Registering your trademark and or simply retaining copyright to your website's content is not enough to avoid some of the common legal issues many professionals face in the entertainment industry nor will it keep you free from being sued by other companies. If you are someone who wants a career in the entertainment industry but are confused by the legal terminology or is discouraged by the latest reports on who's being sued in the entertainment industry, I'm here to tell you, fear not! In order to be successful in starting a career in film, television, sports, music or in launching an entertainment business one must know where they want to conduct business, know how to protect their content, have an understanding of the legislation that is applied to your industry as well as the legislation that is applied in the local and state levels and lastly, by having legal counsel. In addition to these steps, conducting business research on the common legal issues within the industry, connecting with professionals in the industry via social networks and subscribing to entertainment law pod casts will also be helpful not only in getting the latest tips and tools on ways to avoid lawsuits but also in being aware of the issues that are hotly debated in the entertainment industry.
Pod casts are a great way for entertainment industry newbies to get a better understanding of the legislation that pertains to their field within the entertainment industry and is also a reliable source for any changes to legislation that is pertinent to entertainment industry. When looking at pod casts relating to the entertainment law, I recommend that you listen to entertainment attorney Gordon P. Firemark's Entertainment Law Update Podcast and visit his website. On his website viewers not only can access his pod casts which cover a variety of legal topics, but also get to hear the comments by guest appearances such as entertainment lawyer Tamara Bennett. In addition to this viewers can also contact his law firm for legal counsel, request topics of discussion, lawyers can obtain legal education credit, viewers can ask questions and subscribe to his blog. Personally, I can say that Firemark's Entertainment Law Update Podcast provides useful information as well as tips relating to entertainment law which one can apply to their business. After listening to the Entertainment Law Update Podcast episodes 18, 22 and 23, I was able to obtain valuable information as to how to avoid common mistakes made by businesses in the entertainment industry.
Episode 18, which aired on March 7, 2011 covered a variety of issues from Lady Gaga's song "Born this way" and it's similarities to Madonna's song "Express yourself," Tolkien estate vs. book author, subway's claims to the "foot long"word, the King's Speech right to using the "no animals harmed" certification and Miss San Antonia's lawsuit. The three issues that stood out for me in this podcast were Subway's foot long trademark claims, Superbowl's Class Action and the similarity in Lady Gaga's song "Born this way" to Madonna's song "Express yourself." Subway apparently for sometime has been trying to obtain "foot long" as a trademark with the USPTO. Subway has also sent cease and desist letters to stores demanding that they stop using the "foot long" words to identify their products. Sources say that one store in Iowa, responded by stating that the"foot long" is descriptive and therefore gives them the right to use the words. Firemark concludes that the "foot long" is not a good brand identifier. Despite the federal court denying one of its claims, Subway continues to pursue the "foot long" claim. This case is a great reminder that when choosing a trademark one must select a brand identifier that is unique and not something descriptive where other companies can and have the right to use that descriptive mark because there is little protection in descriptive marks.
Sources say that Lady Gaga's song "Born This Way" song is very similar to Madonna's song "Express yourself" and wonder whether or not Madonna will pursue a case for copyright infringement or pursue other legal claims for Gaga's "Born This Way." Sources say that there are strong similarities among Lady Gaga's performances, "Born This Way,"song lyrics and Lady Gaga's attire to Madonna's song "Express Yourself" and past Madonna's past performances. One source stated that Gaga had received Madonna's blessing for the release of her song yet other sources claim that Madonna's management had no recollection of that blessing. Firemark concluded that with the similarities to Madonna's music found in Gaga's "Born This Way," song, Madonna could pursue legal action but whether she will or not is yet to be seen. This case highlights the issues that can arise when artist's attire and lyrical content is similar to another artist's style and song who has a long standing career in the industry.
