Week 2 - Copyright Continued

CLASS TWO:

Copyright Continued:

I. What is Copyright Infringement?

Use of a copyrighted work by someone not authorized by the owner in one of the ways which is exclusively granted to the copyright owner,

A. By reproducing the work, selling or distributing copies of the work to the public (whether for profit or given away),

B. By making derivative works based on the original,

C. By performing the work publicly

D. By displaying the work publicly

Intentional infringement is a crime under federal law; but only the Federal District Attorney can file charges against the infringer. The copyright owner, however, can also file in civil court for damages.

1. Private (Civil) Suit for Copyright Infringement:

Expensive, must either have a lot of money for lawyers’ fees or a very good case and solvent defendant which may interest a litigator on a contingency fee basis. To file a suit, the copyright owner must register their Copyright first with the US Copyright Office, Washington DC

2. Remedies available include:

(a) Injunction: Court order to stop the infringement

(b) Statutory Damages (if registered within three months of commercial release or prior to the infringement)

3. Actual Damages- Proved by showing how much the defendant lost as a result of the infringement

4. Attorneys fees. - Where copyright infringement plaintiff is awarded a judgment against the defendant, the Court may require Defendant to reimburse plaintiff  for their attorney fees incurred in the lawsuit if the original work was registered within 3 months of commercial release or prior to the infringement.

5. Copyright Infringement Defenses:

(a) Fair Use - The law provides that brief excerpts of copyrighted materials can be used without permission under certain circumstances: 

Elements of fair use defense:

Use of the work was for purpose of criticism, commentary, teaching, research, or scholarship

(b) Parody; Making fun of the copyrighted work. Note the "Oh Pretty Woman"- 2 Live Crew case where the group made a parody of the original song, changing the lyrics without getting permission from the publisher to record and release their version. Supreme court upheld their right to do so.

(c) There is a substantial difference between the original work and the allegedly infringing work

(d)  The defendant had no access to the original work and could not have copied it 

6.  New Ways of Granting Permission by Copyright Owners: Creative Commons

Under the current law, all creative works belong to the author upon creation./ Therefore, those wishing to use any creative works in their projects and creations legally are faced with the task of obtaining permission from the copyright owners to do so. Obtaining such permission can be difficult, frustrating and time consuming. Lawrence Lessing, a Stanford  Professor, developed a system called Creative Commons, which enables those copyright owners who wish to allow their works to be used by others creatively can do so by attaching a Creative Commons license to their works that advise what uses the public and other creators can make of their work without seeking their permission.

Watch You Tube Videos about Creative Commons:
creative commons you tube video

7. Remedies and Protection for US Copyrights in Other Countries: 

There is no such thing as an “international copyright” that will automatically protect an author’s writings throughout the world. Protection against unauthorized use in a particular country depends on the national laws of that country. However, most countries offer protection to foreign works under by operation of international copyright treaties and conventions. There are two principal international copyright conventions, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (Berne Convention) and the Universal Copyright Convention (UCC).

Essentially, under these treaties, citizens of the signatory countries offer access to their courts for citizens of other countries who have suffered infringement of their copyright in those countries, affording the same remedy that their own citizens would have if the same had occurred to them.