Law Commons^™

Evaluating Copyright Protection In The Data-Driven Era: Centering On Motion Picture's Past And Future, Chieh-Li Pai

Maurer Theses and Dissertations

Since the 1910s, Hollywood has measured audience preferences with rough industry-created methods. In the 1940s, scientific audience research led by George Gallup started to conduct film audience surveys with traditional statistical and psychological methods. However, the quantity, quality, and speed were limited. Things dramatically changed in the internet age. The prevalence of digital data increases the instantaneousness, convenience, width, and depth of collecting audience and content data. Advanced data and AI technologies have also allowed machines to provide filmmakers with ideas or even make human-like expressions. This brings new copyright challenges in the data-driven era.

Massive amounts of text and …

Billboard Names Robert Meitus A Top Music Lawyer, James Owsley Boyd

Keep Up With the Latest News from the Law School (blog)

For a musician, charting is generally perceived as a good thing. Whether it’s a national singles list like the Billboard Hot 100 or a local record store’s Top 10 of the Week, being listed among your peers can be rewarding. Robert Meitus is now on a chart of a different kind—Billboard magazine has just named him one of America’s “Top Music Lawyers” for 2023.

Michael Uslan To Address The Class Of 2023, James Owsley Boyd

Keep Up With the Latest News from the Law School (blog)

Film producer, teacher, and writer Michael Uslan ’76 will serve as the Indiana University Maurer School of Law’s graduation speaker this May, the school announced today (Feb. 16). Holder of three degrees from Indiana University, Uslan is credited with helping to make the Batman franchise one of the most successful film projects of all time. He has served as executive producer on each one of the films, ranging from 1989’s Batman to the conclusion of Christopher Nolan’s trilogy. He served as executive producer on the award-winning Joker in 2019 and his latest project, Joker: Folie à Deux, is currently in …

Hoosier Athletes Get An Assist From Law Students Through Name, Image And Likeness Initiative, James Owsley Boyd

Keep Up With the Latest News from the Law School (blog)

Student-athletes at Indiana University Bloomington will get an assist from their peers at the IU Maurer School of Law under a new Name, Image and Likeness Initiative through the school’s Center for Intellectual Property Research.

As student-athletes navigate the still-emerging complexities of the NCAA’s new policy surrounding name, image and likeness — also referred to as NIL — they’ll now have a homefield advantage: one of the country’s top intellectual property clinics.

Conor Delehanty Is A Standup Guy, James Owsley Boyd

Keep Up With the Latest News from the Law School (blog)

No abstract provided.

Using The Internal Revenue Code To Limit Coaching Salaries: A Proposal To Bring Amateurism Back Into College Football, Blaire Mikesell

Indiana Law Journal

Since formal collegiate athletic competitions began in 1852, they have gained popularity and become a mainstay in American culture. This rise in popularity coupled with increased media coverage allowed college athletics, and particularly college football, to grow into a successful business that generates billions of dollars in revenue each year. Colleges and institutions earn this athletic revenue as tax-free income due to their tax-exempt status under the Internal Revenue Code § 501(c)(3) tax-exemption statute. The basic policy underlying this statute is as follows: colleges and universities provide an important benefit to the public by providing education, and in exchange for …

Let's Play Ball: Sports, Entertainment, And The Law, Milton O. Thompson

One More Cold Call: An IU Maurer School of Law Alumni Podcast (2021-2022)

Milt Thompson, JD 1979 and president and CEO of Grand Slam, talks about turning down a professional baseball career to attend law school, what it was like to graduate in 1979, how he co-founded Play Ball Indiana, his work with the Pan American Games (including a trip to Cuba where he met with Fidel Castro), and his long-standing work with nonprofits and community organizations in Indianapolis.

The Extremes Of Rap On Trial: An Analysis Of The Movement To Ban Rap Lyrics As Evidence, Michael Conklin

Indiana Law Journal

This Article is a review of Rap on Trial: Race, Lyrics, and Guilt in America. The book largely focuses on the dangers of allowing rap lyrics to be presented as evidence in criminal trials. The authors posit that the fictitious and hyperbolic nature of rap lyrics are misrepresented by prosecutors as autobiographical confessions that document illegal activity and violent character traits of defendants. The authors compare rap to other musical genres and conclude that racism is the underlying cause for why the genres are treated differently in court. The authors also advocate for evidence nullification and argue for a complete …

There’S Nothing Worse Than Losing To A Girl: An Analysis Of Sex Segregation In American Youth Sports, Julia Konieczny

Indiana Journal of Law and Social Equality

No abstract provided.

