Law Commons^™

Influencing Immigration: The Need For Immigration Reform In The Age Of Social Media Influencers, Sydney Wong

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

The social media “influencer” has become a powerful marketing tool for American businesses to advertise their products and services. Foreign influencers have the ability to help American businesses reach international markets and are an effective solution to the marketing challenges that come with trying to break into these international markets. However, if a foreign influencer visits the United States and performs paid marketing work for an American business without a work visa, then the influencer will have violated U.S. immigration law. Indeed, even a seemingly harmless sponsored Instagram post may be a violation.

The clear solution to this problem would …

The Power Of The Modern Media On An “Impartial” Jury: A Deeper Look At The Kobe Bryant Wrongful Death Lawsuit, Tatum Lowe

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

The impact of the modern media on jury impartiality has never been more prevalent than today. Whether in criminal or civil trials, courts are faced with adjudicating cases with constant media coverage. This is especially concerning when these issues gain nationwide coverage thus leaving very few people without some sort of preconceived notion or opinion on the case. Courts today are now faced with jury pools that come in with “knowledge” and preconceived opinions before any client has had a chance to make their case. Thus, it is not surprising that the defendant in the Kobe Bryant wrongful death suit …

Epic Games V. Apple: Tech-Tying And The Future Of Antitrust, Emma C. Smizer

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

Antitrust and “Big Tech” firms are under renewed scrutiny, in part due to the dispute between Epic Games and Apple. This lawsuit strikes at the heart of the growing phenomenon of “tech-tying,” a form of vertical integration in digital aftermarkets where monopolistic tech firms condition the use of their operating systems on the added use of other complimentary software or services. Judicial attitude toward claims of tying has shifted considerably over recent decades, resulting in lax enforcement against vertical integration arrangements. This Comment argues that Apple’s conduct constitutes “tech-tying” and that competitors should be permitted to enter the aftermarkets of …

Privacy As A Collective Norm, John Shaeffer, Charlie Nelson Keever

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

As the economic value of aggregating personal data has grown, so too have concerns over the economic power “owning” such data gives to those who collect it. Existing legal regimes governing data privacy have struggled to strike a balance between protecting personal privacy and preserving the economic efficiencies that can be gained by permitting the collection and exploitation of personal data. This Article proposes a collective re-conceptualization of one subset of personal data: information about what we do, say, and like. This data has little value in isolation—it only becomes valuable when combined with the information about what others do, …

Sb 206: The Beginning Of The End For Athletic Exploitation, Rachel Rosenblum

Loyola of Los Angeles Law Review

No abstract provided.

Warner Bros. V. Nelson: A Prelude To The De Havilland Law, John M. Broderick

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

In 1944, the California Court of Appeals handed down its landmark decision in De Haviland v. Warner Bros ending the practice of studios extending personal service contracts beyond the statutory limit of seven years by adding suspension periods incurred during the contract term. “Suspension/extension” could double the term of an actor’s contract. The De Haviland case has justly received much attention, but an earlier case, Warner Bros. v. Nelson, in which Bette Davis also challenged the practice of suspension/extension, merits more attention than it has received.

In Warner Bros. Nelson, Davis argued that her studio contract should not …

Flash Infringement 2.0: Protecting “Unique Performance” From Live Social Media Distribution As A Right Of Publicity, Michael M. Epstein

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

This Article posits that state law right of publicity actions offer a potential remedy for non-musical performers who fall victim to the phenomenon of “flash infringement,” the instantaneous and unauthorized uploading and dissemination of performances by live event audiences. In 2021, comedians, actors and magicians, may be able to use the right of publicity to protect the value of their unique performances, since their non-musical acts are not covered by the Federal Anti-Bootlegging Statute. Moreover, under California law, secondary liability actions with respect to this unique performance right might allow performers to sue social media companies for providing a commercial …

Reimagining Content Moderation: Section 230 And The Path To Industry-Government Cooperation, Yeva Mikaelyan

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

In February 2020, the Ninth Circuit held that YouTube, as a private entity, does not have to provide First Amendment protections to its content creators. The holding was not surprising or groundbreaking, but the case served as catalyst in the discussion of how platforms should moderate content. This was further amplified when over the summer, Twitter started to add warnings under some of President Donald Trump’s tweets. In response, the President called to “REVOKE 230.”

“230” refers to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. At a high level, Section 230 allows platforms to moderate content at their discretion without …

Reorganizing In The Wake Of Mission Prod. Holdings V. Tempnology: How To Address The Trademark And Bankruptcy Law Issues Created By The Supreme Court’S Recent Decision, Kayla N. Ghasemi

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

Bankruptcy law seeks to provide a “fresh start” for debtors and an equitable distribution of funds to creditors. Trademark law, on the other hand, aims to ensure proper source identification and protect the public from deception. These policies converge when a trademark owner or licensor has licensed use of the mark to others and hopes to reject this licensing agreement in bankruptcy. Prior to the Supreme Court’s decision in Mission Prod. Holdings v. Tempnology, LLC, there was a circuit split regarding the licensee’s rights upon the bankruptcy of and rejection by the licensor. Some circuits held that the licensee’s rights …

Influencers: Not So Fluent In Disclosure Compliance, Keith Coop

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

The Fyre Festival is one of the most infamous disasters in music festival history. Lesser known to the public is that the influencers involved in Fyre Festival’s influencer marketing campaign were required to disclose their payments for endorsing the event. These types of disclosures are regulated by the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) pursuant to its authority granted under the Federal Trade Commission Act (“FTC Act”). The disclosure requirement is set forth in the FTC’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (“Endorsement Guides”), which are nonbinding instructions that educate influencers on how to comply with Section 5 …

Twitter, Parody, And The First Amendment: A Contextual Approach To Twitter Parody Defamation, Emma Lux

Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

Twitter parody defamation cases raise novel questions about how to translate defamation law to Twitter’s interactive platform. What constitutes a “reasonable” reader on Twitter? What content is relevant to interpreting the meaning of a tweet from a parody account? The answers to these questions will have far-reaching effects for online speech. Parody authors are already vulnerable to defamation liability, particularly on Twitter where their statements often appear with very little context. Twitter parody accounts, which produce important political and social commentary, risk defamation lawsuits, as well as, in some states, criminal liability for online impersonation. This Note proposes a methodology …