copyright

Stories 21 - 40 | << Prev   Next >>

Banksy Just Suffered a 'Devastating' Loss

Street artist loses EU trademark fight with greeting card company over his own artwork

(Newser) - In a desperate move to claim the trademark for one of his most famous works, British street artist Banksy, usually known for floating untethered in anonymity, opened up a shop last fall, hoping to sway European Union judges in his favor. His efforts—deemed a "weakass attempt" by Techdirt...

Court Keeps This Land Is Your Land Out of Public Domain

Group challenged copyright after having to pay $45.50 to record Woody Guthrie's song

(Newser) - This Land Is Your Land, the folk anthem written by Woody Guthrie in 1940 and sung at political rallies and around campfires for decades, is staying out of the public domain. A federal judge made the ruling in a copyright challenge by a musical group that had to pay $45....

Bruce Lee's Daughter Fights a Fast-Food Chain

She is suing Real Kungfu for $30 million over use of her father's image

(Newser) - Bruce Lee's daughter is ready to fight over her father's image. Shannon Lee has filed a $30 million lawsuit against a fast-food chain in China that uses her father's image prominently in its logo—or at least it uses the image of a man who looks very...

Elusive Street Artist Sells ... Coffee Mugs?

Banksy sells kitschy items in online store

(Newser) - Banksy is selling T-shirts, mugs, and pillows. You can read that again. Yes, the world's most famous street artist—whose disdain for commercial success is no secret—has opened an online store selling various tongue-in-cheek products decorated à la Banksy, ARTnews reports. Shoppers at Gross Domestic Product can peruse...

Long Battle Over a Famous Song Is Finally Over

Mick Jagger, Keith Richards relinquish royalties over 'Bitter Sweet Symphony' by the Verve

(Newser) - You've surely heard the song " Bitter Sweet Symphony ," which made stars of the band the Verve in the 1990s. What you may not have known is that the song has since been embroiled in a copyright dispute involving none other than Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of...

Sorry, Carlton, Copyright Office Unimpressed by Your Dance

It's a 'simple routine,' not something that requires a copyright, declares official

(Newser) - Bad news for Alfonso Ribeiro, aka Carlton: The "Carlton Dance" isn't a thing , at least not in the eyes of the Copyright Office. The three-step dance made famous by Ribeiro's character in the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air "is a simple routine that is not registrable as...

For First Time in Digital Age, a Copyright Bonanza Is Here

Thousands of works from 1923 about to enter the public domain

(Newser) - Next Tuesday isn't just New Year's Day, it's also Public Domain Day. If the term isn't familiar, it's because the US hasn't had one in two decades. On Jan. 1, thousands of published works from 1923 will enter the public domain, freeing them up...

No Accounting for Taste. No Copyrighting, Either

European court says a cheese can't copyright its flavor

(Newser) - You can copyright lots of things, but not the way food tastes. That's according to the European Court of Justice, which was asked to rule on a case involving spreadable Dutch cheeses. Food producer Levola Hengelo, which began selling cream cheese and herb dip Heks'nkaas in 2011, argued...

Led Zeppelin Has to Defend 'Stairway to Heaven' Again

Appeals court orders new trial into allegations the band ripped it off

(Newser) - A US appeals court on Friday ordered a new trial in a lawsuit accusing Led Zeppelin of copying an obscure 1960s instrumental for the intro to its classic 1971 rock anthem "Stairway to Heaven," per the AP . A federal court jury in Los Angeles two years ago found...

Elon Musk Is Arguing About an Image of a Farting Unicorn

Artist says Tesla never paid him for using his creation

(Newser) - Elon Musk has switched his attention from rooting out saboteurs to arguing on Twitter about the rights to an image of a farting unicorn. The saga began in February last year, when the Tesla CEO tweeted an image of one of Colorado potter Tom Edwards' mugs, featuring a unicorn farting...