Out Of Bounds: A Critical Race Theory Perspective On "Pay For Play", Kevin D. Brown, Antonio Williams

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Under the amateur/education model, the amount of funding that colleges and universities can provide to their student-athletes is limited to the athletes' cost of attending their institution. This model makes sense for most college sports, but National Collegiate Athletic Association ("NCAA") Division I Football Bowl Subdivision and Division I men's basketball tend to generate almost all the revenue to fund their institution's entire athletic programs-as well as a substantial percentage of the revenues received by the NCAA. Furthermore is the realization that a majority of the elite athletes in these two revenue-generating sports are black. As revenues generated by these …

Marching To The Beat Of The Eu's Drum: Refining The Collective Management Of Music Rights In The United States To Facilitate The Growth Of Interactive Streaming, Gary W. Hunt Iii

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

In the digital era, interactive streaming is now the preferred method for music consumers to access their favorite albums and songs. The traditional copyright system used to administer music rights and royalties has not evolved accordingly, which not only impedes progress by music platform innovators, but also frustrates artist, labels, and composers who are unable to reap the benefits of their music rights. This Note examines the complex process interactive streaming services undergo to obtain the rights necessary to stream music through their platforms, which involves a discussion of collective rights organizations. This Note then argues that the European Directive …

America's Past-Time And The Art Of Diplomacy, Alyson St. Pierre

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

As organizations and corporations construct an international reach, they become influential actors in foreign relations between sovereign countries. Particularly, while Major League Baseball continues to recruit players and build a large fan base across the globe, it increases its ability to facilitate civil relations between the United States and other nations. An exploration of how professional baseball provides a useful platform to improve diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba best exemplifies how the League can promote change. Although the United States and Cuba have had a rather tumultuous relationship in recent history, a coordinated effort to improve the …

Typhoid Mario: Video Game Piracy As Viral Vector And National Security Threat, Andrew V. Moshirnia

Indiana Law Journal

Current academic and policy discussions regarding video game piracy focus on the economic losses inherent to copyright infringement. Unfortunately, this approach neglects the most significant implication of video game piracy: malware distribution. Copyright-motivated efforts to shut down file-sharing sites do little to reduce piracy and actually increase viral malware infection. Pirated video games are an ideal delivery device for malware, as users routinely launch unverified programs and forego virus detection. The illicit nature of the transaction forces users to rely almost entirely on the reputation of websites, uploaders, and other users to determine if a file is safe to download. …

National Protection Of Student-Athlete Mental Health: The Case For Federal Regulation Over The National Collegiate Athletic Association, Jayce Born

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

An Unbalanced Act: A Criticism Of How The Court Of Arbitration For Sport Issues Unjustly Harsh Sanctions By Attempting To Regulate Doping In Sport, Melissa Hewitt

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

To participate in international competitions, countries must submit to the doping rules set forth in the World Anti-Doping Code (the Code), a document brought into being by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Under the Agency's Code, athletes are required to commit to mandatory binding arbitration in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which gives them few chances for review of unjustly harsh sanctions. The CAS needs to re-examine its method of appealing doping cases because WADA's current strict liability scheme, coupled with the CAS's transnational jurisdiction, continually violates the rights of international athletes.

From The Seat Of The Chair: An Insider’S Perspective On Ncaa Student-Athlete Voices, Scott Krapf

Indiana Law Journal

This Article explains how student-athletes already have a significantly influential voice. The Author calls upon his personal experience as a former Division I student-athlete and Chair of the NCAA Division I National Student-Athlete Advisory Committee to show that student athletes are capable of effectuating change by expressing themselves through existing means, rather than unionization.

Rubin V. Islamic Republic Of Iran, 1997-2015, Gabrielle Goodwin

Articles by Maurer Faculty

The case of Rubin v. Islamic Republic of Iran reads like a blockbuster movie with an all-star cast. A terrorist organization blows up a crowded shopping mall in Jerusalem, killing and injuring Americans in the process. Some of those severely injured sue the nation of Iran for their part in supporting Hamas, who carried out the bombing. Iran never makes a court appearance, so the plaintiffs win a default judgment for hundreds of millions of dollars. However, in trying to get some money out of Iran, the plaintiffs try to attach property in the United States, which may or may …

Explaining The Supreme Court's Interest In Patent Law, Timothy R. Holbrook

IP Theory

No abstract provided.

Not (Necessarily) Narrower: Rethinking The Relative Scope Of Copyright Protection For Designs, Sarah Burstein

IP Theory

No abstract provided.

Book Review. Music & Copyright In America: Toward The Celestial Jukebox By Kevin Parks, Michelle M. Botek

Articles by Maurer Faculty

No abstract provided.

Ip Protection Of Fashion Design: To Be Or Not To Be, That Is The Question, Xinbo Li

IP Theory

No abstract provided.

