The Music Modernization Act (MMA), which took effect in October 2018, was enacted primarily to centralize musical copyright ownership by creating “blanket licenses” for certain songs. In 2021, the MMA established a nonprofit organization, the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC), to administer those licenses and distribute the royalties. (See our three-part insight about the MMA for […]
In January 2024 Dudesy, an AI-assisted podcast, released a new hourlong special titled “George Carlin: I’m Glad I’m Dead,” featuring a version of the late comedian George Carlin (“Carlin”) allegedly generated by artificial intelligence (“AI”). Dudesy is a comedy podcast written, created and controlled by AI, and is hosted by “Mad TV” alum Will Sasso […]
Carolyn Martin, Senior Counsel at Lutzker & Lutzker, was a panelist at American University Law Review’s spring symposium on February 9, 2024. This year’s symposium, which featured lawyers from around the country representing academia, private practice and government, focused on Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) and its impact on tort liability, plagiarism, copyright and professional ethics. Carolyn’s […]
The Music Licensing Modernization Act (“MLMA”), one of three parts of the Music Modernization Act (“MMA”), established the Mechanical Licensing Collective (“MLC”) to distribute royalties and administer blanket licenses, allowing entities to use any of the works maintained by the MLC for a fee. On January 10, 2024, the MLC filed a Notice of Intent […]
While Mickey Mouse is getting most of the attention surrounding Public Domain Day 2024, it is worth noting other works from 1928 that are also entering the public domain. Here is a sampling from research compiled by The Center for the Study of the Public Domain at Duke Law School. Books and plays include House […]
Warner Chappell Music, the global music publishing arm of Warner Music Group, filed its opening brief to the U.S. Supreme Court on November 27, 2023, requesting that the Court overturn a lower court ruling that held that a copyright plaintiff can recover damages for copyright infringement occurring more than three years before the filing of […]
On Monday, July 3, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida held a hearing on competing summary judgment motions in the case of Lil’ Joe Records Inc. et al. v. Ross et al., in which the plaintiff music label is suing members of the hip-hop group 2 Live Crew in an attempt […]
In today’s environment, most of us are likely to have a photograph or video on social media we would rather not have everyone seeing. Maybe it’s an unflattering photograph, an embarrassing video, a post of their minor children or an old photo with an ex-flame. When someone shares a photo or video of an individual […]
On May 18, 2023, the Supreme Court, in a 7-2 opinion, affirmed the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in favor of photographer Lynn Goldsmith (“Goldsmith”) holding that the “purpose and character” of the particular commercial use by the Andy Warhol Foundation (“AWF”) of Goldsmith’s photograph did not meet […]
Update: The Ninth Circuit case Diece-Lisa Industry, Inc. v. Disney Store USA LLC, U.S., No. 22-347, may shed some light on the line between artistic expression and source identification. Originally, the Rogers test had cleared Disney’s use of the mark at issue, but the case has been remanded in light of Jack Daniel’s Inc. v. […]