Copyright Violations

A US judge has ruled that the Java application programming interfaces used in Android are not protected by copyright, marking a defeat for Oracle in its high-stakes lawsuit against Google.  

We reported a little while back on an American author's claims that Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed franchise was a breach of copyright related to a science-fiction novel titled "Link", he released in 2003. Since then, author John L. Beiswenger has "without prejudice" dropped the suit (meaning he can revisit his claim at any time in the future). His legal representative claims that this "in no way diminishes [Beiswenger'] stalwart conviction in...  

Toronto interior designer Laura Abanil is accusing a Toronto cemetery of copying the tombstone pattern she says she conceived to honour her mom. But lawyers for the Catholic Cemeteries Archdiocese of Toronto counter the work was created under contract by ...  

French TV channel TF1 sued and lost €80,000.  

[JURIST] The US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit [official website] on Thursday overturned [opinion, PDF] an order dismissing a $1 billion copyright infringement suit against Google, by Viacom [corporate websites], for Google's YouTube [media website; JURIST news archive] service. The lower court initially dismissed [JURIST report] Viacom's suit in June 2010 finding that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) [text, PDF] protected...  

[JURIST] The High Court of Australia [official website] ruled [judgment] Friday that internet service providers (ISPs) cannot be held liable for the copyright infringement of their customers in the case of Roadshow Films v. iiNet Limited. The court ruled that the specific systems used to perpetrate the copyright infringement were not controlled by the ISP. They further held that the ISP did not host infringing material, nor did they assist...  

You’re probably well aware of the MPAA and its crusade against movie piracy, but here’s some of the latest shenanigans. ArsTechnica reports on the struggle between the MPAA and various internet bodies over whether or not embedding a video hosted by a third party can be considered copyright infringement. The MPAA believe that there shouldn’t Read The Full Story  

#copyrights Responding to a recent copyright case making its way through the Seventh Circuit court, the MPAA has issued a brief supporting a judges ruling that merely embedding a video that infringes on copyright is as bad as hosting it, even if a person didn't upload the video. Huh? More »  

Dish Networks, the satellite TV provider, is being sued by Fox over its "AutoHop" feature, which automatically skips commercials. Fox alleges copyright infringement, which is a repeat of the claims over ReplayTV, which was bankrupted in similar lawsuits in the last decade. The networks claimed then that the whole program, including the commercials, were a [...]  

Bogus Copyright Infringement Claims Could Add Up to Fewer Choices, Higher PricesNew York - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is urging a federal judge not to let television networks squash an innovative streaming service with a bogus copyright infringement lawsuit. In an amicus brief filed today, EFF and Public Knowledge asked the court to block a preliminary injunction that could prevent Aereo Inc. from establishing a customer base in...  

A ringleader of a syndicate distributing pirated computer programs and films in the 1990s was jailed for six years on Thursday.Related StoriesNon-oil domestic exports rebounds with 8.3% year-on-year increaseCDC, WDA team up to develop iPad program for job seekersMRT breakdown COI: More emergency drills plannedWhat's on: Thursday's top picks from ST Life!MRT breakdown COI: More emergency drills planned  

American author John Beiswenger has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Ubisoft and Gametrailers that claims the Assassin's Creed franchise stole core ideas from Beiswenger's novel, Link . Link was published in 2002 and the first Assassin's Creed game dropped in 2007. Beiswenger claims the Animus in Assassin's Creed is a direct copy ... (Read on Source)  

Oracle Corp. had accused Google Inc. of patent and copyright infringement. Much of the dispute is over Google’s Android, the mobile operating system that now powers more than 300 million smartphones and tablet computers.  

Science fiction author John L. Beiswenger has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against game publisher Ubisoft in a Pennsylvania district court, claiming that the Assassin's Creed series illegally copies ideas and themes he established in his 2002 novel Link.Tags: GamesLaw and Order  

After a weekend deliberation, a federal jury in San Francisco handed Oracle a partial victory by finding Google guilty of copyright infringement yet remaining deadlocked on whether Google’s use of the Java APIs fell under “fair use.” The jury found that Google infringed a minimal amount of Java source code with Judge William Alsup indicating [...]  

