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transparentOn June 17, 2014, a federal judge in Illinois granted summary judgment to Stefani Joanne Germanotta against plaintiff, Rebecca Francescatti, in a copyright infringement matter because he found that no reasonable trier of fact could find that Ms. Germanotta’s song, “Judas,” is substantially similar to Ms. Francescatti’s song, “Juda.”  You may wonder, why you should care about these two unknown figures in the music industry, but the truth is, Ms. Germanotta is far from unknown.  In fact, she has been a staple in the pop music industry since she burst onto the scene in 2008 with the release of her album, “The Fame,” which had such hits as “Just Dance” and “Poker Face.”  By now you may have guessed—Ms. Germanotta is none other than Lady Gaga.

In her complaint, Ms. Francescatti alleged that Lady Gaga’s song, “Judas,” from the album “Born This Way,” infringed Francescatti’s copyright in her song, “Juda.”  According to Ms. Francescatti, she worked with co-defendant sound engineer, Brian Joseph Gaynor, to write “Juda” in 1999.  Ms. Francescatti alleged that Mr. Gaynor later collaborated with Lady Gaga in 2010 to create “Judas.”  According to Ms. Francescatti, the two songs have remarkably similar melodies, structure, bass lines, and further similar features.  This allegation was unsupported by expert testimony.
Continue Reading When is Enough Really Enough? The Importance of Experts in Music Copyright Infringement Actions

transparentWith the prevalence of smartphones in today’s society, one cannot help but to have at least heard of Google’s Android operating system.  This operating system came about with the intent of competing with the superpower known as Apple’s iPhone.  Of course, when Google released this platform for the first time in 2007, the Android operating system was perceived to be the first generation.  Recently, however, an Illinois man asserted that perhaps Google’s Android was not the first generation.  Well, not quite, but he did assert that Google infringed his federally registered trademark, “Android Data.”

During the Dot.com Boom of the late 1990s Erich Specht decided he wanted to get into the lucrative software business.  As such, in 1998, he founded a suite of e-commerce software that became known as Android Data Corporation (“ADC”).  Through his entity, he intended to license software to his would-be clients, and provided website hosting and computer consulting services.   Two years after the company’s inception, Mr. Specht applied to the United States Patent and Trademark Office for federal registration of the “Android Data” mark.  The mark was registered in 2002.

Unfortunately for Mr. Specht, by the end of 2002, his company had hit the end of the road.  It ceased all major operations, lost the bulk of its clients, and moved its headquarters into Mr. Specht’s home.  Mr. Specht then caused ADC to transfer the Android Data mark to his wholly-owned company, The Android’s Dungeon Incorporated (“ADI”).  For the remainder of the year, Mr. Specht attempted to sell ADC’s assets, including the mark, but was unable to find a willing buyer.  He kept the ADC website running for a short period thereafter, but eventually allowed the registration for the company URL to lapse.
Continue Reading Google’s Android: Was It Truly The First Generation?

The 2013 NFL season was not kind to the Washington Redskins, and after winning only 3 games and losing 13, there are many in the Washington Redskins organization who might have wanted to hide behind a new name.  Now they might have to.

The USPTO officially cancelled the Washington Redskins trademark registration stating that the…

On April 22, 2014 the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of American Broadcasting Company (“ABC”) v. Aereo.  Although this case has been overshadowed by other matters on the Court’s docket and has received very little media attention, the Court’s decision will potentially have an impact on copyright law that…

Very often one of a business’ most valuable assets is its internet domain name. Even in large, well-established companies, a portfolio of well-chosen domains amount to a significant set of assets, often driving sales and advertising. Yet many businesses often make poor choices in connection with these assets.

As the World Wide Web began to mature into a viable business method in the mid-1990’s, businesses began snapping up domain names. A significant number of startup companies began attempting to reinvent various categories of business by running them in an online or “virtual” presence. Most readers will recall failed businesses such as WebVan, pets.com and e-toys.com. Yet these businesses failed largely because of overly ambitious business plans which devoured enormous amounts of startup capital with elaborate advertising campaigns or, in WebVans’s case, an insanely ambitious attempt to build a nationwide grocery delivery logistics system from scratch with seed money.Continue Reading Bad Domain Names