The Future of Embedding is in Question After Mashable Settles Copyright Fight
On February 9, 2021, a settlement was reached by the parties in an important copyright case that has been closely followed since 2018 for its impact on the practice of “embedding.” Embedding entails integrating images, links, videos, or other digital media onto web pages. This common practice is made easy on social media platforms, such…
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In October 2015, multiple models, including “Baywatch” actress Carmen Electra (“Electra”) (collectively the “models”), filed suit against various New York strip clubs alleging that such clubs used their likeness in intentionally misleading advertisements without permission or payment. As a result of this misuse, the models claimed that they were substantially damaged because the success of…
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On February 23, 2021, the Eleventh Circuit Court held that Stephen King’s protagonist in “The Dark Tower” book series did not copy the hero in late comic book writer William B. DuBay’s “The Rook” series. Benjamin DuBay, the nephew of William DuBay, filed a lawsuit in 2017 alleging that fictional character Roland Deschain of “The…
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On December 31, 2020, New York County Supreme Court Justice Joel M. Cohen delivered an opinion partially denying the motion of summary judgment that AMC Network Entertainment LLC sought in regard to Frank Darabont’s multimillion-dollar lawsuit for breach of contract. Frank Darabont (“Darabont”), the creator of AMC’s hit series “The Walking Dead,” served as the…
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On December 18, 2020, the Ninth Circuit ruled that ComicMix’s comic book mashup of Dr. Seuss and Star Trek was not protected by the “fair use” doctrine in copyright law. A mashup is a work created by combining elements from two or more sources. ComicMix had created a comic book called “Oh, the Places You’ll…
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Seeking Arrangement (Seeking.com), a popular dating service that connects men and women who are looking for an arrangement, filed a lawsuit against a competing dating site—Successful Match (SuccessfulMatch.com). Seeking Arrangement alleges that Successful Match appropriated trademarked phrases that the dating service has used on its website for years. The targeted phrases include “mutually beneficial relationships”…
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Investors in Genius Brands, An Entertainment Company, Assert They Were Duped By Pump-And-Dump Scheme
In a complaint filed on August 18, 2020, in the Central District of California, plaintiff Salvador Verdin, individually and on behalf of all investors who purchased Genius stock between March 17 and July 5, 2020, accused defendants Genius Brands and its CEO, Andy Heyward, of violating Federal Securities Law. In the complaint, Plaintiffs claim that,…
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Just weeks after Neil Diamond filed suit over Trump’s use of his “Rockin’ in the Free World” at rallies, singer-songwriter, and producer Eddy Grant filed suit against Trump and his campaign on September 1, 2020, alleging copyright infringement over the use of Grant’s 1983 hit “Electric Avenue” in a campaign video posted to Trump’s Twitter…
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On September 26, 2020, Judge Yandle for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois granted tattoo artist Catherine Alexander’s Motion for Partial Summary Judgment in her copyright infringement lawsuit against World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. (“WWE”) and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (“Take-Two”). Alexander claimed WWE and Take-Two copied the tattoos she inked…
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On October 27, 2020, Playboy Enterprises filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against Fashion Nova, an online retail company, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. According to the complaint, Fashion Nova created and sold a replica of Playboy’s iconic bunny costume “throughout the peak of the Halloween costume season.” In the…
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