Of Derivative Work, Joel L. Friedman Feb 2013

Copyright And The Musical Arrangement: An Analysis Of The Law And Problems Pertaining To This Specialized Form Of Derivative Work, Joel L. Friedman

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.


Nearly A Century In Reserve: Organized Baseball: Collective Bargaining And The Antitrust Exemption Enter The 80'S, Nancy Jean Meissner Feb 2013

Nearly A Century In Reserve: Organized Baseball: Collective Bargaining And The Antitrust Exemption Enter The 80'S, Nancy Jean Meissner

Pepperdine Law Review

In her comment, the author fashions a compelling argument for congressional elimination of baseball's exemption from federal antitrust laws. After noting that the exemption had been formulated in 1922 by the Supreme Court, the author explains that it has been abused by baseball club owners to create a virtual monopoly over ballplayers through the reserve system. Although the reserve system's control was somewhat diluted in 1976, with the advent of free agency and collective bargaining, club owners are currently negotiating for mandatory compensation for the loss of free agents. The resultant threat of a player's strike has served to focus …


Herschel Walker V. National Football League: A Hypothetical Lawsuit Challenging The Propriety Of The National Football League's Four-Or-Five Year Rule Under The Sherman Act, A. Randall Farnsworth Feb 2013

Herschel Walker V. National Football League: A Hypothetical Lawsuit Challenging The Propriety Of The National Football League's Four-Or-Five Year Rule Under The Sherman Act, A. Randall Farnsworth

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.


Droit De Suite: Only Congress Can Grant Royalty Protection For Artists, Lynn K. Warren Feb 2013

Droit De Suite: Only Congress Can Grant Royalty Protection For Artists, Lynn K. Warren

Pepperdine Law Review

Congress has enacted the 1976 Copyright Act which does not grant resale royalties to fine artists. It does, however, add a strong preemption provision that was not a part of the 1909 Act. This provision emphatically preempts any state law granting a right equivalent to a right granted by the federal statute to any work which is the subject matter of copyright. In its desire to increase protection for fine artists, the State of California has enacted the first droit de suite legislation in the United States, patterned after European copyright law, which extends resale royalties to fine artists. This …


The Right Of Publicity: "You Can't Take It With You", Timothy C. Williams Jan 2013

The Right Of Publicity: "You Can't Take It With You", Timothy C. Williams

Pepperdine Law Review

The "right of publicity," a progeny of the right to privacy, has evolved into a valuable property right of the rich and famous. However, indecisive courts and disinterested legislatures have failed to arrive at any consensus on whether the "right of publicity" should be descendible and inheritable upon its owner's death. This comment seeks to evaluate the sundry arguments and policies concerning this issue, and to advocate a freely descendible 'right of publicity."


The Commercialization Of College Football: The Universities Of Oklahoma And Georgia Learn An Antitrust Lesson In Ncaa V. Board Of Regents, Suzanne E. Rand Jan 2013

The Commercialization Of College Football: The Universities Of Oklahoma And Georgia Learn An Antitrust Lesson In Ncaa V. Board Of Regents, Suzanne E. Rand

Pepperdine Law Review

No abstract provided.