TYLER - The author of a copyrighted poem has filed a federal lawsuit alleging several companies are selling unauthorized versions of her work on quilts and pillows.Renee Baker filed suit against K Interiors Inc., Stein Mart Inc., Debra McMurray, doing business as Creative Quilts, and Carol Strawn, doing business as Full Life Photography, on April 5 in the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division.According to the suit, Baker created and...  

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that two insurance companies must both defend and indemnify a Louisiana construction company in a copyright infringement lawsuit over architectural plans. Following Louisiana jurisprudence, which requires ambiguities in insurance policies to be interpreted against the insurer, the appellate court applied a......  

A Finnish court has ruled that merely operating an open WiFi access point does not make you liable for copyright infringements committed on your network. From the defense attorney's press release: This alleged copyright infringement had taken place in a specific 12-minute period in July 14 2010, a date when a summer theater play with [...]  

Tumblr is being sued by by a porn company over copyright infringement related to some of its images. Industry watchers consider this is a potentially important case with implications for the whole photo-sharing industry. Sharing photographs online has become a huge part of the Internet. Sites such as Pinterest, Tumblr, and Flickr, social networks such [...] Related posts: Magazine-sharing website accused of copyright infringement- big surprise...  

Adult entertainment company Perfect 10 has sued Tumblr for allegedly infringing copyright by allowing users to post images owned by Perfect 10. Tumblr is "willfully ignoring the widespread and uncontrolled copyright infringement pervading its website," Perfect 10 alleges in its complaint, filed Friday in the Southern District of New York. has been sued for copyright infringement.  

The music news sites, like Cybergrass, have been covering the music piracy issue and damage caused by the illegal coping of music for years. Now, we're the ones with others copying our material, in its entity, for their own use and profit. Some news piracy sites even claim copyright on the works of other web sites. In the past couple of months, I've found our content on multiple sites, being used without any notification or permission. I...  

A federal appeals court judge has revived a $1-billion copyright infringement lawsuit by Viacom Inc. against Google Inc.'s YouTube.A federal appeals court judge has revived a $1-billion copyright infringement lawsuit by Viacom Inc. against Google Inc.'s YouTube.  

Adam 'MCA' Yauch, Adam 'Ad-Rock' Horovitz and Michael 'Mike D' Diamond are accused of sampling Trouble Funk's works without consent. Beastie Boys land in hot water. All members of the band are named in a lawsuit filed by a HipHop/R label, Tuf America ...  

In Perfect 10 v. Tumbler, the photo sharing site Tumblr has been sued for copyright infringement.ComplaintCommentary & discussion:-->-->To contribute to Marie Lindor's legal defense, see below. The above donation button links to a PayPal account established by Marie Lindor's family for people who may wish to make financial contributions to Ms. Lindor's legal defense in UMG v. Lindor. Contributions are not tax deductible.-->  

Rappers hit with lawsuit a day before the death of Adam YauchBeastie Boys are once again being sued over their alleged use of unlicensed samples. The rappers used parts of two songs by the US go-go band Trouble Funk without permission, according to papers filed just one day before the death of Adam Yauch.Yauch, his Beastie bandmates, and their labels are all named in a lawsuit by Tuf America, the company that represents Trouble Funk. The suit...  

"Federal authorities seized the dajaz1.com site based on assertions from the Recording Industry Association of America that it was linking to four "pre-release" music tracks in November, 2010. The authorities gave it back nearly 13 months later without filing civil or criminal charges because of apparent recording industry delays in confirming infringement."...  

The first phase of Oracle’s lawsuit against Google came to a close today, and the jury has found in favor of Oracle, but only on one count. The case is complex, and even the copyright verdict just handed down could be nullified in a number of ways. If the ruling from today does stand, though, [...]  

The jury in the high-profile Oracle vs. Google trial delivered a mixed verdict on Monday, finding that Google did indeed violate copyrights in using 37 of Java’s “application programming interfaces,” or APIs, but failed to agree upon whether this use was protected under the so-called ‘fair-use’ provision of U.S. copyright law – a key issue in the case. Without that determination, Oracle will be limited to only statutory damages ranging from...  

