Communications Law Commons^™

Rebroadcast Rights: The Coming Battle In The War Between The Networks And The Affiliats, Harland R. Schreiber

Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment & Technology Law

This Note will analyze the present rebroadcast dispute, examining the legal and practical issues that will arise and recommend how the parties should proceed in the controversy. The analysis will place this controversy within the larger context of how networks and affiliates are attempting to redefine their roles in the television industry.

The first section will address the history of networks and affiliates and how their relationships have changed as technology has advanced. The second section will then place the present controversy regarding cable rebroadcasts within the framework of the larger industry. It will also address how the present controversy …

Music Included On Software Downloaded From The Internet: Public Performance Or Private Use, Christopher Paul Moore

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

This note addresses the applicability of the public performance right when software creators license copyrighted music to include on software that is sold and delivered directly over the Internet. This note contends that when software is bought from a site on the Internet, and then digitally downloaded to a consumer, a public performance has occurred under section 106(4) of the Copyright Act.

Preparing Your Music Client For Web Distribution, Stephanie Brauner

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Digital transmission of recordings is becoming an extremely important method of distribution. As this method of distribution becomes increasingly common, attorneys practicing in this industry will be compelled to advise their clients of the choices available in releasing their musical expressions on the Internet. This article provides a basic overview of the digital transmission process, discusses the current state of copyright protections for musicians and the failings in those protections, and will present other viable options that allow for the protection of a client's interests.

Foreword, Chelsea M. Doerrie

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

No abstract provided.

Panel Discussion - To Bot Or Not To Bot: The Implications Of Spidering, David Kramer, Jay Monahan

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Mr. Kramer and Mr. Monahan discuss the issues raised by the use of bots on the Internet and the implication of such use in litigation. Bots, or spidering programs, are software devices used to access specific information contained on web sites. Bots are commonly used when search engines comb the web to generate responses to queries. However, other less than noble uses, including the gathering of e-mail addresses for "spamming" and the taking of a site's content and reposting it elsewhere, raise complex legal issues and have generated considerable litigation.

Symposium Presentation: Doing Internet Co-Branding Agreements, Eric Goldman

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Mr. Goldman discusses many important issues that need to be considered when deciding to participate in and when drafting co-branding agreements, but which are often overlooked. As internet co-branding has become ubiquitous as a means of combining one website's functionality and another's marketing muscle in online business, practitioners handling co-branding agreements face the challenge of choosing the correct legal paradigms as starting points in these kinds of negotiations. Co-branding agreements often incorporate advertising, trademark licensing, service provisions and domain name components. In light of this complexity, choosing the wrong starting point can frustrate the process by omitting key issues from …

The Politics Of Race On The Electronic Highway: An Analysis Of The Video Dialtone Redlining Cases And The Nynex Consent Decree In Roxbury, Madeleine M. Plasencia

Articles

No abstract provided.

Chasing The Future: Has The Digital Performance In Sound Recordings Act Of 1995 Kept Pace With Technological Advances In Musical Performance, Or Is Copyright Law Lagging Behind, Steven V. Podolsky

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Ever since jukeboxes and taped music began replacing bands in many restaurants and bars, performing musicians have been deprived of earnings and protection from unauthorized performance of their work. Digital technology exacerbated the problem by creating super quality sound that can be duplicated without a loss of quality. The Internet, which has become a medium for distributing prerecorded music, has the potential for doing damage to ownership interests throughout the entire recorded music industry. In just a few seconds, anyone with Internet access can retrieve, store, and listen to the performance without paying royalties to the performers. This article discusses …

The Case For A Specialized Copyright Court: Eliminating The Jurisdictional Advantage, Michael Landau, Donald E. Biederman

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Many of those who specialize in copyright law have become increasingly dismayed by the degree to which the outcome of copyright cases depends upon the venue in which an action is brought. Beyond this, copyright is a highly specialized and technical body of law, and some of its aspects seem to us to be the sort that would be best handled by specialized judges. This article discusses the history of existing specialized courts, and examples that demonstrate that the current system of copyright adjudication works poorly. The authors then recommend the creation of a national copyright court that follows the …

A Pragmatic Approach To Meaning In Defamation Law, Jeffrey E. Thomas

Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Swapping Claims In Cyberspace: Legal/Technical Context And Negotiation Stategies For Domain Name Deals, Jefferson F. Scher

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Domain names continue to perform multiple functions as mnemonic addresses for Internet devices, trademarks for new or established businesses, and "search terms" for those who don't know where else to look. This article speaks to the operation of the domain name system, and discusses many business issues that accompany the ownership of a domain name.

International Copyright Law And The Electronic Media Rights Of Authors And Publishers, Irene Segal Ayers

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

This article looks at recent cases resolving disputes over the electronic media rights of freelance journalists and publishers in the United States and Europe. This article considers the implications of conflicting case law for international electronic trade in copyrighted works and suggests international solutions that attempt to balance fairly the competing interests of freelancers, publishers, and the new electronic media industries.

