Law Commons^™

Sony Corporation Of America V. Universal City Studios, Inc., Lewis F. Powell Jr.

Supreme Court Case Files

No abstract provided.

Copyright And Factual Works—Is Research Protected?—Miller V. Universal City Studios, Inc., 650 F.2d 1365 (5th Cir. 1981), Edwin K. Sato

Washington Law Review

Gene Miller, a reporter for the Miami Herald, collaborated with a kidnapping victim in writing the book 83 Hours Till Dawn. The book detailed the victim's experience of being placed in a coffin-like container and buried alive in the Georgia woods for five days. Universal City Studios negotiated with Miller to purchase the movie rights to the work, but no agreement was reached. Nevertheless, Universal produced and aired a television movie about the kidnapping. Miller brought an action alleging that Universal's making of the movie infringed his copyright in the book. The trial court instructed the jury that, while facts …

The Sony Impact On Home Videorecording: Time For A Legislative Solution, Denise M. Higgins

Northern Illinois University Law Review

An in-depth examination of the controversial Sony decision which held that the home videorecording of copyrighted materials broadcast over the public airwaves constituted an infringement of copyright. Since traditional remedies do not adequately address the divergent interests at stake in home videorecording, it is suggested that a legislative response is warranted.

Protection Of The Design Of Useful Articles: Current Inadequacies And Proposed Solutions, Steve W. Ackerman

Hofstra Law Review

No abstract provided.

Copyright Protection In The Cable Television Industry: Satellite Retransmission And The Passive Carrier Exemption, Niels B. Schaumann

Fordham Law Review

No abstract provided.

Draft Of Fair Use As Market Failure: A Structural And Economic Analysis Of The Betamax Case And Its Predecessors - 1982, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

In the recent and much publicized Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Sony Corp. of America (Betamax) case, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that persons who make videotapes of copyrighted television programs in the privacy of their homes should be considered to be copyright infringers. Basic to the court's reasoning was a misunderstanding of the "fair use" doctrine. Called "the most troublesome [doctrine] in the whole law of copyright," "fair use" renders noninfringing certain uses of copyrighted material that might technically violate the statute, but which do not violate the statute's basic purposes.

Receive-Only Satellite Earth Stations And Piracy Of The Airwaves, David Hasper

Notre Dame Law Review

No abstract provided.

Report To The Copyright Office By The American Association Of Law Libraries, James S. Heller

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Non-Profit Musical Performance Societies And The 1976 Copyright Act: Selected Problems And Possible Solutions, Richard J. Siegel

Northern Illinois University Law Review

This comment will propose that a minimal right to arrange is conferred with the right to perform where there is either no arrangement available, or the available arrangements are not suitable for use by the given ensemble. The extent to which the director may copy and edit purchased music will be described. It will also be argued that profits from performance may be retained by the performing group and that no notice is required to be given to the copyright owner for such use. Finally, the practice of recording the group's performances will be explored, and it will be concluded …

Notes Re Betamax - 1982, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

There's a lot of misunderstanding of by BX article. Some simplifying things: There are three types of "market failure" in copyright. The first inheres in the nonexhaustibil ity of the good; barring a right to post-dissemination control against copying, goods may be underproduced because potential users will refuse to pay for access, figuring they can get access to a friend's copy later for free or at lower cost than the creator would charoe. Thus. relying only o~ the physical control which lets i creato~ charge for the "first look", will (except where the look wont' make copying possible- the trade …

Abstract Of Gift Failure Versus Market Failure - 1982, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

Gifts and gift exchanges can serve a combination of economic, personal, social, and humanitarian ends. This article explores how intellectual products are unusually capable of serving these ends through gift relations, and suggests ways in which the law can assist in this process.

The Fcc's Deregulation Of Cable Television: The Problem Of Unfair Competition And The 1976 Copyright Act, David Bowman

Hofstra Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Right Of Publicity: A "Haystack In A Hurricane", Richard C. Ausness

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Over the years, entertainers, athletes and other celebrities have sought legal protection for a variety of occupationally related injuries. By virtue of being in the public eye, celebrities often complain that their private lives have somehow been invaded. This concept of invasion of privacy involves damages for mental anguish suffered by virtue of the unwarranted disturbance. However, performers may also suffer injury of an economic, rather than personal, nature. For example, an individual's performance may be used without his or her consent. People will normally pay to watch that entertainer, but where the performance is misappropriated, he is unable to …

Is Home Videotaping A Fair Use Of Copyrighted Programs? Univeral City Studios, Inc. V. Sony Corporation Of America, Howard S. Toland

Nova Law Review

On October 19, 1981, the United States Court of Appeals for the

Ninth Circuit held that private in-home television videotaping infringes

upon copyrights.

