Articles Posted in Copyright

Second Circuit Court of Appeals Upholds Verdict for Google in Song Lyrics Lawsuit Updated: Published by:

On Thursday, March 10, 2022, a three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld a verdict favoring Google in a lawsuit brought by song lyrics website Genius. The lawsuit claimed that Google was displaying transcribed lyrics scraped by Google from Genius in search results in…

Taylor Swift May Face Jury Trial in Copyright Lawsuit Updated: Published by:

A federal judge declined to grant summary judgment to the pop singer in a copyright infringement case, finding that there were significant similarities between the lyrics of "Shake It Off" and a song written by the plaintiffs.

Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye’s Copyright Infringement Ruling Upheld on Appeal Updated: Published by:

On October 8, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld summary judgment entered in favor of singer Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye. The summary judgment entered in the U.S. District Court, Central District of California, concerned a copyright infringement claim alleging that The Weeknd's song A Lonely…

Oprah Winfrey Defeats Copyright Infringement Lawsuit in North Carolina Updated: Published by:

A federal judge ruled that Oprah did not have plausible access to the allegedly infringed memoir, nor did her TV series resemble the memoir with sufficient precision to justify a finding of liability.

Second Circuit Court of Appeals Rules That Andy Warhol’s Prince Series Prints Are Not Transformative Fair Use Updated: Published by:

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued a ruling on Friday, March 26, 2021, holding that Andy Warhol's series of prints depicting the musical artist Prince are not transformative fair use under copyright law. The three-judge panel further ruled that Warhol's prints and Lynn Goldsmith's photograph, the source material for…

Netflix Faces Copyright Infringement Lawsuit by English Teacher Updated: Published by:

Kevin Wooten, an English teacher in North Carolina, has sued Netflix for alleged copyright infringement related to its show “Outer Banks.” Wooten wrote a novel called “Pennywise:  The Hunt for Blackbeard’s Treasure” in 2016. He argues that Netflix stole material from his book for “Outer Banks,” based on parallels between…

Grammy Winner Maria Schneider Files Class Action Copyright Piracy Lawsuit Against YouTube, LLC Over Content ID Updated: Published by:

On Thursday, July 2, 2020, Grammy award-winning composer and musician Maria Schneider filed a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, against YouTube, LLC, Google, LLC, and Alphabet, Inc. The lawsuit concerns copyright piracy on YouTube and alleges that YouTube's copyright management tool, Content ID,…

Federal Government Expected to Strengthen Copyright Protections for Rights Holders Updated: Published by:

The U.S. Congress plans to update the Digital Millennium Copyright Act later this year. A lengthy report produced by the U.S. Copyright Office suggests that this update may enhance protections for rights holders.