Piracy. Theft. They’re the favorite loaded words of the copyright lobby, which likes to sling them around like they’re going out of style, sometimes using them both at once. Copyright infringement is piracy! Copyright infringement is theft! Piracy is theft! Even if it’s true, it’s counterproductive—it tends to cause the discussion to wander away from [...]  

Science fiction writer John L. Beiswenger is suing Ubisoft for copyright infringement, claiming that its Assassin's Creed game series is lifted from his self-published work. In Ubisoft's saga, the contemporary protagonist must revisit the inherited memories of his ancestors, locked deep within his genetic code. Beiswenger's 2003 novel, Link, has a similar premise. Ars Technica's [...]  

Each month, Google removes more than 1 million links to content that infringes on copyright, including music, movies, and software. That's just one of the surprises from the data Google released on Thursday, which details the copyright notices it receives ...  

New Delhi, April 13 (IANS) Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar is amused by the copyright infringement case filed against him for 2008 film “Fashion”. “Now someone has gone to court for the copyright infringement of my film ‘Fashion’ after 4 years and demanding Rs.2.5 crores…,” Bhandarkar tweeted. Actress-turned-author Seema Seth has filed a complaint against [...]  

We have written many times about one of Hollywood's latest attempts at adapting to the modern digital age, Ultraviolet. Unfortunately for Hollywood studios, this service is not well received by people who have tried to use it. So what is someone to do with those unwanted free Ultraviolet codes that come in movie combo packs? You know, the Bluray, DVD and digital box sets that most movies come in. According to the Consumerist, one creative...  

BEIJING, April 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- Beijing, China - du8.com (www.du8.com) previously announced on March 21, 2012, that Cloudary Corporation (www.cloudary.com.cn), a Shanghai, China company, who plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), infringed on du8.com's...  

What a disappointment you've turned out to be, MPAA President Chris Dodd (Embajada de EEUU/Wikicommons) At Ars Technica, Tim Lee has the report on a disturbing lawsuit, now joined by the Motion Picture Association of America, which would make simply embedding videos—not hosting them—a copyright infringement. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals is considering appeals by Google, Facebook, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Public...  

The Court and the parties are now moving into final trial preparations. A conference call was held yesterday ( [PDF; Text]). One of the items covered on the call was the trial schedule, which is now firmed up. The trial will now commence on April 16, and the Court has specified the other days that will initially be allocated to the trial (see listing below; also the judge's schedule is here). What else the Court and the parties discussed...  

The U.S. Court of Appeals in Manhattan today reversed a lower court"s decision to throw out Viacom's $1 billion lawsuit against Youtube for allowing copyrighted videos to be uploaded to the popular video sharing site.  

American author John Beiswenger has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against Ubisoft and Gametrailers that claims the Assassin's Creed franchise stole core ideas from Beiswenger's novel, Link. Link was published in 2002 and the first ...  

April 20, 2012 -- The Australian High Court ruled on Friday that internet service providers do not need to act on the copyright infringement notices they receive from rights holders, according to a report by Ars Technica.  

Today in really unfortunate timing: The Beastie Boys have been hit with a copyright infringement lawsuit over samples used on Licensed to Ill and Paul's Boutique. The suit was filed on May 3, the day before Adam "MCA" Yauch passed away.  

‘But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” So the Book of Galatians tells us. Well, there is kind of a law against these things ...  

Pirating a book or movie is not the same as stealing one, but "seeing it as theft makes it easier to steamroll right over issues like 'fair use,' which is an incredibly important principle and one that is unique to copyright law."...  

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the dismissal of three suits against rock star Jon Bon Jovi and other defendants that claimed that Jon Bon Jovi’s song “I Love This Town,” which was used in baseball game commercials, infringed ...  

Oracle Corp. has accused Google Inc. of patent and copyright infringement. Much of the dispute is over Google's Android, the mobile operating system that now powers more than 300 million smartphones and tablet computers. Here are key developments in that ...  

