Entertainment & Arts – IP Law Watch

The UK Fails to Agree to a Voluntary Code of Practice for Copyright and Gen AI

Feb 14 2024

An initiative to create a voluntary code of practice on copyright and Generative AI (“Gen AI”) has failed to reach an agreement. The UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO), who led the conversations that started mid-2023, has not been able to reach consensus within the working group in relation to the use of copyright protected works to train Gen AI models. The announcement is a disappointment to many including the creative industry, who were awaiting clarification on their position in protecting their works and retrieving compensation, and technology industry who were seeking clarity how future technologies can be developed.

Jury Clears Los Angeles Tattoo Artist of All Copyright Infringement Claims In One of the First Significant Post-Warhol Transformative Use Cases

Feb 05 2024

On 26 January2024, a federal jury in Los Angeles handed down its verdict in one of the first copyright infringement cases to grapple with fair use after the Supreme Court’s 2023 Warhol decision.¹ The trial concerned a dispute over a tattoo inked by Katherine Von Drachenberg (known as Kat Von D), and related social media posts. In the Kat Von D case, plaintiff Jeffrey Sedlik argued the tattoo and posts infringed upon his copyright in a photograph of jazz musician Miles Davis that was indisputably utilized to create the tattoo and featured in one of the posts. Emphasizing the case-specific nature of fair use, the Los Angeles jury handed down a complete defense verdict.

Batman Won Another (Trade Mark) Battle

Aug 02 2023

Batman may be a superhero but it is the General Court who has come to the rescue following an invalidation action bought against DC Comics, a Warner Bros subsidiary, by Commerciale Italiana Srl, a wholesale retailer of costumes. In 2019, the Italian company applied for the invalidation of the well-known Batman logo (EUTM 000038158) for some of the goods in classes 25 and 28 (including clothing, footwear, and costumes), based on lack of distinctive character.

Registering NFTs and Virtual Goods in the UK

Jun 22 2023

As we learned to appreciate over the past year or so, virtual goods are intangible assets that can be traded within a virtual economy, worth whatever participants in the virtual market are willing to pay for them. Though a type of virtual good, NFTs have their own unique definition, which can now be found in the Cambridge Dictionary:

An NFT is a unique unit of data (the only one existing of its type) that links to a particular piece of digital art, music, video etc. and that can be bought and sold.

U.S. Supreme Court Rules Against Andy Warhol Foundation in Copyright Fair Use Dispute Over Prince Portrait

May 21 2023

In a decision closely watched by the visual arts community and content creators alike, the U.S. Supreme Court held on May 19, 2023, that pop artist Andy Warhol’s orange silkscreen portrait of the musician Prince (“Orange Prince”), adapted from photographer Lynn Goldsmith’s original photograph of Prince, was not “fair use” under copyright law. Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. v. Goldsmith, 598 U.S. _ (2023).

The One That Got Away: Popstar Katy Perry Outperformed by Australian Dark Horse in Longstanding David and Goliath Trade Mark Dispute in Australia

May 08 2023

In the recent Australian Federal Court decision of Taylor v Killer Queen, LLC (No 5) [2023] FCA 364, Justice Markovic aptly explained “a tale of two women, two teenage dreams and one name” and held that international popstar Katy Perry infringed Australian clothing designer Katie Taylor’s registered trade mark for KATIE PERRY by selling clothing merchandise in Australia branded with her Katy Perry stage name.

A Lidl Decision with big Implications – UK High Court Finds that Tesco’s Clubcard Logo Infringes Lidl’s logo

May 05 2023

In a recent decision, the High Court of England and Wales has found that Tesco’s use of the yellow and blue Tesco Clubcard logos (reproduced below) infringed Lidl’s trade marks (see the relevant Lidl marks below) and also gave rise to copyright infringement and passing off.

False Advertising – Large Jury Verdicts in 2022 and the Likely Uptick in False Advertising Suits in 2023 – Part 1

Feb 10 2023

Some of the largest false advertising jury verdicts were recorded in 2022. This, coupled with increased inflationary pressures will likely lead to an uptick in false advertising suits given that such pressures will impact consumer spending habits, leading to increased scrutiny of competitor advertising practices—particularly in the social media space.

Public Consultation Underway for Australian Copyright Enforcement Regime

Jan 29 2023

On 24 November 2022, the Australian Attorney-General the Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP announced the Attorney-General’s Department intention to release an issues paper for public consultation, as the first stage of a review into Australia’s current copyright enforcement regime. The broad aim of the review is to understand:

Current and emerging copyright enforcement priorities and challenges;
Whether Australia’s copyright enforcement regime remains relevant, effective and proportionate; and
Whether existing enforcement mechanisms need to be strengthened, and if so, how this could be done without imposing unreasonable administrative or economic burdens.

The ‘Standard’ of Use Evidence in the EU – Advertising and Promotion Can be Enough to Show Genuine Use of a Service Without That Service Actually Crossing the Pond

Dec 21 2022

Does evidence showing booking, advertising and selling services in the EU constitute genuine use if the service actually registered takes place abroad?

This was the question contemplated by a recent decision of the General Court. The case T-768/20 (Standard International Management LLC v EUIPO) addresses the use of trade marks in the EU where the relevant brand operates hotel and leisure facilities outside the jurisdiction.

Category:Entertainment & Arts