Alt Legal IP News – Issue #88
Hannah Samendinger | May 15, 2018
Social Media Buzz
– This copyright infringement lawsuit may be the “most quintessential digital-age influencer era legal battle” ever.
– A museum in Indonesia is ripping off museum exhibits that have been particularly popular on Instagram.
– This is an interesting long read about the curious case of the Fortnite cheater, which likely all started with a DMCA counter-notice.
Big Questions
– Is originality in copyright a meaningless requirement?
– Utility patent #10,000,000 is coming. When will it issue? Who will own the patent? Can the exact patent already be identified? Find some predictions here.
– What will happen to the new Prince songs?
– Will this request, signed by 42 intellectual property scholars, influence Congress’s deliberations on the CLASSICS Act, which is part of the Music Modernization Act of 2018 that recently passed in the House?
Old Art, New Disputes
– A Barbie doll modeled after Frida Kahlo has sparked a trademark dispute. In a recent development, the Frida Kahlo Corporation is countersuing the artist’s grandniece.
– A two-decade-long dispute over the rights to Zorro may be heading to trial, with the licensor as the copyright defendant.
– The Great 78 Project is hard at work discovering, preserving, and digitizing 78rpm records but exclusively for research, teaching, and private study.
Odds and Ends
– Can actors be considered authors under U.S. copyright law? This article explores the existing case law and uses some thought experiments to make the case for their right to authorship.
– A new Nike patent reveals possible plans for a shoe with a tiny treadmill in the sole, which could be a game changer for individuals who have difficulty putting on shoes due to injuries, arthritis, or cerebral palsy.
– Check out the 650 designs that were granted patents this week.
– Trader Joe’s is opposing an application for “Trader Schmo’s” in a dispute that may have parallels to the “Dumb Starbucks” from Nathan for You.