Oracle Corp. (ORCL)’s case against Google Inc. (GOOG) alleging copyright infringement over the use of the Java programming language for Android software went to the jury for deliberations. The 12-person panel will decide whether Google, the ...  

A man has been handed what justice officials say is one of the harshest copyright-infringement sentences ever in the country after RCMP busted him for running an elaborate digital bootlegging business from his basement.  

The Court of Appeals has dismissed a plea from TV giant ABS-CBN Channel 2 for the tribunal to set aside its decision dismissing the copyright infringement case it filed against rival  TV5 for allegedly “copying”  the popular game show “Wowowee.”  

Textiles bearing printed designs create a host of legal issues affecting many, including fabric manufacturers, designers, retailers of product made from such fabrics and even the home craft maker. Alleged industry "rules of thumb" regarding ...  

Huffington Post informs that the hip hop band Beastie Boys was sued over copyright infringement on May 3. The charges came at a very inappropriate time as their colleague, Adam "MCA" Yauch passed away the next day. Beastie Boys is going through a rough period.  

If you've ever wondered how sites like Tumblr get away with displaying copyrighted images, you're not alone. Now one of the Internet's biggest players -- the porn industry -- is eyeing Tumblr for copyright infringement. Adult publisher Perfect 10 is suing ...  

Adult entertainment company Perfect 10 has sued Tumblr for allegedly infringing copyright by allowing users to post images owned by Perfect 10. Tumblr is "willfully ignoring the widespread and uncontrolled copyright infringement pervading its website ...  

Madhur Bhandarkar has been speaking on Twitter about the copyright infringement case filed against him for Fashion. Former actress and current author Seema Seth has alleged that the filmmaker stole the concept of the movie from her book El Dorado.  

To one Aussie artist, Madonna's new Truth or Dare perfume carries the sour stench of copyright infringement. As Australia's Sunday Telegraph reports, renowned Sydney painter RJ Williams is taking legal action against the pop superstar, alleging ...  

but Oracle will have to wait longer -- possibly for a retrial -- to see whether Google will escape liability by claiming fair use. (More to follow) James Niccolai covers data centers and general technology news for IDG News Service. Follow James on Twitter ...  

As of Sunday, the ransomware was only being detected by four of 42 security products on VirusTotal, Hussy wrote. In addition to locking up a computer, the malware also contains a component called Aldi Bot, which can steal online bank account credentials ...  

A new wave of malware freezes a computer and demands payment to unlock it, this time falsely alleging victims have infringed copyright. The campaign, spotted by Roman Hussy, who authors the abuse.ch blog, targets users in the U.K., Switzerland, Germany ...  

Some of the ways scammers part fools and their money sure are deviously ingenuitive. A new variation of scareware is making the rounds in Europe, but rather than sticking to the age-old "Your computer is infected, buy this antivirus program now!" trope ...  

Madonna has hit yet another bump along the road to celebrity fragrance domination (having already dominated the fields of, well, everything else). The mogul's Truth Or Dare fragrance is now the subject of legal action, as an Australian artist is ...  

Virgin Holidays has said that it is exploring potential legal action against BBC One's The Voice UK over alleged copyright infringement in the show's V-Room area. Introduced in episodes of The Voice UK aired last weekend, the V-Room is described as a ...  

According to published reports, a federal jury earlier today delivered a mixed result in Oracle v. Google. The jury found that Google had in fact infringed on Oracle’s Java copyright (by virtue of its Sun Microsystems acquisition) in using some Java code in Android and related APIs. However... Please visit Marketing Land for the full article.  

A Milwaukee-area commercial artist is accusing Harley-Davidson Inc. of using his designs without paying him. Wayne Wm. Peterson, of Muskego, filed suit this week in federal court against the motorcycle maker, alleging copyright infringement. In his ...  

It looks like the makers of the Def Jam Rapstar video game may be heading to court soon. The game's publishers have been hit with a massive lawsuit from EMI over failure to clear a number of the songs featured in the game. Although the total ...  

*Hip Hop mogul 50 Cent is being sued for allegedly stealing a sample of someone else’s music. Tisk tisk. According to the suit, he used a song without permission and didn’t even seem to care. Robert Poindexter of the Persuaders claims that he took a ...  