When Cyberspace Meets Main Street: A Primer For Internet Business Modeling In An Evolving Legal Environment, Christopher Paul Boam

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

With the increasing use of the World Wide Web, the Internet consumer will, for better or worse, change the "shop around the comer." However, the advent of electronic commerce can have the capacity to be the great equalizer. This technology, which allows the smallest of entrepreneurs to enter millions of households throughout the world also subjects them to innumerable conflicting foreign laws and jurisdictions and magnifies the legal impact of any content errors. The ability to enter the households of millions of unknown persons also poses difficult challenges of identification, privacy, and security. The collective impact of these peculiar characteristics …

Symposium Presentation: Tales Of An E-Commerce Lawyer: When Every Decision You Make Is A You Bet Your Company Decision, Michael Scott

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Mr. Scott gives an overview of how the Internet and e-commerce have changed the practice of law. He notes that business today is almost instantaneous, in what he refers to as "Internet time," so a wrong business decision can spell disaster. He also discusses the implications of these almost instantaneous business decisions in the context of copyrights, patents, comparison sites, gaming and spamming.

Symposium Presentation: Legal Recognition Of Digital Signatures: A Global Status Report, Richard Allan Horning

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Mr. Homing traces the evidentiary roots of the "put it in writing" axiom and asks "where is the writing in e-commerce?" He discusses the legal response to the new evidentiary problems raised by that question in the context of online business, noting the need for new legal models to place such contracts within the Statute of Frauds.

Symposium Presentation: Business And Patents And Business Patents, Michael A. Glenn

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Mr. Glenn provides a general overview of patent law. He details recent developments in software patents, utility patents and business method patents. He concludes by emphasizing the notion that nearly everything is patentable, possibly even the business method for serving a meal, if such a method could be deemed useful, novel and nonobvious.

Taxation Of International Computer Software Transactions Under Regulation 1.861-18, Jonathan Purcell

UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal

Transfer of computer software in the international context presents many complexities. Tension has developed between countries of manufacture and the countries of sale. Specifically, how should the income arising from such transactions and the resulting tax base be allocated between the nations where the purchaser and seller are located? Treasury Regulation 1.861-18 attempts to bring some clarity to the characterization of income from the international transfer of computer software. This note explains this regulation as it concerns the disposition of copyright ownership rights and copyrighted subject matter, as well as explores various tax planning opportunities.

Working Through The Static: Is There Anything Left To Local Control In The Siting Of Cellular And Pcs Towers After The Telecommunications Act Of 1996, Matthew N. Mcclure

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Us Media Law Update, Jonathan Weinberg

Law Faculty Research Publications

No abstract provided.

Of Cell Phones And Electronic Mail: Disclosure Of Confidential Information Under Disciplinary Rule 4-101 And Model Rule 1.6, Karin M. Mika

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

Regardless of the known security risks, it is difficult, if not impossible, to imagine a law firm in the twentieth century operating without the technological advancements that make it possible to communicate with anyone, anywhere, at any time. These advancements often enable immediate responses that are beneficial to attorneys and clients alike. Cellular phone usage and electronic mail are an integral mode of communication between firm members, negotiating attorneys, as well as between attorneys and their clients. While it has developed into a mode of communication making the practice of law more efficient, it is doubtful that most attorneys give …

Chevron, Cooperative Federalism, And Telecommunications Reform, Philip J. Weiser

Publications

No abstract provided.

Public Broadcasting And The Crisis Of Corporate Governance, Monroe E. Price

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Clear Signatures, Obscure Signs, Adam White Scoville

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

United We Stand: The Anti-Competitive Implications Of Media Ownership Of Athletic Teams In Great Britain, Jonathan E. Bush

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

This Note analyzes the increasing integration of the sports and broadcasting industries and the British framework for evaluating the permissibility of transactions furthering such integration. In the context of the recent attempted takeover of British football club Manchester United by Rupert Murdoch's British Sky Broadcasting, the Note examines how the Monopolies and Mergers Commission (MMC) was uniquely poised to fully consider the ramifications of this developing nexus of sports and media and evaluates the significance of the MMC's decision on the future of both industries.

A diverse array of domestic, international, political, and economic issues and implications face any court …

Defending The Informers: The Media's Right To Protect Non-Confidential Source Information Following United States V. Smith, Michael Fitzsimmons

Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal (1994 - )

No abstract provided.

Thoughts On The Sprint Acquisition., Michael Botein

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

The Jurisprudence Of Appearances, Richard Sherwin

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

Building Castles Made Of Glass—Security On The Internet, Joe Baladi

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

No abstract provided.

Yet Another Fox In The Hen House: Government Protection Of Artistic Expression Within Privately Owned Public Spaces, David Rudenstine

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Why The Proposal To Legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide In Michigan Failed, Yale Kamisar

Articles

Some commentators and participants in the national debate over physician-assisted suicide (PAS) made much of the fact that in 1997 Oregon voters reaffirmed their support for assisted suicide by a much larger margin than the initial 1994 vote. The state legislature had put the initiative (which had initially passed by a 5149% vote) back on the ballot for an unprecedented second vote. This time the initiative was reaffirmed overwhelmingly, 60-40%. Barbara Coombs Lee, Executive Director of Compassion in Dying (an organization that counsels people considering PAS and one of the plaintiffs in Washington v. Glucksberg, 1997), hailed the second Oregon …