The Limitation Of Copyright And Patents By The Rules For The Free Movement Of Goods In The European Common Market, Valentine Korah

Case Western Reserve Journal of International Law

No abstract provided.

The Disclosure And Reproduction Of Copyrighted Agency Records Under The Freedom Of Information Act, Roy Seth Gordet

Santa Clara Law Review

No abstract provided.

Copyright Protection For Short-Lived Works Of Art, Joan Infarinato

Fordham Law Review

No abstract provided.

Copyright Ownership Of Joint Works And Terminations Of Transfers, Harold See

Law Faculty Scholarship

Under the terms of section 24 of the Copyright Act of 1909, the death of Oscar Hammerstein in 1960 resulted in the "partnership" of Richard Rogers and (Mrs.) Oscar Hammerstein (and James and William Hammerstein, and Alice Hammerstein Mathias, his children-the latter two by a previous marriage), in the ownership of such works as Oklahoma, Carousel, and South Pacific. Oscar Hammerstein may have wanted it that way, but want it or not, he was powerless under the Copyright Act to change the arrangement. Numerous works are the product of the combined efforts of more than one author. Such joint authorship …

Fair Use As Market Failure: A Structural And Economic Analysis Of The Betamax Case And Its Predecessors, Wendy J. Gordon

Faculty Scholarship

In the recent and much publicized Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Sony Corp. of America (Betamax) case, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that persons who make videotapes of copyrighted television programs in the privacy of their homes should be considered to be copyright infringers. Basic to the court's reasoning was a misunderstanding of the "fair use" doctrine. Called "the most troublesome [doctrine] in the whole law of copyright," "fair use" renders noninfringing certain uses of copyrighted material that might technically violate the statute, but which do not violate the statute's basic purposes.

Protecting Trade Secrets Through Copyright, Stephen M. Dorvee

Duke Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Recognizing The Public Domain, David Lange

Law and Contemporary Problems

No abstract provided.

Notes On Preemption And Misc - 1981, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

As one of my students indirectly commented (the Herzog midterm?), section 301 PURPORTS to be exclusive. "Nothing in this title shall annul state rights etc." One student, Chris Binnig, indirectly suggested a way out of the exclusivity problem, other than the common sense of Abrams, namely that 301 talks about the general scope of copyright- something which may require some policy inquiry.

When Works Collide: Derivative Motion Pictures, Underlying Rights, And The Public Interest, Peter Jaszi

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Dramatic motion pictures' are prime examples of what copyright law terms "derivative works' because they are almost invariably based upon one or more prior works. Derivative works are so-called because they borrow from original works whether or not those works are in the same media. The universe of derivative works is broad. It encompasses everything from stuffed toys representing cartoon characters to translations of serious-minded literature.

Publicity Never Dies; It Just Fades Away: The Right Of Publicity And Federal Preemption, David E. Shipley

Cornell Law Review

No abstract provided.

Copyright, Congress And Technology: The Public Record, L. Ray Patterson

Vanderbilt Law Review

This early history of copyright would be of little more than antiquarian interest except that it demonstrates the source of the confusion regarding the function of copyright. Although generally viewed as a right of the author, copyright has continued to function as a trade regulation device. Before the advent of computers and copying machines, this point was of relatively little importance, but IBM and Xerox have complicated copyright law enormously. Thus, in attempting to isolate the issues, it is helpful to view the law of copyright as statutorily creating unfair competition based on the doctrine of misappropriation. It is both …

Notes On Misc Re Contract - 1981, Wendy J. Gordon

Scholarship Chronologically

Once there is a patent, voluntarily-accepted user restrictions may not be enforceable. Or, at least, an attempt on the patentee's part to condition access of certain types on obtaining such restrictions, may be impossible. See 30 BNA PTCJ 104 (5/30/85)(Restrictions voided on availability of deposited yeast strains.) Filed under Yeast case.

Betamax And Fair Use: A Shotgun Marriage, Adrienne J. Marsh

Santa Clara Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Copyright Exception For Derivative Works And The Scope Of Utilization, Carole A. Ellingson

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Home Videorecording And Copyright Law: The Betamax Case

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.

Toward A Constitutional Theory Of Expression: The Copyright Clause, The First Amendment, And Protection Of Individual Creativity, Jacqueline Shapiro

University of Miami Law Review

The author presents a unique theory of personal expression under the Constitution, which posits that underlying the first amendment and the copyright clause is the principle that the public good requires encouragement, not suppression, of individual expression. Historically, decisions undermining authors' copyrights in favor of other social goals discouraged the creativity necessary for cultural development, and Congress and the courts responded by increasing the protection of authors and expanding the domain of copyrightable works. Similarly, official proscription of commercial and offensive speech for less than the most urgent social needs threatens to inhibit the creative spirit protected by the first …