Stephen buys Blu-rays, but has no use for the free Ultraviolet download codes that come with the discs. So he turns around and sells them on eBay, because, hey, money! Only eBay shut down his last auction, claiming copyright infringement. Copyright ...  

BEIJING, April 22 (Xinhua) -- The public have been invited to give feedback on the newly drafted regulations aimed at defining what constitutes of an infringement of Internet copyright. Internet users and network service providers will be held accountable ...  

If any of Benjamin's accusations makes it to court, it could have an enormous impact on an industry which currently depends on the novelty of pornographic parodies ... law requiring all performers to wear condoms. The latter may sound like a good idea ...  

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has now included embedding copyrighted videos into the definition of copyright infringement. The legal distinction between actually hosting the pirated video and simply posting a copy of it by embedding it ...  

The charges against Mr. Swartz are that he breached the computer security to do the download. No claims of copyright infringement, but a serious criminal charges nonetheless. What about the JSTOR Copyrights? When you take the time to read the Terms of ...  

Sometimes one really feels that what they say about 'sitaare gardish mein' can't be truer than in case of the filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar. As if the recent spate of the ups and downs of his latest film Heroine wasn't enough, here comes yet another ...  

The First Petty Bench of the Supreme Court decided on March 29, 2012 to refuse the petition for acceptance of final appeal made by JUST ONLINE Co., Ltd. (company headquarters located in Tokyo), the operator of a video posting (sharing) website "TV BREAK.  

The landmark iiNet dispute has concluded with the High Court handing down its judgment in favour of iiNet ... AFACT had employed a company known as DtecNet to investigate and collect data on infringing activity carried out by iiNet account holders.  

Audrey Watters / Inside Higher Ed: OER Textbook Startup Sued By Publishers For Copyright Infringement  —  Blog:  —  Hack (Higher) Education  —  Boundless Learning can boast a bunch of features that make it sound like an incredibly promising education startup: it's focused on open educational resources.  It's rethinking the textbook.  

Despite netting content deals with studios such as Paramount in the United States, YouTube sometimes faces something of an uphill battle abroad when it comes to content rights issues. A Hamburg court ruled on Friday that the video hosting site ...  

Oracle’s lead attorney Michael Jacobs asked Judge William Alsup to answer “directly and crisply” with yes or no answers. More pointedly, Oracle wants to be as specific as possible in answering these questions and that indirect revenue from ...  

A teenager from Malvern is being sued for copyright infringement after tweeting a picture he created in Draw Something featuring a well-known corporate logo. The copyright-holder – which has secured an injunction preventing its name from being revealed ...  

SAN FRANCISCO -- Oracle and Google are set to face each other in court in San Francisco on Monday. The dispute hinges on Oracle's allegations that Google's widely used Android software for mobile devices infringes on copyrights and patents that ...  

Orlando, FL 3/26/12 (StreetBeat) -- ValCom, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: VLCO) announced today that it has retained legal counsel and filed a copyright infringement suit to secure millions of dollars of funds seized by government authorities in a raid on the popular ...  

As Pinterest’s popularity continues to grow, PDR Web Solutions reminds users, in particular business owners, to read the terms and conditions before exploring the new social medium. Baltimore internet marketing company also recommends concerned website ...  

We've gotten used to the content industries arguing that what happens when people download or make copies is "theft." But using that term muddies the waters when it comes to what copyright is supposed to be about, and lends support to irrational laws and court decisions.  

Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar is amused by the copyright infringement case filed against him for 2008 film " Fashion". "Now someone has gone to court for the copyright infringement of my film 'Fashion' after 4 years and demanding Rs.2.5 crores ...  

TRT Transportation, Inc. v. Chicago Trolley Rentals, Inc., No. 11 C 3693, Slip Op. (N.D. Ill. Sep. 30, 2011) (Der-Yeghiayan, J.). Judge Der-Yeghiayan denied defendant Aksoy’s motion to dismiss in this Lanham Act case regarding the CHICAGO TROLLEY mark ...  