Lawsuit Over Monkey Selfies Settled Out of Court

Revenue will be shared with wildlife charities

(Newser) - A lawsuit over who owns the copyright to selfies taken by a monkey was settled before a federal appeals court could answer the novel legal question. Under a deal attorneys announced Monday, the photographer whose camera was used to take the photos agreed to donate 25% of any future revenue...

Steinbeck Stepdaughter Wins $13M in Copyright Case

Waverly Kaffaga has been in a long legal fight with her relatives

(Newser) - A federal jury awarded John Steinbeck's stepdaughter more than $13 million in a lawsuit claiming the author's son and daughter-in-law impeded film adaptations of his classic works, per the AP . Jurors in Los Angeles found in favor of Waverly Kaffaga, who alleged that long-running litigation over Steinbeck's...

Week's Oddest Suit: Eminem vs. New Zealand's Ruling Party

'Lose Yourself' copyright is at the heart of it all

(Newser) - They may not have lost themselves in the music or the moment but a judge and nine lawyers in a New Zealand courtroom did listen politely to Eminem's "Lose Yourself" as a copyright trial involving the country's ruling political party began Monday. The Detroit-based music publishers for...

Demi Lovato Accused of Stealing Song

Parts are 'virtually identical,' lawsuit says

(Newser) - Demi Lovato has been officially accused of stealing a song. The indie duo Sleigh Bells first accused Lovato more than nine months ago of ripping off parts of its 2010 song, "Infinity Guitars," in her "Stars." But now the band has filed a federal complaint about...

Farmers Fight for Right to Repair Own Tractors

It all comes down to the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act

(Newser) - Farmers in Nebraska, Minnesota, Massachusetts, and New York are staging something of a mechanical revolt. They're attempting to get legislation passed in their states that would enable them, for the first time since the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act, to repair their own tractors or get an independent mechanic...

Jury: Led Zeppelin Didn't Steal 'Stairway to Heaven' Riff

Jimmy Page and Robert Plant are 'grateful' for the decision

(Newser) - Led Zeppelin was found innocent of stealing the opening riff to "Stairway to Heaven"—frankly one of the least scandalous things the band has ever been accused of—Thursday in Los Angeles, the Guardian reports. Jimmy Page and Robert Plant were sued by the estate of Randy Wolfe,...

There's a Weird Battle Going on Over Klingon

Paramount claims the use of Klingon in a fan film amounts to copyright infringement

(Newser) - Live long and copyright many things. Thus Paramount Pictures hopes to prosper as it wages a legal battle with the makers of popular Kickstarter crowdfunded Star Trek fan film Prelude to Axanar. Paramount claims the film's use of the fictional language Klingon adds up to copyright infringement; the filmmakers...

Judge: It's Possible Part of 'Stairway to Heaven' Is Stolen

A May trial will decide whether Led Zeppelin copied notes from Spirit

(Newser) - A trial is needed to determine if Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" copies its opening notes from a song performed by the rock band Spirit, a federal judge has ruled. US District Judge R. Gary Klausner ruled Friday that lawyers for the trustee of late Spirit guitarist Randy...

Judge: Monkey Can't Own Copyright to Its Selfies

PETA vows to keep fighting the good fight

(Newser) - A macaque monkey who took now-famous selfie photographs cannot be declared the copyright owner of the photos, a federal judge said. US District Judge William Orrick said Wednesday that "while Congress and the president can extend the protection of law to animals as well as humans, there is no...

Lawsuit: Big Bang Theory Stole 'Soft Kitty' Song

Heirs of the alleged author have filed a lawsuit

(Newser) - The heirs to a New Hampshire teacher who wrote a poem about a "soft kitty" eight decades ago said in a lawsuit Monday that TV's The Big Bang Theory is violating their copyrights. Edith Newlin's daughters sued CBS and other media-related companies over the copyright to a...

Stories 21 - 40 | << Prev   Next >>