M.E.L.O.N.

Tech News: Veoh Sails into "Safe Harbor"

by Shana Dines

In a previous article, we explained the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's "notice and takedown" and "safe harbor" provisions that were meant to insulate certain internet services from copyright infringement committed by their users. 

Viacom sued YouTube in early 2007, alleging that at least 150,000 clips on YouTube included content owned by Viacom that had been viewed at least 1.5 billion times, in total.  Viacom further condemned YouTube for profiting from a "massive copyright infringement."

Veoh, another online video site that offers a combination of licensed studio content and user-generated content, has also come under fire for hosting user-generated videos containing copyright infringements.  While Universal Music Group (UMG) has a case against Veoh still pending, Veoh recently won another case against them based on the safe harbor provision.

iTunes is getting iTaxed in Many States

by Shana Dines

The economy is in a recession.  Gas prices are up.  Mortgages are foreclosing.  But digital music sales are on the rise, with iTunes reportedly selling over 5 billion songs, to date. 

Not surprisingly, politicians have begun viewing the billion-dollar industry as a potential revenue generator for the government through taxation. 

Many states, including California, have tax laws that unintentionally protect digital downloads from taxing because of language written well before the internet was even envisioned.  However, a growing number of states have started (or will soon start) taxing digital music downloads, either through reinterpretation of existing tax laws or by passing new laws.

Tech News: New TLDs Will Stir Up .change

by Shana Dines

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) announced their unanimous decision to allow new generic top-level domains (gTLDs) last month. 

Generic top-level domains are the series of letters at the right end of a website address.  The most commonly used gTLDs are .com, and .org, while some restricted TLDs include .gov and .edu.  There are also country code TLDs, like .il for Israel and .au for Australia. 

This program, set to take effect in early 2009, could potentially add limitless new gTLDs to the realm of IP addresses.

The news comes to a mixture of reactions, ranging from fear to excitement to apathy.

(C): Notice & Take Down Pt. 3

by Howie Cockrill

In Part 1 and Part 2 of this article, I outlined the 4 types of Service Providers qualifying for protection under the DMCA and explained the 3 types of copyright infringement - strict, contributory and vicarious liability.

In Part 3, I provide an explanation of the DMCA's Section 512 - more commonly referred to as the "notice and take down" or "safe harbor" provisions.

(C): Notice & Take Down Pt. 2

by Howie Cockrill

In Part 1 of this article, I outlined the 4 types of Online Service Providers (OSPs) that qualify for protection under the DMCA and the 3 types of infringement liability.

I also explained the concept of "strict liability."

In Part 2, I discuss the "contributory" and "vicarious" infringement liability and explore the notion of no liability for copyright infringement. 

(C): Notice & Take Down Pt. 1

by Howie Cockrill

If you are an individual or company offering a service on the internet, you may already be aware of “notice and takedown” or “safe harbor” rules for copyrighted content online.

If not – now is the time to learn. 

These rules, enacted in the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), may just protect you and your website from landing in hot water for copyright infringement.

In this series, I will discuss the safe harbor provisions of the DMCA, who they apply to and the varying types of liability associated with online copyright infringement.

Keep in mind throughout this article that I have oversimplified many of the legal concepts and issues in order to provide a layman's overview of the subject. 

As always on MELON, the specifics of any particular situation will probably require a more in depth understanding and analysis.

Events: SanFran MusicTech Summit

The SanFran Music Tech Summit is just around the bend - Thursday, May 8th @ the Hotel Kabuki in Japantown. 

BEAT-Law's Howie Cockrill will be on the "Legal Issues in Searching, Linking and Blogging" panel @ 9:20 am, moderated by Joe Gratz of Keker and Van Nest LLP. 

The other panelists are Andrew Bridges (Winston & Strawn LLP), Mark Palermo (ASCAP, Dir. of Special Projects), and John Potter (DiMA, Exec. Dir.).

From the SFMT website:

"The SanFran MusicTech Summit will bring together digital thought leaders from the San Francisco Bay Area, as well as from all around the country, to the region which currently leads the way in innovating (both socially, and technologically) new ways of interacting with both music, and musicians.

We will be working long term to help enable a sustainable, ongoing, Northern California based music and related technology market."

Hope to see you there!

Events: REMIXER AUSTIN @ SXSW

If you're heading to Austin's SXSW music festival, by now you are probably sifting through reams of info about parties, panels, bands and barbecue. 

You may even be trying to concoct something vaguely resembling a schedule. 

Isn’t it all just ex-austin?!

BEAT-Law's "REMIXER" is here to save the day (or at least the early afternoon).

REMIXER AUSTIN is BEAT-Law's relaxing gathering in Austin for industry folks to hang out, have a drink (or two) and swap stories from the worlds of entertainment, technology, business and law.  

REMIXER AUSTIN details:

• Date:   Saturday, Mar. 15th
• Time:  12:00 noon - ???
• Place:  Bourbon Rocks - 508 E. 6th St.
• Note:   For best socializing - arrive by noon
• RSVP:  Click here.  Type "REMIXER" in the same box as your name.

Writers' Strike: Pt. 4 - That's a Wrap

by Howie Cockrill

After 100 days of strike, the writers and the producers have come to an agreement that will see both parties through until the next negotiation in 2011.

Both sides had to make difficult concessions, and the industry as a whole no doubt took a big hit.  The estimates range from $1.3 billion to $1.5 billion lost by the industry and dependent businesses. 

While the WGA made a number of demands throughout the course of the strike, the most ground-breaking and newsworthy were those pertaining to the writers’ share of online revenue. 

Events: 2 Upcoming Industry Conferences

Next week there will be 2 entertainment industry conferences that promise to be very interesting.

Monday, February 25th, is the SanFran MusicTech Summit at the Hotel Kabuki. 

Tony Berman will be on the panel entitled "Hot Topics in Music & Technology Law" from 9:20 am to 10:20 am. 

He will be joined by Matt Burrows (Sr. Counsel, Apple iTunes Division), Cydney Tune (Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman) and Ann Chaitowitz (Future of Music Coalition). 

This is a ticketed event, so make sure you head over to the event website & get your tickets.

On Thursday, February 28th,there will be a symposium in the Louis B. Mayer Lounge at Hastings Law School entitled "The Full Impact of Digital Media:  Shifts of Control and the Future of Music." 

Tony Berman will be on a panel from 3:15 pm to 5 pm, joined by Colette Vogele (Vogele & Associates), Jonathan Earp (VP Legal Affairs, IODA) and Michael King (Managing Attorney, RealNetworks).  The panel  will be followed by a reception.

Hope to see you there!