Beijing, April 22 (Xinhua-ANI): Chinese authorities have jailed 24 persons in eight newly concluded cases involving copyright tort, among which seven were related to production and selling of pirated  

BEIJING, April 17, 2012 /PRNewswire-iReach/-- Beijing, China - du8.com (www.du8.com) previously announced on March 21, 2012, that Cloudary Corporation (www.cloudary.com.cn), a Shanghai, China company, who plans to list on the New York Stock ...  

Three major publishing companies filed a lawsuit against Boundless Learning, a start-up based in Boston, for using public resources to create online textbooks, the company announced Thursday. Pearson Education Inc., Cengage Learning Inc. and ...  

Tech giant Microsoft is actively intercepting and censoring conversations in its Windows Live Messenger program, utilizing a block list to prevent users from trading links to a popular peer-to-peer media sharing website known as The Pirate Bay.  

MUMBAI - Euphoria front-man Palash Sen sparked off a controversy the past week by claiming that the chorus of the song in Aamir Khan's television debut show 'Satyamev Jayate' is exactly the same as the chants in his song, ...  

Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar is amused by the copyright infringement case filed against him for 2008 film Fashion. "Now someone has gone to court for the copyright infringement of my film Fashion after 4 years and demanding Rs.2.5 crores..  

VentureBeatMicrosoft Blocks Pirate Bay Links: ReportInfopacketsOn the surface, The Pirate Bay appears a lot like services that have previously been outlawed for supporting or conducting copyright infringement, such as LimeWire and Napster. In fact, the general consensus of copyright protection agencies, ...Microsoft censoring Windows Live Messenger chats for copyright infringementDemocratic Undergroundall 36 news articles »  

Business 2 CommunityPinterest policy update smooths out sticky spotsZDNet UKBy Luke Hopewell, ZDNet Australia, 26 March, 2012 17:39 Social-sharing site Pinterest has tweaked its policies to deal with concerns over copyright infringement and to pave the way for an API launch, while reassuring members about how it will use their ...Pinterest Updates Terms of Service, Copyright RulesCMSWireTo Pin Or Not To Pin: How Businesses Can Use Pinterest...  

Hotfile Deploys Vobile Technology to Protect Copyrighted Digital ContentMarketWatch (press release)Vobile vCloud9 is the leading digital content protection technology service that enables cloud-storage providers to scan all types of media files, including compressed formats, to prevent copyright infringement. It is powered by VDNA Database (VDDB), ...and more »  

TechEyeKim Dotcom: Megaupload Shut Down for 'Political Reasons'PC MagazineBy Damon Poeter Indicted Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom this week characterized a number of the charges he faces in a far-reaching racketeering and copyright infringement case as "nonsense" and said his file-sharing site provided a legitimate service ...Kim Dotcom says US government is wrong about MegauploadBGRMegaupload Founder Reveals US Government Usage StatsEscapist...  

A long-running lawsuit against Australia's second-largest ISP has ended in a defeat for the entertainment industry, which sought to hold the ISP liable for copyright infringement on its network.  

An American science fiction author is suing Ubisoft for copyright infringement; it seems the Assassins Creed games are very similar to his novel, "Link."  

You just discovered someone has copied some of your writing. Do you know what you can do about it?  

A new wave of malware freezes a computer and demands payment to unlock it, this time falsely alleging victims have infringed copyright.  

How to Confront a Newspaper Editor Over Copyright Infringement (and Get Paid). Good for him.  

How to Confront a Newspaper Editor Over Copyright Infringement (and Get Paid). Good for him.  

The creator of the Dragon Shout app says ZeniMax wants his app removed from the Apple App Store  

Why I believe that copyright infringement laws on sites such as Youtube are counterproductive.Contributor: Sharon HendricksPublished: Mar 27, 2012  

A jury says Google infringed on intellectual property now owned by Oracle, but hasn't decided on the issue of fair use  

The panel deadlocked on the issue of fair use  

John Beiswenger claims his book was Ubisoft's inspiration for Assassin's Creed  

US court revives Viacom’s landmark $1bn copyright infringement complaint against Google’s YouTube subsidiary  

Technology News: Appeals panel reverses key decision in copyright infringement fight