Law Commons^™

Crystal Palaces: Copyright Law And Public Architecture, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

This paper investigates copyright law and public architecture in the context of cultural institutions of Australia. Part 1 examines the case of the Sydney Opera House to illustrate the past position of architects in respect of copyright law. It goes onto consider the framework laid down by the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000 (Cth) to resolve copyright disputes over moral rights and architecture. Part 2 considers the argument over the proposed renovations to the National Gallery of Australia between Dr Brian Kennedy and the original architect Colin Madigan. Part 3 finally deals with the allegations that Ashton Raggatt McDougall, …

Daubism: Copyright Law And Artistic Works, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

Quibbles'n Bits: Making A Digital First Sale Doctrine Feasible, Victor F. Calaba

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

Whereas the first sale doctrine historically permitted the transfer and resale of copyrighted works, license agreements used by software companies and the DMCA's strict rules prohibiting tampering with access control devices frustrate exercise of the first sale doctrine with respect to many forms of digital works[...] This article explores the first sale doctrine as it pertains to digital works and proposes ways to make a digital first sale doctrine feasible. Part II describes the first sale doctrine as it has traditionally been applied to non-digital works. Part III discusses modern technology's impact on the distribution and use of copyrighted material. …

Researching Remedies In Intellectual Property Actions Involving Computer Technology: A Research Guide, Daniel N. Kassabian

Michigan Telecommunications & Technology Law Review

The purpose of this research guide is not to answer the question "What remedies are available to an owner of computer related technology whose rights have been infringed?" but to provide a methodology by which a legal practitioner can find the answer to this question. This guide sets forth materials and methods of research that can be used for an inquiry that is broad in scope, such as researching which legal scheme's remedial component best suits a client's technology, but that are also capable of being used for a narrow or limited inquiry, such as looking for specific remedies available …

Rip, Mix, Burn: The Politics Of Peer To Peer And Copyright Law, Kathy Bowrey, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

Paradigm Shifts And Access Controls: An Economic Analysis Of The Anticircumvention Provisions Of The Digital Millennium Copyright Act, Melissa A. Kern

University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform

This Note addresses the broadened scope of protection granted to copyright holders under the anticircumvention provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA). This broadened scope extends to copyright holders the right to control access to their works, diminishing the consumer's 'fair use" of those works that previously served as a defense to alleged copyright infringements. While access controls are supported by economists who believe they are useful in correcting market inefficiencies and excluding free riders, this Note suggests that access controls cannot correct all market inefficiencies. Furthermore, such access controls deny access and use of copyrighted material …

Heretic: Copyright Law And Dramatic Works, Matthew Rimmer

Matthew Rimmer

The production of the play Heretic in 1996 prompted a debate over copyright and the dramatic arts in Australia. The playwright David Williamson argued that the role of the writer was supreme. Although he was willing to acknowledge the contributions of other collaborators, the playwright did not believe that these interpreters deserved copyright protection. The director Wayne Harrison advocated a more collaborative vision of the performing arts. He believed that the role of the director and the position of the producer deserved greater legal recognition. Furthermore he was also willing to countenance limited rights for performers. This article argues that …

Do Sections 3 And 3a Of The Cdpa Violate The Database Directive? A Closer Look At The Definition Of A Database In The U.K. And Its Compatibility With European Law, Estelle Derclaye

Estelle Derclaye

No abstract provided.

The Peer-To-Peer Revolution: A Post-Napster Analysis Of The Rapidly Developing File Sharing Technology, Joseph A. Sifferd

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

This Note will focus on A&M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc. and will include an analysis of copyright law applicable to the legality of the incipient peer-to-peer file-sharing technology. The first section provide a brief factual history and introduction to the Napster legal discussion. The second Section of this Note will include a survey of relevant copyright doctrines, followed by a discussion of the Ninth Circuit's analysis of these doctrines as applied to the facts presented in "Napster." Finally, I will address the future of the peer-to-peer phenomenon, including a review and analysis of different types of peer-to-peer networks that …

"The Exclusive Right To Their Writings": Copyright And Control In The Digital Age, Jane C. Ginsburg

Faculty Scholarship

In this article, I will explore the concept of control and the meaning of exclusive rights in the constitutional text, the pre-1976 Copyright Act regime, and the 1976 Act. I then consider the new technology cases from piano rolls through videotaperecorders, as well as Congress' responses to new technological means of exploitation. I make two submissions. First, I conclude that when copyright owners seek to eliminate a new kind of dissemination, and when courts do not deem that dissemination harmful to copyright owners, courts decline to find infringement, even though the legal and economic analysis that support those determinations often …

From Having Copies To Experiencing Works: The Development Of An Access Right In U.S. Copyright Law, Jane C. Ginsburg

Faculty Scholarship

This essay addresses how current U.S. copyright law responds to new forms of distribution of copyrighted works, through the emerging right to control digital access to copyrighted works, as set out in § 1201 of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act. When the exploitation of works shifts from having copies to directly experiencing the content of the work, the author's ability to control access becomes crucial. Indeed, in the digital environment, without an access right, it is difficult to see how authors can maintain the exclusive Right to their Writings that the Constitution authorizes Congress to secure. Even if Congress …

Congress's Power To Promote The Progress Of Science: Eldred V. Ashcroft, Lawrence B. Solum

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

This essay investigates the issues raised by Eldred v. Ashcroft, in which the Supreme Court may decide whether the Copyright Term Extension Act (CTEA) exceeds Congress's authority under that clause. The essay frames the issues in Eldred v. Ashcroft by discussing the history of copyright legislation in general and the CTEA in particular and then summarizing the procedural history of Eldred v. Ashcroft. The essay then undertakes a detailed investigation of the text of the Intellectual Property Clause, with a special emphasis on the interpretation of the clause by the first Congress and early judicial decisions. Three elements …

Digital Copyright And The "Progress Of Science, Jessica D. Litman

Articles

Let me start with a truism: Networked digital technology has transformed information and the way we interact with it. Digital information is dynamic rather than fixed. What we think of as “documents” can change constantly. That’s challenged our notions of what it means to archive material.

Common Law And Statutory Restrictions On Access: Contract, Trespass, And The Computer Fraud And Abuse Act, Maureen A. O'Rourke

Faculty Scholarship

Is copyright law relevant to the terms of access to information? Certainly, few would seriously contend that breaking into a locked filing cabinet to obtain access to a manuscript is not sanctionable, even if the intruder had some purpose that copyright law would applaud with respect to the information contained in the manuscript itself. Many instinctively believe that one must pay the asking price and respect the terms that accompany a copyrighted work or face the consequences under some set of laws like copyrights or contracts. In short, society likely generally believes that market forces regulate the conditions of access …