Copyright Protection Compromises are Always in Fashion
The Innovative Design Protection and Piracy Prevention Act (the “IDPPPA” or “Fake Fashion Bill”) is a bill introduced by New York Senator Chuck Schumer intended to provide long-awaited copyright...
View ArticleUrban Outfitters Navajo No-No.
By selling clothing and accessories labeled “Navajo,” Urban Outfitters may be offending more than just Native Americans– it could face trouble under the Federal Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 which...
View ArticleSOPA: A Newly Introduced Bill With Huge Impact on Internet
Will the Internet, as many of us know and love it, be forced to change its ways? It very well may be. A bill introduced in the House last week, entitled the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), would allow...
View ArticleA Perspective on the PROTECT IP (a.k.a. E-PARASITE) Bill
S.968 is a proposed bill intending to require service providers to block access to certain sites, simply based on the accusation that the sites may promote copyright infringement. The Senate first...
View ArticleNew Federal Bill Would Require Royalty on Artwork Sales Over $10K: The Equity...
On Thursday, December 15, Congress introduced a bill that would require large art auction houses, like Christie’s and Sotheby’s, to pay a 7% royalty on artwork sales over $10,000. The new bill would...
View ArticleEverything you need to know about Congress’s online piracy bills
Yep, tons of information about these controversial bills… in a single post!
View ArticleWhite House Opposes [parts of] SOPA
The Obama administration announced that it was opposed to parts of two bills endorsed by Congress to enforce copyright protection on the Internet. The White House said, “Let us be clear, online piracy...
View ArticleHey! Ho! We [The Internet] won’t go!
Well, we were hoping to have a normal Internet day tomorrow. But it seems like the Internet is going to be unavailable because it is going on strike. Well, not all of the Internet but some very big...
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Argh! White House Sails Into Anti-Piracy Debate
The White House navigated into the choppy waters of the international online piracy debate over the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the Protect Intellectual Property Act (PIPA), which both seek to...
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Ignorance is Bliss: Subconscious Infringement and the Chilling Effect after...
On January 18th, the Internet went black to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). On the same day, the Supreme Court released its decision in Golan v. Holder. __ U.S. __, 131 S. Ct. 1600 (2012)...
View ArticleJudge Permits Record Companies to Pursue Vimeo for Copyright Infringement
Declines to decide Vimeo is free of liability due to safe harbor provisions of DMCA in instances where employees interacted with the videos. The Hollywood Reporter reported a judge’s determination that...
View ArticlePatent Literally Pending: The Government Shutdown and Intellectual Property
As of 12:01 am ET, Tuesday, October 1, 2013 the federal government has shutdown for the first time since late 1995/early 1996. While the focus has been on more visible government functions that serve...
View ArticleCan Copyright Save The Radio Star?
This past week, the Free Market Royalty Act (H.R. 3219) was referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. Introduced by Representative Mel Watt (D-NC) at the end of September, the proposed...
View ArticleCongress considers banishing Patent Trolls
On Thursday, November 14, the House of Representative Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations within the Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing on whether patent assertion entities (or more...
View ArticleThe Innovation Act Survives the House Judiciary Committee 33-5
On Wednesday, November 20th, the highly anticipated Innovation Act was sent to the floor after passing 33-5 in the House Judiciary Committee. The Innovation Act, sponsored by House Judiciary Committee...
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