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Artist alleges Netflix, Amazon violated copyright law

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC posted in Copyright Law on Saturday, January 11, 2020.

Artists of all kinds here in New York need to ensure that their creations are protected from usage by entities that haven't properly licensed them. Copyright law exists so that artists have the legal means to safeguard what is theirs and receive fair compensation for their work. Copyright can be a difficult issue to understand, but it is an important one nonetheless. Recently, some questions around copyright have come up regarding how artwork is used in films. One artist recently filed litigation over the use of his artwork in a film distributed by Amazon and Netflix.

The artist whose work is the subject of this case created a map of a Caribbean island. Due to the map's antique style, it was used in a 2012 movie called "Lay the Favorite" which starred Bruce Willis. The artist decided to file a copyright suit, citing irreparable harm.

New tool helps YouTubers avoid copyright law violations

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC posted in Copyright Law on Monday, January 6, 2020.

The internet has given rise to creators of all kinds. Artists and content creators here in New York and elsewhere can distribute their work easily and inexpensively with the assistance of sites like YouTube. However, the site has come under fire in recent years for facilitating copyright law violations, according to critics. YouTube recently responded by making it easier for users accused of copyright infringement to remove content associated with a copyright claim, even it's just a small portion of a longer video.

YouTube created a tool called Assisted Trim. If some person or company makes a copyright claim in regard to a portion of a video, the user who owns the video can use Assisted Trim to easily clip out that part. This is especially useful in cases where someone may be filming a video and a song or other media can be heard or seen briefly in the background. What's even more helpful is that if the user clips out the claimed piece of video, the copyright claim in YouTube is immediately released.

Your attorney should be focused on your case

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC on Monday, January 6, 2020.

When you chose your attorney, you did the work. You checked their history and saw they did wonders on other people's cases just like yours. You saw that they had great reviews online, though you didn't know anyone personally who had used them.

When you spoke to the attorney the first time, they seemed interested in your case, and you felt that they were invested in fighting for a positive outcome for you. They said they would take the case, and you discussed payments along with what to expect along the way.

Yellowcard pursuing copyright law claim after rapper's death

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC posted in Copyright Law on Saturday, December 28, 2019.

When musicians here in New York and all over the world create a song, they may feel a sense that they are creating an artistic representation of themselves. It's common these days for other musicians and singers to ask to sample a portion of another musician's song. When that happens through the proper legal and artistic channels, it can be a mutually-beneficial collaboration. However, there are times that some artists may use a portion of a song without obtaining the proper permission from the creator in violation of copyright law. This is what the members of the band Yellowcard say happened to one of their songs, and they say they'll continue their lawsuit despite the death of the rapper at the center of their claims.

Yellowcard says that the rapper known as Juice WRLD copied their song "Holly Wood Died" and used several portions of it in his song "Lucid Dreams." Yellowcard even went so far as to say that parts of the two songs are identical. They released their song in 2006.

Large companies can ignore intellectual property violations

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC posted in Intellectual Property on Monday, December 23, 2019.

When New York artists create a piece of art, of any medium, they often feel as though it is an extension of themselves. If someone else uses that work without the artist's permission, it is essentially theft. This is why many artists make use of copyright law to protect their intellectual property. Unfortunately, this kind of theft still happens, and it may be partly because on the occasions that it happens to a larger company, the company can afford to fight it, or even afford to ignore it. This is what many people say happened recently with Disney and one of its newest characters, unofficially named "Baby Yoda."

The Baby Yoda character is part of one of Disney's newest episodic television shows, "The Mandalorian," on its Disney+ streaming service. Fans of the show have embraced the character and were hopeful that Disney would release merchandise featuring it ahead of the holiday shopping season. Disney was adamant that the character be kept secret ahead of the release of the show, so it didn't have any official merchandise prepared. What happened instead is that many independent artists decided to create their own products featuring "Baby Yoda" to fill the gap.

Musical plagiarism is a serious offense

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC on Wednesday, December 18, 2019.

If there is anything that can sour your mood as a musician, it's seeing someone else take your work as their own. You work hard to put together unique chord arrangements and lyrics. You compose your work carefully, and it's a reflection of your experiences.

Unfortunately, musical plagiarism isn't that uncommon in the music industry. It can be hard to stop people from sampling work, and it might be difficult to prove plagiarism over common chord arrangements. If you ask anyone in the industry, they'll tell you that there is a fine line between stealing someone's work and being inspired by it.

Artist alleges copyright law violation over fish illustrations

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC posted in Copyright Law on Tuesday, December 17, 2019.

When an artist creates something, it often takes many hours of work and dedication. Besides the time and effort spent to create the work itself, artists often undergo extensive training and usually conduct research beforehand. All of this means that artists here in New York and everywhere deserve fair compensation for usage of their work. When someone else uses that work without permission, it is generally considered theft and a violation of copyright law. One artist says that a state environmental department illegally used his art, and he has filed a civil lawsuit to obtain what he says is rightfully his, which is payment for his work.

The artist named the state Department of the Environment and an unidentified person in his lawsuit. He alleges that the defendants used seven, and possibly more, of his illustrations of fish without receiving his permission. He says the illustrations were modified and that derivative images were used on the state agency's website. His representatives say that the lost licensing revenue and other damages amount to a $1 million.

Artists purposefully violate copyright law to prove a point

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC posted in Copyright Law on Tuesday, December 10, 2019.

Artists of all mediums are careful with the distribution of their artistic works. They want to be sure that companies that profit off of their creations financially compensate artists properly and operate in a way the artist approves. Though many New York artists have a great working relationship with companies that distribute their work, there are times when other companies outright steal an artist's creations for profit. Several artists recently used Twitter to demonstrate just how easy it is for companies to violate copyright law.

Earlier this month, an artist used Twitter to post an image with text that read "This site sells stolen artwork, do not buy from them." The artist then asked followers to reply to the tweet saying things like "I want this on a T-shirt." Soon afterwards, the text appeared on several merchandise sites on various types of apparel and products for sale. The artist claims that these sites have algorithms on Twitter that look specifically for replies about T-shirt requests and then steal whatever artwork is being tweeted about.

Most common types of legal malpractice cases

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC on Wednesday, December 4, 2019.

When you hire an attorney to represent you, it's common to put your full trust in them. Not only are they the professional, but you're also paying them for their service.

Even if you do your homework before hiring an attorney, you could still be the victim of legal malpractice. If that happens, you'll find yourself dealing with your original case, as well as your newfound issue.

Nirvana in intellectual property litigation with Marc Jacobs

On behalf of Schwartz, Ponterio & Levenson, PLLC posted in Intellectual Property Litigation on Monday, December 2, 2019.

When a New York musician thinks about copyright and intellectual property, protecting song lyrics and the music is likely at the top of the list. However, that may not be the only artistic work that needs protection. Some musicians may need to copyright images associated with their music so that no one else can profit from improper usage. The band Nirvana is currently involved in intellectual property litigation with designer Marc Jacobs, after its representatives say that the designer improperly used artwork featured on Nirvana T-shirts.

According to Nirvana's suit, the band obtained a copyright in 1993 for a "happy face" with the letter "x" in place of eyes that it used on T-shirts for the band. The same year, Marc Jacobs featured a line of clothing called the "Grunge" collection. Just last year, Marc Jacobs decided to release a collection in homage to the earlier one. It features several garments that have a logo that Nirvana representatives argue is strikingly similar to the one Nirvana used 25 years prior.