derivative work

• The Judge's Order and the Rising Phoenix: The Role Public Interests Should Play in Limiting Author Copyrights in Derivative-Work Markets

By discussing the recent case Warner Bros. Entertainment v. RDR Books ("the Harry Potter case"), this Note focuses on the current copyright-law paradigm, which employs two seemingly contradictory tools- copyright protection and fair use-to serve the public interest by providing the widest possible dissemination of information. First, copyright protection promotes the public interest by granting authors lifetime monopolies over their works, which incentivizes creativity. Second, fair use promotes the public interest by curtailing these monopolies to allow new innovative uses of the original work. In this case, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that a Harry Potter Lexicon did not constitute fair use of the Harry Potter books. Current copyright and fair-us...

• Iowa Law Review
• Nbr. 95-2, February 2010

• The Right to Prepare Derivative Work

Among the most valuable rights given by the Copyright Act is the rigunder section 106(2) "to prepare derivative works based upon the coprighted wor...

• Copyright Law
• Chapter 6: Rights and Their Limitations

• Stewart v. Abend, 495 U.S. 207 (1990)

... that the owner of the copyright in a derivative work may continue to use the existing derivative w...

• U.S. Supreme Court

• Computer software derivative works: the calm before the storm.

I. Introduction Every generation believes they live in the most exciting times of continued social and technological advancement. Since the advent o...

• The Journal of High Technology Law
• Vol. 8 Nbr. 2, July 2008

• Scorsese Finally Scores Oscar with 'Departed'; Director's Long Drought at Academy Awards Ends

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences works in mysterious ways. After it denied Martin Scorsese the Oscar five times for works that have become landmarks in American cinema, Scorsese finally won the long-deserved Oscar on Sunday night for best director for "The Departed," a derivative work based on a Hong Kong film that was elevated by his artistry, which then was named best picture.

• The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
• February 27, 2007

• Art of Space Architecture

THE MASTERY OF FRANZEN One of the classic problems of the artist revolves around the issue of originality: Is this work truly mine, or is it merely derivative, a stepchild of this or that work from the past?

• The Santa Fe New Mexican
• June 10, 2006

• Commentary: Ip Frontiers: J.D. Salinger Catches Infringer in the Rye?

The renowned and reclusive author, J.D. Salinger, in the final year of his life, left another legacy with his novel "The Catcher in the Rye" by reshaping the preliminary injunction standard in copyright cases. Published in 1951, "Catcher" tells a coming-of-age story from the perspective of the disaffected 16 year-old Holden Caulfield, as he wanders around in New York City after being expelled from prep school. "Catcher" became an instant success. Although many sought to adapt the work into film or otherwise create derivative works from it, Salinger rejected all such offers and explicitly instructed his lawyers to not allow adaptations of his works.

• Daily Record (Rochester, NY)
• December 27, 2010

• Shame On You, Authors Guild

In the author's previous column he wrote about the Authors Guild's stance against text-to-speech-enabled (TTS) e-books. Continuing the discussion, the Authors Guild also contends that using TTS on Amazon's Kindle is a copyright violation. Copyright law was created to promote creativity and reward writers for their work. This law, which has evolved since the l700s, states, in part, that an author has the exclusive right to reproduce and distribute his work, to perform his work publicly (including digital audio transmission), and to prepare derivative works. The guild's position is that TTS infringes on these rights, resulting in a copyright violation. As TTS continues to improve in sophistication, the struggle over copyright will likely escalate. Many believe this is an issue the US Cong...

• Speech Technology
• Vol. 15 Nbr. 3, May 2010

• Oklahoma Leadership in Law Profile: Pamela H. Goldberg

Pamela H. Goldberg began her legal career with Hall Estill in 1987. She serves on the firm's board of directors and practices primarily in the commercial transaction and commercial litigation areas. Her commercial transaction practice includes lending transactions, legal opinion writing, asset sales and acquisitions, energy and derivative contracts, creditor work-outs and general contract drafting. As for commercial litigation, her experience runs the gamut from general contract litigation to lender liability defense to bankruptcy litigation.

• The Journal Record
• May 07, 2010

• An Insider's Guide to Creative Commons

Since the earliest days of the Internet, copyright issues and intellectual property rights have been among the hottest of hot-button issues for Internet users. Today, American copyright law dictates that any original work fixed in a "tangible form of expression" is bound by copyright. Enter Creative Commons, an 8-year-old nonprofit that serves as a digital tour guide for intellectual property licenses. The Creative Commons Web site offers free digital licensing and a brief explanation of copyright laws. Creative Commons offers the following four basic licensing conditions, which can be used in different combinations: 1. attribution, 2. share alike, 3. noncommercial, 4. no derivative works.

• Information Today
• Vol. 26 Nbr. 9, October 2009