The professor saw an example of the type of activity online he appreciates and wanted to use his as an illustration.
STORY: Phoenix Recorded New Album on Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ Console “The ‘Lisztomania’ copycat video phenomenon started when a YouTube user, called ‘avoidant consumer,’ posted on YouTube a video combining scenes from several movies, with the song ‘Lisztomania’ serving as the soundtrack to the video,” says the lawsuit. He used “Lisztomania” as an example of how young people were using videos and other tools to create and communicate on the Internet. Lessig helped found the Creative Commons as a way to allow more permissive licensing. For example, there’s an ongoing dispute by a songwriter against Summit Entertainment over a song and cover art that was flagged for infringing the studio’s Twilight franchise.Īs those cases in other judicial circuits shape the law on whether and how much copyright holders need to consider fair use before registering a takedown notice, Lessig is making his own stand. The most famous case is one against Universal Music by Stephanie Lenz, who uploaded a 29-second video clip of her toddler dancing to the 1984 Prince hit “Let’s Go Crazy.” That dispute is now on appeal. In other instances, victims of takedowns have directly challenged copyright holders for allegedly abusing the DMCA by being over-assertive with copyright notices without any consideration of fair use. VIDEO: Phoenix Debuts New Single ‘Entertainment’ For example, during the 2008 presidential campaign, John McCain‘s reps sent a letter to the website asking that it analyze fair use before making decisions about whether to take down videos flagged by copyright holders. Over the years, YouTube has been accused of being too aggressive. As a result of this lawsuit, and other threats, YouTube bolstered its takedown regime in an effort to gain DMCA safe harbor from copyright liability. The development marks the latest escalation over the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, which was enacted in 1998 with the intention of updating copyright laws for the Internet.Īlmost a decade after the DMCA was passed, Viacom sued YouTube and alleged massive copyright infringement by the UGC site. Lessig did so, but is now going to court and seeking declaratory relief. The professor says he was told in a July 8 e-mail that he was going to be sued if he didn’t retract his counter-notice. What followed was an exchange of counter-notices and discussion directly between Liberation and Lessig. COVID-19 Knocks 30 Percent Off Europe's Film, TV, Music RevenueĬONCERT REVIEW: Phoenix Returns to New York for Majestic Apollo Show