Copyright Law Final

Unless the "joint owners" of a work have agreed otherwise in writing, each co-owner is entitled to:

None of the Above.

If an assignment of copyright does not clearly indicate the term of its duration, it will be deemed effective for __________.

The remainder of the copyright (subject to the author's termination rights)

Alice sings a popular song in a live venue that a radio station broadcasts the song live which is heard by the radio audience. Rita is listening to the FM radio while at home in her living room. How may public performances, if any, occurred requiring a license?

Two, the live rendition, the broadcast by the radio station of the live performance.

Copyright protection arises and begins:

Upon creation of an original work fixed in any tangible medium of expression.

Sally Reardon was a pioneer songwriter who is relatively unknown now. Because she was sensitive about revealing her age, she distributed copies of her songs on sheet music, but never placed a copyright notice on copies of any of her songs as she offered them for sale in dime stores and music stores during her life from 1912 to 1947. As a result of this practice, the copyright of her songs:

Were injected into the public domain.

When a copyright owner transfers all or part of its ownership interest in a copyrighted work, the following occurs:

An assignment.

Irving Berlin wrote the song "White Christmas" in 1940, which was published that same year. The author died in 1989. A proper renewal was filed in 1968. When does the copyright expire?

December 31, 2035.

The 1909 Copyright Act first divided the term of the copyright into two periods (initial and renewal). Which following statement(s) would be correct?

Each term (initial and renewal) was 28 years.

True or false: Amanda Lynn writes a song (100% All the Time, Forever, Always, and Eternally Yours) while living in California and married to Will B. Fine and later divorces without a prenuptial agreement. The ownership of her song would belong jointly to her and the ex-husband under community property laws.

False

Similarities must be of a copyrightable expression, rather than uncopyrightable elements for proving substantial similarity and is referred to as:

Improper appropriation

Actual damages awarded in a copyright infringement action:

A & C (Are intended to act as a deterrent to infringement in preventing the defendant from profiting AND Are intended to compensate plaintiff for the losses incurred as a result of the infringement.)

In order to prove copyright infringement through indirect or circumstantial evidence, a copyright owner must prove:

Both access and substantial similarity.

The songs (compositions copyright) bought on iTunes have been ruled by the court to be:

Reproduction

Which of the following is not one of the exclusive rights belonging to a copyright owner?

Right to purchase

Which of the following is not one of the exclusive rights belonging to a copyright owner?

Right to purchase.

_________________ involves the use of a copyrighted work in order to comment on or make fun of something other than the copyrighted work.

Satire

Which one of the following new provisions first appeared in the Copyright Act of 1909?

The creation of a compulsory mechanical license to reproduce and distribute sound recording of musical compositions.

When the RIAA started suing individual file-sharers, in one of the cases that was not settled, the defendant used the defense that the files she downloaded were downloaded so that she could listen to the files and determine whether she wanted to buy the tracks and that such use was fair use. The court in that case ruled.

The defendant was wrong: it was not fair use to "sample before buying."

Licensing of the performance right for sound recordings over the internet is handled by Sound Exchange.

True

The Australian case Sharman (Kazza) ruling is extremely important because it is the first case against a file-sharing company to proceed through a full trial and, although arrived at based on somewhat different law, it achieves the same result as the Grokster decision in the United States.

True

True or false: a Judge will usually grant a preliminary injunction when it seems likely that the plaintiff will be successful in proving infringement and the plaintiff would be irreparably harmed if the injunction is not issued.

True

True or false: a ringtone bears a statutory rate of 24 cents per ringtone.

True

True or false: anyone may record the composition without the copyright owner's permission once the first recording has been distributed by obtaining a compulsory mechanical license.

True

True or false: copyright infringement arises from the unauthorized exercise of a copyright's exclusive rights and is not dependent on any exchange of money or profit motive.

True

True or false: performance rights organizations only license non-dramatic public performances of music.

True

True or false: if a company distributes file-sharing software that has non-infringing uses and does not actively market it for infringing use, it is absolutely likely that it would be liable for infringements committed by users of its software.

False

True or false: in order to own a copyright in a work, you have to register the work with the Copyright Office.

False

True or false: the 1976 Copyright Act made registration of the work a requirement for copyright protection.

