Alt Legal IP News – Issue #100
Hannah Samendinger | August 07, 2018
A Quick Note
I started writing this digest when I was an intern at Alt Legal. I wanted to learn more about IP because I know just enough to know that I don’t know anything at all (thanks,Socrates). Now, I have written and sent out 100 issues, 96 gifs, and 1,648 links. Whew!
For the 100th issue, I’ve included some of my personal favorites from past issues, updates to past articles, and some fresh content.
It means the world to me that anyone, let alone all of you, makes time to read this email each week. Thank you!
Some Favorites
– What is the legality of a logo mash up? Which famous logos have a hidden meaning? Which TV logos used to be physical objects?
– Classic rock notes… from legal.
– Who owns your tattoos? If this case doesn’t end in a settlement, we may get more clarity.
– On the darker side, many inventors have been killed by their own inventions.
– An omission on a title card launched a zombie copyright apocalypse.
– Stranger Things, one of my favorite shows, led to my favorite cease and desist letter. There is also a very interesting story that inspired the show’s writers, tied to this copyright lawsuit.
– Some of my favorite long reads discussed the legality of cheating in a video game, how copyright law can fix implicit biases in AI, gifs and fair use, and a $1.6 billion Spotify lawsuit based on a law made for player pianos.
Updates!
– The case of the Fortnite cheater had an interesting development. The mother of the accused cheater submitted a letter to the court, which was construed as a motion to dismiss and was unsuccessful.
– In 2016, I included a story about Zara blatantly copying popular independent brands. Unsurprisingly, they haven’t stopped. They have been accused of copying designer brands and signature designs while operating consistently in the copycat economy.
– In January, a YouTube video of white noise got some attention for being flagged for copyright infringement. The owner of the video revealed that these claims were autogenerated and, due to the attention, quickly canceled by YouTube.
– After a prolonged battle, a European court ruled that the Rubik’s cube shape cannot be protected by a trademark.
Fresh Content
– Nestle has hit another road bump in their fight to protect the Kit Kat shape. Several other companies have managed to obtain protection for their unique food shapes.
– TVEyes is hoping to have their case against Fox News heard by the Supreme Court so they can get answers to an “exceptionally important question.”
– This is an interesting long read about the impact mass streaming technologies have on intellectual property in music, news, and even adult entertainment.
– “On June 4th, a group of lawyers shuffled into a federal court in Manhattan to argue over two trademark registrations. The day’s hearing was the culmination of months of internet drama — furious blog posts, Twitter hashtags, YouTube videos, claims of doxxing, and death threats.“