The Need For A Global Amateurism Standard: International Student Issues And Controversies, Erin Abbey-Pinegar

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

Due to the immense pressure to recruit highly talented prospects and an overwhelming desire to have winning college athletics programs, the recruitment of international prospective student-athletes at NCAA Division I institutions has drastically increased in recent years. NCAA rules founded on localized amateurism ideals are now being applied on a global scale, in countries where there is no similar concept of amateur athletes. This Note argues that the current NCAA amateurism rules inadequately address the potential amateur issues related to prospective student-athletes from various countries. Examples and evidence of the difficulties of apply localized amateur rules to international recruits are …

Music As Speech: A First Amendment Category Unto Itself, David Munkittrick

Federal Communications Law Journal

Perhaps the most ubiquitous of art forms, music accompanies daily activities from shopping to jogging. Music permeates modem society, and there is little question it constitutes an integral mode of expression. Despite recognition of music's worth, however, there is little explanation of music in First Amendment jurisprudence. A rationale for First Amendment protection begins with analysis of the particular medium of speech. Through a foray in musical aesthetics and the history of musical censorship, this Note discusses the role of music in political, societal, and individual experience. Music has had an important role in political events, from the fall of …

The Sound Of Money: Securing Copyright, Royalties, And Creative "Progress" In The Digital Music Revolution, Armen Boyajian

Federal Communications Law Journal

Academics and popular critics alike want to distill, reform, or altogether destroy U.S. copyright law as we know it. Much of this stems from animosity toward the old-guard record industry's alleged practices of overcharging consumers, underpaying royalties to artists, and suing teenagers and grandmas. But what those calling for reform all seem to neglect is a tiny but inevitable fact: for the first time in history, composers and recording artists can keep their copyrights.

Tangible media sales are being replaced by P2P file sharing, retail downloads, and streaming Webcasts. Digital technologies and wireless networks have opened prime channels for music …

Who Needs Tickets? Examining Problems In The Growing Online Ticket Resale Industry, Clark P. Kirkman

Federal Communications Law Journal

The Internet has dramatically changed the methods by which people purchase tickets to events. In the past decade, the secondary ticket market has grown exponentially, and today the online ticket resale industry is valued at approximately $4 billion. Although there are consumer benefits to this industry growth, some of the industry practices have precipitated a consumer backlash. This was typified in 2007 when many parents, hoping to purchase tickets to the Hannah Montana "Best of Both Worlds Tour," watched as tickets sold out online in only a few minutes or less. Coupled with this episode was the Ticketmaster v. RMG …

Paying The Price For Sports Tv: Preventing The Strategic Misuse Of The Fcc's Carriage Regulations, David Hutson

Federal Communications Law Journal

Cable companies and sports leagues have embarked upon parallel courses of vertical integration by creating and acquiring interests in cable sports networks. Cable companies carry regional sports networks (RSNs) on basic cable tiers. Some league-owned networks have sought high prices for carriage on basic tiers, causing some cable companies to balk because of the price increase they would have to pass on to consumers. The 1992 Cable Act prohibits cable companies from discriminating in carriage terms between affiliated and nonaffiliated networks. Cable companies that own RSNs are, therefore, left vulnerable to discrimination complaints by league-owned networks. This Note argues that …

Business Solutions To The Alien Ownership Restriction, Greg Snodgrass

Federal Communications Law Journal

The alien ownership restriction on broadcast licenses has had a profound effect on the entertainment industry over the past few decades. While the origins of the restriction were based on national security fears that no longer apply, the restriction is unlikely to be repealed without significant lobbying. Given the unlikelihood of repeal, this Note concludes that entertainment conglomerates should apply a two-pronged approach to overcome the barrier imposed by the ownership restriction. First, conglomerates should build powerful nonbroadcast superstations. Second, conglomerates should push the FCC to gradually loosen its application of the restriction. While this is not a perfect solution, …

Copytraps, Ned Snow

Indiana Law Journal

Congress has unintentionally evoked copytraps, which exact thousands of dollars from the Internet user who innocently buys music without knowing that it infringes copyright. Copytraps arise when Web sites lure innocent users into downloading expression that seems legal but is actually infringing. Regardless of whether the Web site appears legitimate, whether a user's good-faith belief is reasonable, or whether the Web site owner is unaware that the material is infringing, users who download infringing material face strict liability punishment, and the penalties are severe. It is entrapment, with the spoils from the innocent going to large corporate copyright holders. The …

Balco, The Steroids Scandal, And What The Already Fragile Secrecy Of Federal Grand Juries Means To The Debate Over A Potential Federal Media Shield Law, Peter Meyer

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Performing Art: National Endowment For The Arts V. Finley, Randall P. Bezanson

Federal Communications Law Journal

In this modified version of a chapter in his forthcoming book, ART AND FREEDOM OF SPEECH (Univ. of Illinois Press, 2008-09), Professor Bezanson begins to probe the nature of art and its relation to the first amendment free speech guarantee. The essay uses the Finley v. NEA case, and specifically its discussion of Finley's performance art, to critique the Supreme Court's very approach to the Finley case, and to view the issues from the perspective of art, artistic freedom, and the Supreme Court's role in fashioning constitutional protection for art as art, and not simply as cognitive speech.