False

True or false: the Copyright Office was formed as a department of the Federal Communications Commission.

False

In order to prove access in a copyright infringement action:

Plaintiff must show defendant had a reasonable possibility of access.

True or false: an employee of Apple creates a version of a computer software program called Ping in 2005. Apple holds off releasing Ping until 2010. The copyright in Ping will expire in 2125.

False

True or false: copyright infringement lawsuits do not have to be filed in one of the federal district courts and may be filed in state courts where the defendant resides.

False

True or false: electronic application copyright registration (eCO) is not recommended as it is is not fast and is the most expensive and the best would be a paper application.

False

The first multinational treaty that the U.S. signed was:

None of the above

Copyright registration:

Essentially means that someone has made a claim of ownership to a work as of a certain date.

In 1980, Lucky wrote a song and assigned the copyright to The Hit Factory music publishing company for $500. The "Copyright Transfer Agreement" that Lucky signed stated that he waived the right to terminate the transfer. In 1983, the song was published and recorded and became a hit. Lucky would like to know whether he can terminate his 1980 transfer and regain ownership of the copyright. What advice would you give to him?

. Lucky can terminate the transfer because termination rights cannot be waived.

Mike A. Fone wrote a song in 1961 that was not published. Mr. Fone died in 1985. The copyright protection for his song will expire in which of the following years?

2055

Blind Boy Williams and Good Time Charlie wrote a blues song "Can't You See You Are Leaving Me Sad" in 2000. In 2002 Good Time Charlie died of a broken heart. Blind Boy Williams lived until 2005 when he died of natural causes. When will the copyright expire?

2075

Which of the following is not an example of a reproduction?

A music file streamed

A compulsory mechanical license applies to:

A non-dramatic musical work (musical compositions or songs).

What is a more important invention than the telephone?

A second telephone

A license to reproduce a musical composition:

All of the above

Court cases have ruled in regards to "safe harbors":

All of the above

Criminal copyright infringement may be imposed:

All of the above

The Copyright Act provides coercive remedies that would include:

All of the above

The Copyright Act provides the following as an exemption from the performance right for certain types of uses.

All of the above

The Copyright Office:

All of the above

The Public Performance Right for compositions under copyright law includes:

All of the above

The RIAA would have refrained from suing individuals using file-sharing illegally, if the file-sharing companies agreed to:

All of the above

The following statement(s) is true concerning a mechanical license:

All of the above

To obtain a compulsory mechanical license to record a composition and sell, one must:

All of the above

When registering a sound recording with the Copyright Office that the author has created including the songs and cover art:

All of the above

A sound recording copyright does not include:

All of the above.

Purchasing and acquiring ownership of a compact disc or online music download song:

All of the above.

The "Termination Right" of the 1976 Copyright Act:

All of the above.

If there are two or more authors or owners (publishers) of a copyrighted work and in order to register the work with the Copyright Office:

Any author, owner or publisher is entitled to register and only one needed for all parties.

The "Fair Use" Doctrine applies:

As a defense and not an affirmative right.

The newest music star of Music City is 19 year old Cindy Bright. The songs Bright sang were written exclusively by Amanda Lynn. The third single hit big on (analog) country radio and was getting thousands of spins per day. When the performance royalty checks came out Cindy Bright was surprised to learn she got nothing. Which statement below is correct regarding Bright's situation?

Bright is owed nothing, because only writers and their publishers get performance royalties from analog radio.

Tella Sloe (TS) had a "number 1 chart hit" song, two years ago, titled Bake, Bake, Bake, that is still, today, being streamed and downloaded as well as selling physical product at a slower, but continuous pace. TS has since released a new project titled Look What You Cannot Make Me Do that was a number 1 debut on the charts. However, while TS was having a celebration party for her new achievement, she was served a copyright infringement summons and complaint, which alleges that TS's Bake, Bake, Bake, song infringes a song by Betty Crocker (BC) whose song was some moderate hit five years before TS Bake, Bake, Bake. The only similarities are two lines using the identical lyrics "Bakers are gonna bake, Grillers are gonna grill". There are no similarities in the music. Should TS go back to her current celebration party for her current hit or does this lawsuit dampen the party mood?

Celebrate, since words and phrases, in and of themselves are not susceptible of copyright protection. Therefore, TS would not be infringing, as TS did not copy anything subject to protection.

