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Fox Sues Over Reuse Of Public-Domain Documentary

Posted by timothy on from the sue-you-sue-anybody dept.

leabre writes " Yahoo! Intellectual Property News is reporting that a small video distributer is being sued (U.S. Supreme Court) over reusing a work (WWII documentary) whose copyright had expired in the 70s, without giving credit to 20th Century Fox on the now public-domain work. What's more, Fox wants the courts to expand the copyright (which it let fall into the public domain more than 20 years ago) so they can recover damages from the distributer... " Read on for more (including several links) about this case. favorite quote: 'Justice Sandra Day O'Connor told Cendali that her client let the copyright lapse for the documentary, in the 1970s, and now wants the court to expand copyright protection so it can recover damages from Dastar. "The defense replies 'It was in the public domain,' O'Connor said. 'Of course they had a right to copy it.'" The outcome of this should be watched closely as it has the potential to further distort our fair use rights. There are more links on EFF , Dept. of Justice, and the Supreme court filing (appeal)[pdf]."

2 of 61 comments (clear)

  1. Sounds like it's qualified for a bitorrent stream. by torpor · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    End of story.

    --
    ; -- the corruption of government starts with its secrets. a truly free people keep no secrets. --
  2. [OT] Wow! by leviramsey · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Slash finally supports multiple topics for stories. This is a feature I've been longing for for a long time. Bravo, slashteam!