Unbeknownst, rapper Azealia Banks was supposed to appear in the April 2015 edition of Playboy. That was until Mediatakeout.com LLC illegally stole and leaked nude photographs taken specifically for the 2015 edition to the media. Additionally, Media Takeout altered the photographs with a watermark: “MEDIATAKEOUT.COM.” According to a Summons and Complaint that was filed by Playboy International Enterprises in Federal Court, Playboy is suing up to $150,000 for each copyright infringement, as well as $25,000 for each photo violation of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act …
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Snoop Dogg Slapped With Copyright Infringement Lawsuit
Calvin Broadus aka Snoop Dogg is faced with a copyright infringement suit brought by Fuzzy Logic Productions.
According to court papers, Fuzzy Logic accused Snoop Dogg, JT the Bigga Figga, and their streaming app TrapFlix for making unauthorized sequels to “Snow and tha Bluff,” which Fuzzy Logic released in June 2012. Based loosely on experience of Curtis Snow, a real resident of the Bluff — Atlanta’s roughest neighborhood — the film portrays a drug dealer’s life.
Fuzzy Logic further claimed that Snoop Dogg violated …
Continue ReadingHer Hips Don’t Lie, But Someone Does: Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Over Shakira Song Due To Fake Evidence
On Monday, August 10, a New York federal judge tossed a copyright infringement case brought against Sony over Shakira’s hit song “Loca.”
U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein had previously ruled against Sony, finding that “Loca” contained segments that were clearly copied from a song by Dominican artist Ramon Arias Vasquez, “Loca con su Tiguere.” After losing the initial trial, Sony claimed that the plaintiff had fabricated a cassette tape containing the Vasquez song in an attempt to prove copyright infringement.
Judge Hellerstein, citing “a …
Continue ReadingHow Close is Too Close? Under Armour Sues Over Alleged Trademark Infringement
Apparel giant Under Armour filed a lawsuit against Moonstone LLC, Titan Industries Inc., Internatonal Fashion Royalty Inc., and Carol De Leon in Maryland federal court on Thursday, alleging that they are infringing on Under Armour’s well-known trademark logo. The logo at issue is one used for sandal-clogg shoe hybrids known as “Floggs.”
A side-by-side comparison of the Under Armour logo and the Flogg logo does seem to reveal certain similarities, so the question is: how close is too close? Under Armour’s complaint states:
Defendants’ use …
Continue ReadingCan’t Shake it Off: Ongoing World Tour Doesn’t Exempt Taylor Swift from Depositions
There appears to be bad blood between award-winning music artist Taylor Swift and clothing company Lucky 13, which claims that Taylor Swift and her affiliated companies, such as Taylor Nation LLC and Taylor Swift Productions, Inc., infringed on the registered trademark “Lucky 13.”
A California federal judge ruled on Tuesday that despite her ongoing world tour, Swift will need to create a blank space in her schedule for a deposition. A representative for Swift claimed that Lucky 13 was just trying to cause trouble, stating:…
Continue ReadingGaining Momentum: Opposition in Redskins Lawsuit Enter Into Similar ‘Slants’ Case
On Friday, July 24, Amanda Blackhorse and the other Native Americans challenging the Washington Redskins over the team’s trademark registrations jumped into a parallel case in the Federal Circuit. The other case involves The Slants, a band that was refused a trademark in 2013 due to the name being offensive to Asian-Americans, and the en banc Federal Circuit’s decision could weigh heavily in the challengers’ case against the football team.
The Slants are currently arguing that the government’s ban on disparaging trademarks violates the First …
Continue ReadingNintendo Beats the Game, Wins Patent Suit Over Game Boy Controls
On Friday, July 17, Nintendo Co. Ltd. emerged victorious in a patent infringement lawsuit brought by Quintal Research Group Inc. The suit alleged that Nintendo’s handheld gaming systems, such as Game Boy Advance, Nintendo 3DS, and Nintendo DSi, infringed a patent owned by Quintal. However, California federal judge Saundra Armstrong disagreed, awarding judgment to Nintendo.
In 2008, Quintal secured a patent for a “computerized information retrieval system.” As the patent proposes, this system is described as
… Continue Reading“having a generally rectangular shape, with a display screen
The Dark Knight Refuses: USPTO Prohibits Softball Team From Using Batman Logo
On Friday, July 17, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office ruled that a softball team cannot use a lookalike of the Batman logo with the name “Gotham Batmen.” The USPTO agreed with DC Comics that the Batman mark is famous due to its use in comic books and movies, thus protecting it under the Trademark Act.
In order to stop trademark infringement in any case, the first or senior user of the mark must prove likelihood of consumer confusion. In this determination, courts generally look …
Continue ReadingTruce: Orostream LLC And World Wrestling Entertainment Inc.’s Legal Battle Ends In A Stipulated Motion For Dismissal
The legal battle between Orostream LLC and World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. came to an end on Wednesday when a Texas federal judge signed off on an order granting a stipulated motion for dismissal that both parties had filed with the court on Tuesday.
Orostream originally filed the suit against WWE, along with various other sports and entertainment companies, alleging that the companies’ mobile content distribution applications infringed on Orostream’s data-transfer U.S. Patent Number 5,828,837. WWE counter-claimed, alleging that claim 37 of U.S. Patent Number 5,828,837 …
Continue ReadingDownward Spiral Continues for Redskins as Judge Upholds Trademark Cancellation Decision
On Wednesday, July 08, a federal judge ordered the cancellation of the Washington Redskins’ federal trademark registrations. United States District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee ruled that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office should cancel the team’s trademark, finding that the name “may disparage” Native Americans.
Judge Gerald Bruce Lee’s decision affirmed the earlier ruling by the federal Trademark Trial and Appeal Board. In that ruling, the appeal board held in a 2-1 vote that the team’s moniker is offensive to Native Americans and therefore ineligible …
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