To be eligible to sign the Berne Convention copyright treaty, a country's copyright laws must meet certain requirements. Two of these requirements are:

Copyright duration at least life of the author plus 50 years and fair use for education and news reporting.

For most works, created on or after 1/1/78, the term of the copyright begins at ________ and ends ____________________.

Creation, 70 years after the death of the author

f you purchase music online from services such as iTunes when you download the music you have received a:

Digital Phonorecord Delivery

The following are protected by Copyright Law:

Dramatic, literary, audiovisual works.

NBC commentators were describing a giant inflatable balloon of Snoopy, the comic book character in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Just behind the Snoopy balloon, a marching band was playing a popular copyrighted song. The author of the song being played by the band was incensed that her song was used by NBC without his permission and she sued the network for copyright infringement. What was the outcome of the case?

Fair use!

A "digital audio recording" under the AHRA is defined as a material object which digital music is fixed such as a computer, iPod, or MP3 player.

False

ASCAP, BMI and SESAC issue mechanical licenses on behalf of writers and publishers.

False

ASCAP, BMI and SESAC pay 50% of the of the amount due for performances of a song to the publisher and 25% to record company and 25% to writer.

False

General knowledge that infringement could occur imposes a duty on the Service Provider to monitor or search its service for infringement.

False

True or false: the World Wide International protection of Copyright, Entertainment, Intellectual Property Without Borders Act (WIPCEIPWBA) has established a complete International Copyright law in which encompasses all jurisdictions for protection of anyone's exclusive rights in ownership of an original work.

False

Under a controlled composition clause in a record contract the artist guarantees the record company that it will be able to deliver songs at statutory rates.

False

Sheila Goodwin is an up and coming, but brash young recording artist. She is known more for for her outlandish and bizarre stage costumes than for her vocal ability. Because of her unconventional style and costumes many publishers will not grant a mechanical license to Goodwin to record covers of their songs which have been previously recorded by major artists and distributed to the public many times. Goodwin obtains a compulsory license to record the musical composition, "Yakety Sax", which she performs on stage in an outrageous costume while playing "Yakety Sax" on the kazoo. The publishing company which owns "Yakety Sax" threatens Goodwin with copyright infringement. If Goodwin is sued for infringement, who will win?

Goodwin, because nothing in Section 115 of the Copyright Act prohibits a compulsory license from being issued when the artist plays the song on a different instrument than that for which it was written.

A joint work is two or more authors contribution to the creation and must:

Have the intent to combine their contributions into a unitary whole at the time of their creations.

The Copyright Law in other countries regarding file-sharing companies, the courts have ruled:

In Australia, the company Sharman Networks liable for infringement committed by users of the Kazza file-sharing software.

Carol wrote a song and made a lyrics video for it. Without Carol's permission, Ken uploaded the video to Zoo Tube. Zoo Tube does not know that Ken did not have Carol's permission to upload the video and has not received a financial benefit from the video. Zoo Tube has notified the Copyright Office that the head of its legal department should receive notices of any copyright infringements on Zoo Tube. Carol has contacted Zoo Tube and demanded that it remove her video. Which of the following statements is true?

In order to qualify for "safe harbor" and avoid liability for copyright infringement, Zoo Tube must take down Carol's video.

By or under the authority of the copyright owner a work is "fixed in a tangible medium of expression" when:

Is sufficiently permanent or stable to permit it to be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated for a period of more than a transitory duration.

The case of Herbert v. Shanley was important because:

It established that playing music publicly without a license was infringement.

Copyright owner receives a "Summons and Complaint" from the court initiated by Party John Doe and Copyright owner becomes a party to a law suit, Copyright Owner is:

Known as the defendant.

Laura is a songwriter and composes musical compositions. Carl does not write music but is a talented vocalist. Laura and Carl formed a musical act (just the two of them) based on their respective contributions. They land a record deal (in which Laura writes music and Carl is a singer) providing them with lots of exposure, including radio airplay. In January 2007, the record company that signed them, Sound of Songs, produces a sound recording of a song Laura wrote and Carl sang called "Dead Skunk". All rights in the sound recording of "Dead Skunk" are owned by Sound of Songs. "Dead Skunk" is played on digital radio. Who will receive royalties for its airplay?

