Overwatch maker Blizzard Entertainment has been awarded 4 million yuan ($569,000) after a court found Chinese publisher 4399 Network guilty of copyright infringement. Blizzard Entertainment, the US video game giant and NetEase, its local agent in China, has won nearly 4 million yuan (US$569,000) from a Xiamen-based game publisher and its Guangzhou branch. The Pudong …
Topic: Copyright
Nov 21 2019
US Supreme Court to review ruling on copyright and APIs
The outcome of Oracle v Google will have significant effects on past and future software development given the prolific use of APIs. The Supreme Court of the United States has decided to review what has emerged as one of the most significant software copyright decisions of recent years: the 2018 ruling by the US Court of Appeals …
Nov 19 2019
Canada issues its first piracy blocking order to ISPs
Canada joins a host of countries around the world that have issued ISP blocking orders to combat pirate sites. Canada’s Federal Court has made an unprecedented ruling ordering the nation’s ISPs to block GoldTV, a popular pirate Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) service. Bell, Rogers, and Videotron, major Canadian broadcasters that also function as ISPs, spearheaded …
Nov 05 2019
Fonts are intellectual property too
In today’s competitive business world, one of the best ways to increase awareness of a company is via an instantly recognisable logo. That way, as soon as people think of a sector, they immediately picture the logo of the leading organisation. For example, most people who think of Barclays Bank can easily call to mind …
Oct 15 2019
Lessons from Australia’s site-blocking regime
In June 2015, Australian copyright law was amended to allow for the court-ordered censorship of websites deemed to primarily facilitate copyright infringement. A host of relevant issues Since the introduction of the remedy in 2015, site-blocking orders have prevented a range of pirated copyright materials, including films, television programs and musical works, from being accessed online. …
Jan 09 2019
Dean Guitars and estate of Pantera guitarist win copyright case
The case involved Darrell Abbott of the heavy metal band Pantera and a lightning bolt graphic on his guitar, which for decades has been an inseparable part of his persona and likeness. On November 30, 2018, Dean Guitars and the estate of Dimebag Darrell Abbott, who was a member of heavy metal band Pantera, secured …
Nov 05 2018
Why you should register your copyrights and trademarks
The failure to register copyrights and trademarks is the very definition of penny-wise and pound foolish. Many clients leave many law offices frustrated, particularly in copyright matters, because despite the apparent validity of their claims, they just cannot afford to enforce their rights if they neglected to register their creative works. The irony of this …
Oct 26 2018
Danish court rules on similar-looking storage boxes case
On 22 October 2018, the Danish Eastern High Court delivered its ruling in a case involving Nordic household product makers Orthex Sweden AB and Plast Team AS of Denmark. Orthex Sweden AB produces a range of plastic storage boxes called SmartStore. Plast Team A/S launched a series of similar-looking storage boxes called TopStore, which appeared in …
Sep 13 2018
EU backs new controversial copyright laws
Europe’s Copyright Directive was passed to update copyright laws for the internet age. Yesterday, Members of the European Parliament voted in favour of a series of changes to legislation concerning copyright and the internet. The copyright reform envisaged could change how the internet treats user-generated content. The most controversial parts of the reform are Article …
Nov 29 2017
TV programs saved in the cloud must be authorized by rightsholders
Copies of television programmes saved in the cloud must be authorised by the rightsholder, as such a service constitutes a retransmission of the programmes concerned. The making available of copies of television programmes saved in the cloud must be authorised by the holder of the copyright or related rights. Such a service constitutes a retransmission …