Copyright

A new law concerning the parody of copyrighted works came into force at the start of this month and the debates as to its effect have already begun. Will it merely lead to more social comment and entertainment which incorporates parody, or will it have a wider effect by, for example, allowing more risqué forms […]

Following a vote in the House of Lords, a law has now been passed that will allow people to alter copyrighted work for “caricature, parody and pastiche”.  The new law, called the Copyright and Rights in Performances (Quotation and Parody) Regulations 2014, will come into force on 1 October 2014. This change in the law […]

Sunday evening will see the San Francisco 49ers take on the Jacksonville Jaguars here in England at Wembley Stadium. The 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is nearly as famous for his distinctive tattoos as he is for reaching last year’s Super Bowl. However, Kaepernick could find himself in hot water following lawsuits that are being filed […]

Are you signed up to Spotify? Have you created an ‘Ibiza Annual 2013’ playlist to pay homage to your summer pilgrimage to the White Isle? Then you may have got Spotify in hot water! Ministry of Sound claims that Spotify has refused to delete their subscriber’s playlists that recreate existing Ministry of Sound compilation albums […]

There is a lot of money in ideas. I’m not talking about inventions, necessarily, but the works of human imagination that are so frequently the subject of copyright and intellectual property disputes. This is a formidable and specialised area of law that covers everything from knock-off clothes appropriating designer labels, to traders or artists innocently […]

A long time ago in a film studio far, far away movie history was made as the phenomenally successful Star Wars saga began. The Lucasfilm empire has made billions of pounds from the films themselves and associated merchandise. Over 30 years since the first chapter began, Lucasfilm found themselves fighting for their intellectual property rights […]

The Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker has claimed that certain dance moves in the music video for Beyoncé’s new single ‘Countdown’ are “pure plagiarism”. Beyoncé has acknowledged that sequences in the ‘Countdown’ video were inspired by De Keersmaeker’s ballet company Rosas Danst Rosas, amongst other influences such as Andy Warhol and the Audrey Hepburn film […]

On 12 September 2011 the EU Council adopted a Directive which modifies Directive 2006/116/EC ‘on the term of protection of copyright and certain related rights’ and extends copyright protection for performers and phonogram producers on music recordings from 50 to 70 years. This new Directive, dubbed ‘Cliff’s Law’ (after Sir Cliff Richard, who has been […]

Trade mark Infringement The use of certain signs or symbols in the course of trade is strictly regulated by law.  Well known examples of these signs or symbols include the “golden arches” of MacDonalds and the word “APPLE” in relation to electronic products. In fact the nature of these signs or symbols extends further than […]