Laura, Carl, and Sound of Songs

The Digital Millennium Copyright Act:

Limits the remedies available against On-line Service Providers in certain circumstances.

The Berne Convention applies to:

Literary and artistic works which shall include every production in the literary and artistic domain, whatever may be the mode or form of expression.

Alice is the lead actress in the popular Broadway show revival, "Annie Get Your Gun". Alice has the lead role of Annie Oakley and wants to record all of her solos in her dramatic character just as she performs them in each performance of the play. She has a lucrative contract offer to promote her career by distributing her recordings through Muzak which will place her recordings on its background music service. Her problem is that the publisher of all of the music in the show refuses to give her a license to record the songs. Can Alice get a compulsory license for her Muzak recordings?

No

Martha White wrote a song entitled "Flour Love Is Forever". Betty Crocker wrote a song entitled "Eternal Burning Love". Neither White or Crocker ever saw or heard the other's work, but the chorus of both songs was was identical to an 1890 folk song chorus which went into the public domain before either White's or Crocker's song was written. Can White or Crocker sue the other for infringement and win, assuming that the only similarity between the two compositions is the chorus?

No

"Love Me Tender", written by Elvis Presley and Vera Matson, was based on the public domain melody of the song, "Aura Lee", written in 1861. Since "Love Me Tender" had different lyrics that "Aura Lee", did Presley and Matson have to get a license from the author of Aura Lee?

No, because Aura Lee was in the public domain by the time Presley and Matson wrote Love Me Tender.

Ed is an up and coming country artist who is bootstrapping his career by touring and selling his recordings to fans after each of his shows. After a busy Spring touring season, Ed comes to Nashville to record his newest record of cover songs, all of which have been recorded and distributed as hits by various artists. Ed records the album over the memorial Day weekend (May 19-21) and he immediately leaves town to tour the West Coast and the Southwest. The new recordings are finished, mixed, mastered and manufactured by June 1st and the new recordings sell well during the Summer touring season. Ed tours all summer and finally gets around to requesting compulsory licenses from the various publishers of the songs recorded in May over the Labor Day weekend. Can he reasonably expect to be granted compulsory licenses from the publishers of the songs he recorded?

No, because Ed failed to request the license within 30 days of recording the songs and before public distribution.

Heinz is a native of Germany who lawfully immigrated to the U.S. and discovered the writing of James Patterson. None of Patterson's books were published in Germany. Heinz decided to translate Patterson's works in German to take advantage of a business opportunity. Can Heinz do that without infringing on Patterson's copyright in his books?

No, because such a translation would be a derivative work and would require a license from the author.

Is the United States Constitution copyrightable?

No, it is not copyrightable because works of the U.S. government cannot be copyrighted.

A music lover buys a CD of her favorite artist at a retail store. She listens to the CD repeatedly for six months, and then grows tired of it. Using "ripper" software, she converts the tracks on the CD to MP3 files on her computer, and uploads the MP3 to a file-sharing website where she is able to obtain for free the newest single by the same artist. She can do this under which of the following laws or copyright principles?

None of the above

A work that takes an existing work and adapts it in some way in order to create a new work is:

None of the above

ASCAP. BMI, Harry Fox and SESAC are _________, which ________:

None of the above

The Audio Home Recording Act exempts consumers from copyright infringement for home taping of copyrighted works for the following instances:

None of the above

The First Sale Doctrine:

None of the above

American recording artist Carl Hill is a successful rapper that recorded his most famous record in 1990 with French based record label LaSmoov. While in France he signed a typical publishing deal granting publishing rights to the label's publishing arm LaWord Publishing. What is the earliest year Carl Hill could send a termination letter for his copyright.

None of the above.

If a work is created as a work made for hire in 1990, the termination of transfer by the work's author will occur in which of the following years?

None of the above.

The basic requirement(s) for a work to be capable of copyright protection is/are:

None of the above.

In order to prove an infringement claim, a copyright owner must prove two elements: (1) the copying of a copyrighted work by the alleged infringer; and (2) ____________:

Ownership of a valid copyright by the copyright owner.

The right to prepare derivative works of a copyright-protected work is found in what section of the U.S. Copyright Act?

