Tag Archives: right of publicity

8th Circuit finds copyright preemption of publicity claim

Posted on February 26, 2016 by rtushnet

Dryer v. National Football League, No. 14-3428 (8th Cir. Feb. 26, 2016)   I blogged about the district court ruling and wrote an amicus brief in the appeal; now the 8th Circuit affirms the rejection of football players’ right of … Continue reading →

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No compelling interest in right of publicity for private figure, 9th Circuit rules

Posted on February 18, 2016 by rtushnet

Sarver v. Chartier, No. 11-56986 (9th Cir. Feb. 17, 2016)   Shorter opinion about why the film The Hurt Locker didn’t violate Army Sergeant Jeffrey Sarver’s right of publicity: “video games are different.”  Sarver led a team in Iraq to … Continue reading →

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Absurd “world record” claim isn’t use of actual record-holder’s identity

Posted on February 3, 2016 by rtushnet

Martin v. Living Essentials, LLC, 2016 WL 374142, No. 15 C 01647 (N.D. Ill. Feb. 1, 2016)   Ted Martin, who holds the world record for most consecutive kicks in hacky sack (no knees, no partner) sued for invasion of … Continue reading →

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Right of Publicity Workshop Part 3

Posted on October 17, 2015 by rtushnet

Relationship to Copyright law/Relationship to Trademark law    Dryer v. NFL will be argued to the 8th Cir. challenged by retired NFL players to continued airing of programs recounting their exploits in actual games.  Survived a motion to dismiss.  After … Continue reading →

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Right of publicity workshop part 2

Posted on October 17, 2015 by rtushnet

How is the “right” to be reconciled with the First Amendment?     Could be part of the vast universe of communication that isn’t protected speech: Fred Schauer’s writing.  Contracts aren’t protected by 1A, etc.  Could just be market behavior. That … Continue reading →

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Right of publicity workshop at Yale

Posted on October 17, 2015 by rtushnet

Right of Publicity Workshop Yale Law School Information Society Project Abrams Institute for Freedom of Expression   Chatham House rules apparently allow me to disclose my own participation, but not that of others, so I’ll just take some notes on … Continue reading →

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Right of publicity question of the day, pop music edition

Posted on October 1, 2015 by rtushnet

I present to you Justin Blabaer beer.  (Blabaer = blueberry.) Is this truly the only cure for “Blabaer fever”?  Will it truly make you shout, “Oh, Baby!”?  So many questions. from Blogger http://ift.tt/1KTXD6X

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Notice and Notice Failure at BU, panel 8

Posted on September 26, 2015 by rtushnet

Robert Bone – Notice Failure and Defenses in Trademark Law   Bone’s basic argument: Principal notice issue in TM is uncertainty about scope, and principal problem is chilling effects. Bone finds an important distinction between unauthorized uses that implicate rights … Continue reading →

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TM/right of publicity mismatch claims another video game victim

Posted on September 3, 2015 by rtushnet

Virag, SRL v. Sony Computer Entertainment America LLC, No. 3:15-cv-01729 (N.D. Cal. Aug. 21, 2015)   In yet another demonstration of the ridiculous mismatch between right of publicity law and trademark law, Sony wins dismissal of trademark claims for its … Continue reading →

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Trademark scholars roundtable: the consumer in different contexts

Posted on June 30, 2015 by rtushnet

Session 3:  The Consumer in Different Trade Mark Contexts Do the questions that we have looked at in the first two sessions vary in different trademark and adjacent contexts? Is assessment of the reaction of the average consumer in trade … Continue reading →

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