In the Superbowl class action suit, fans were outraged when they were placed in seating areas not as stated on their tickets. It was reported that when the fire Marshall deemed several areas as "unsafe," over 1000 people were moved to various locations. The plaintiffs that filed the lawsuit are seat license holders who were among the 1200 fans that did not get the seats they paid for and among those that did not get a refund for their expenses. Sources say that the seat license holders class action suit has significant evidence for breach of contract and that relief has yet to be determined. This case underlines that it is possible that it is likely that only the seat license ticket holders will obtain monetary relief where as the other fans are simply stuck with the other end of the stick.
In episode 22 which aired on July 14, 2011, the issues I found most interesting were the Hangover II Tattoo case and Rebecca Black's lawsuit against Ark Music Factory. Whitmill v. Warner Bros. case, is the case where the tattoo artist that gave Mike Tyson his facial tattoo, Victor Whitmill filed a suit against Warner Bros. for copyright infringement on May 2011. Later in mid June 2011, the Hangover II lawsuit was settled and the parties came to a deal which was private and somewhat unknown to the public eye. What was known is that Mr. Whitman was entitled to a large check for the use of his tattoo and that the movie will released in DVD without any editing.
In the case of Rebecca Black, the star's management accused Ark Music Factory of copyright infringement and unlawful exploitation of publicity rights. Rebecca Black, age 13 quickly gained popularity shortly after her song "Friday," obtained millions of views on YouTube. After the viral success, the company that produced the song decided to create a pay system so that viewers would have to pay several dollars to see the video. The issue in question is who has the right of publicity? According to the podcast, no information has been founded on who has right of publicity to the song. In conclusion Gordon recommends that before using a song that it is important to know who has ownership of the song and who has the right of publicity. The case has not been settled but sources say that it will be interesting to see what the judge may decide specially when there is no data as to who has ownership of the song. This case in a great reminder in that one must have clear definition as to who owns what when releasing a song for benefits as well as for justifying claims.
Cases that caught my attention in episode 23, that aired on August 18, 2011 was the case of Mine o' Mine Inc vs. Calmise and the court of appeals ruling that gave copyright owners broader rights for works made. Shaquille O'neal, owner of Mine o' Mine Inc. filed a lawsuit against True Fan Logo Inc. for right of publicity and trademark infringement who was unlawfully registered the Shaq trademark to a domain and later sent a cease and desist letter to ESPN. The company also had unlawfully started selling t-shirts with the Shaq trademark without O'neil's consent. The court ruled in Shaquille's favor because, the basketball player is owner of the trademark, O'neal owns a family of trademarks and because True Fan Logo Inc. never obtained authorization from Shaquille O'Neal to use his trademark. To that effect, the court stated that the defendant tried to create confusion. What is important to note about this ruling is that a person or business can own a family of trademarks that is have several marks with familiar qualities.
The case of Supap Kirtsaeng, the young man who violated John Wiley and Son's copyrights after selling cheap foreign books of the original versions encouraged the United States court of appeals on August 15, 2011, to rule that it is illegal to import and sell copyrighted material from outside of the United States. As noted in the podcast, the ruling gives copyright owners more rights for works made abroad which could potentially be music Cd's as well as other goods. Gordon points out that it will be interesting to see how artists and other entertainment professionals will benefit from this ruling.
Gordon P. Firemark's Entertainment Law Update Pod cast as well as episodes 18, 22 and 23 are very informative. New-bee entertainment professionals will find this podcast not only helpful in understanding legal terminology but also useful in understanding legislation that applies to the entertainment industry. For some entertainment law terminology can be difficult to understand but it can be understood and being active in social networks and tuning in to several entertainment law pod casts that allow you to seek counsel and ask questions are beneficial to starting a business as well as in establishing a career in the entertainment industry.
Sources:
http://firemark.com/2011/07/14/entertainment-law-update-podcast-episode-6/
http://firemark.com/2011/08/18/entertainment-law-update-episode-monkeying-around-copyright-law/
http://firemark.com/2011/03/07/entertainment-law-update-podcast-episode-of-beauty-queens-footlong-subs/
Very Informative ... Thanks !! New follower on GFC as well :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Sunithi!
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