Section 106(2)

The court in the Biz Markie case (Grand Upright Music v. Warner Bros. Records) said that sampling a copyrighted work without permission:

Simply equals theft.

When a court finds that the infringement was committed willfully, a court can award:

Statutory damages up to $150,000

The ordinary observer test in substantial similarity proof is also known as:

Subjective test

The Supreme Court held in the Grokster file-sharing case:

That Grokster was likely guilty of contributory copyright infringement by inducing and encouraging users of their software to infringe.

Congress passed this amendment to the U.S. Copyright Act in 1891 to enable the President of the United States to extend copyright protection to works originating in foreign countries if they provided protection for American Works. Its name was:

The Chace Act

Under which of the following acts was the renewal period of copyright protection extended to 28 years thus increasing the period of copyright protection to 56 years (28 year initial period plus a 28 year extension period)?

The Copyright Act of 1909

A limitation on the distribution right is listed in Section 109(a) of the U.S. Copyright as follows: "...the owner of a particular copy or phonorecord lawfully made under this title, or any person authorized by such owner, is entitled, without the authority of the copyright owner, to sell or otherwise dispose of the possession of that copy or phonorecord." The quote is referred to as:

The First Sale Doctrine

The international treaty designed to protect international protection against record piracy by recognizing the rights of reproduction, distribution, and importation of sound recordings is called:

The Geneva Convention

Which of the following organizations lobbied in favor of the "Fairness in Music Licensing Act"?

The National Restaurant Association

Which of the following federal statutes provides for criminal prosecution even if no financial profit or commercial advantage is derived from a copyright infringement?

The No Electronic Theft Act

Section 106(1) gives the copyright owner the exclusive right to reproduce, and to authorize others to reproduce the copyrighted work and is know as:

The Reproduction Right

Congress has the power to promote the progress of Science and Useful Arts by securing for limited times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive right to their writings and discoveries pursuant to:

The US Constitution

Originality (Works of Authorship) under Copyright Law means:

The Work owes its creation to the Author through independent creation rather than Author copying from another work.

For purposes of the "work for hire" concept, a person is an "employee" if:

The hiring party has the right to control the manner and means by which the work is performed.

A restaurant comes up with an idea to increase business on weeknights, promoting a dinner and a movie night on Wednesdays. Any customers that have dinner at the restaurant on Wednesdays can watch a movie at no additional cost. Each Wednesday, the restaurant plays a popular movie on a large screen beginning a 7:00 p.m. The restaurant rents DVDs of the movies from Netflix. Which of the following is true?

The restaurant is infringing by exercising the public performance right in the movies without permission of the copyright owners.

If a copyrighted recording of a copyrighted song is broadcast over the airwaves by a local radio station (analog), which of the following will receive performance royalties?

The songwriter and music publisher

What happens to works created in the U.S. before March 1, 1989?

They are protected by the UCC

Bill and Alex opened their dream business of an exclusive used record store. At this store, all CDs were rare original print used CDs legally obtained through various means. All the CDs were sold two to three times the value they were originally bought. They also had a VIP program that allowed a selected group to rent the high priced CDs. After six months of being open they were doing very well for themselves until they received notice that they had been sued by one of the record labels of several of the popular artists in their inventory. Why did Bill and Alex get sued?

They violated the Record Rental Amendment Act of 1984.

The primary purpose of copyright law under the "utilitarian philosophy":

To encourage the widest possible production and availability of artistic works by granting to authors property rights that provide them with financial incentives to produce and distribute creative works.

Protection of names, designs, symbols, colors, packaging, containers, used by business to identify the source of their goods and services are governed by:

Trademark Law

An infringer who sells a recording containing one unlicensed song is liable for one (1) statutory damages award regardless of how many records were actually sold.

True

Any person having an interest in a copyright may at any time record in the Copyright Office a statement of the date of death of the author of the copyrighted work, or a statement that the author is still living on a particular date.

True

True or false: recordation of transfers of copyright ownership with the Copyright Office are not mandatory, but are necessary to establish rule of priority between transferees when a copyright owner makes multiple transfers of the same interest.

True

True or false: the "No Electronic Theft Act" provided for criminal prosecutions even if no profit or monetary gain is derived from the infringing activity such as trading MP3 files over the internet.

True

True or false: the Copyright Act requires that transfers of copyright ownership must be made in writing.

True

True or false: the purpose of the safe harbors was to facilitate the growth of the Internet by making it safe to produce innovations, like websites offering content in fresh ways.

True

True or false: to be subject to a compulsory license for a sound recording digital performance a subscription transmission (webcast) must meet detailed requirements that exist primarily to prevent home taping of sound recordings.

True

True or false: under the national treatment principle, each country agrees to give citizens of foreign countries the same degree of copyright protection that it gives to its own citizens.

True

When a music file is downloaded it involves how many copyrights which may complicate licensing?

Two

In 1981, Bob wrote a song and assigned the copyright to a music publisher. The publisher issued a mechanical license to Wacko Records, which manufactured and distributed phonorecords of the song. In return for the license, the record label paid mechanical royalties to the publisher. It is now 2017, 36 years later, and Bob has terminated his 1981 transfer and recaptured the copyright in the song. Now that he has regained ownership of the song's copyright, Bob has notified Wacko Records that in order to continue selling phonorecords of the song, Wacko must obtain a new mechanical license, this time from him, and pay him mechanical royalties. What result is required by copyright law?

Wacko Records' original license from the music publisher is still valid, because phonorecords are derivative works, so Wacko does not need to obtain a new license from Bob.

The newest hip-hop music star out of LA is 19 year old Will Winn. The songs Winn rapped were written exclusively by CC Ryder. The third single hit big on (digital) urban radio (satellite and streaming) and was getting thousands of spins per day. When the performance royalty checks came out Winn was surprised to learn he got a lot of money. Why does Winn get money in this situation?

Winn is owed a performance royalty because he sang the songs on digital radio.

The Copyright Renewal Act of 1992 amended the law and made renewal automatic for which of the following years?

Works created from 1964 to 1977.

The next two questions have same fact pattern. In 2000 you published a song with Sony Publishing in Nashville, TN. You passed away in 2015. Your spouse is your only living relative. She knew you always felt your Sony deal in 2000 was a bad deal. She sent a termination notice to Sony in 2025 to get your copyrights back. In 2027 Sony offered her a deal for twice the amount as the original deal. Can she exercise the right to termination and can she negotiate a new deal with Sony?

Yes and yes

Apple Auction, Inc. ("Apple"), ran a flea market where independent vendors set up booths to sell CDs as well as other items. Fantasia, Inc. ("Fantasia"), a record company that specialized in country music recordings sued Apple alleging that many of the CDs sold were unauthorized copies of its copyrighted sound recordings. Fantasia also alleged that Apple knew that most of the CDs being sold were counterfeit because they were being sold for prices well below normal sales prices (like 3 CDs for $4.99). It was held that the individual vendors were direct infringers, but was Apple liable?

Yes, because Apple controlled and patrolled the vendors during the flea market and received substantial financial benefit from the infringing sales, including rental fees from vendors, admission fees from customers and payments for parking, food and other services.

Susan has written 10 unpublished songs and recorded them on a CD. She has given each song a title and titled the CD "Susan's Songs: Until Now". She would like to register the copyrights to her songs as the copyright owner, but does not want to pay the $55.00 filing fee for each song. Can she register her CD (including all the songs) as an unpublished collection and pay only $55.00?

Yes, because she meets all the requirements for registering an unpublished collection.

Seymor Luck has been a very successful recording artist for 20 years recording many albums and receiving several gold and platinum awards. He has not managed his money well and begins demanding 50% ownership of songs he records from the authors of the works. Luck sells so many records that most songwriters cut Luck in and give Luck a share of the copyright ownership in and to the songs he records even though Luck makes absolutely no contributions to the songs. Is this legal?

Yes, if the real writers sign an agreement with Luck that makes him a co-owner.

Charles Dickens (1812-1870) wrote "A Christmas Carol" in 1843. Can you prepare a screenplay for a new film based on this novel?

Yes, protection for this work has expired, and it has fallen into public domain and anyone is free to use the work.

Charles Dickens (1812 - 1870) wrote A Christmas Carol in 1843. Can you prepare a screenplay for a new film based on this novel?

Yes, protection for this work has expired, and it has fallen into to public domain and anyone is free to use the work.