Legal Issues Final

T or F: After successfully terminating a previous copyright transfer, the author may then revoke (or renounce) licenses and agreements that were entered into prior to termination.

False

T or F: Assignments of copyright may be oral (i.e., not in writing) so long as the oral assignment is witnessed by two or more persons.

False

T or F: Copyright infringement can be avoided through proper attribution (credit) to the copyright owner.

False

T or F: Creation of a derivative work extends the copyright protection for the original work to the life of the derivative work author plus 70 years.

False

T or F: Failing to put proper copyright notice on a published work will cause the work to fall into the public domain.

False

T or F: If a defendant can prove by a preponderance of the evidence that s/he did not know (and had no reason to know) that s/he was committing copyright infringement, the plaintiff cannot prevail against the defendant in an infringement action.

False

T or F: Once trademark rights are acquired, they cannot be lost as long as the brand continues to use the mark.

False

T or F: The concept of de minimis use allows a person to always sample up to 3 seconds of a recording without committing copyright infringement.

False

T or F: The formal power of the court to exercise judicial authority over a particular matter is called personal jurisdiction

False

T or F: when there is a conflict between the state and federal law, principles of federalism dictate that the state law must be respected.

False

Trademark infringement requires the plaintiff to prove actual consumer confusion.

False

True or false: before a defendant can be found liable for copyright infringement, the plaintiff must first prove the defendants culpability beyond reasonable doubt

False

T or F: The reproduction of a copyrighted work is prohibited without permission of the copyright holder, unless the use is a fair use.

True

T or F: Trademark rights can last indefinitely.

True

Teddy woke up one day and was inspired to paint a series of oil on canvas paintings. He spent two weeks alone in his house completing the series. Based only on this information, Teddy would be considered (select all that apply): The author of the paintings, the creator of the paintings, the owner of the painting copyright, the owner of the physical paintings.

All of the above. The author of the paintings, the creator of the paintings, the owner of the painting copyright, and the owner of the physical paintings.

Termination of copyright assignment doesn't affect: a) Dispositions made by will b) Foreign rights c) Derivative works created before the termination d) Works made for hire e) All of the above

All of the above a) Dispositions made by will b) Foreign rights c) Derivative works created before the termination d) Works made for hire

Which types of works can be used to create derivative works? a) Sound recordings b) Musical works c) Audiovisual works d) Choreographic works

All of the above. Sound recordings, Musical works, Audiovisual works and Choreographic works

The statute of limitations in the Copyright Act is: a) 5 years b) 2 years c) 10 years d) 3 years e) 8 years

3 years

The 1976 Act provides authors a ____ year window to terminate a previously made transfer of copyright, beginning on the 35th anniversary of the transfer. a) 5 b) 15 c) 35 d) 10

5

Which of the following would be considered a derivative work? a) A sound recording of a musical work b) A motion picture containing dialog from a screenplay c) A play based on a "Confederacy of Dunces" d) A choreographic work created while listening to a sound recording

A sound recording of a musical work A motion picture containing dialog from a screenplay A play based on a "Confederacy of Dunces" *a choreographic work based on a poem*

Which of the following are listed in the Copyright Act as eligible to be specially commissioned works for hire? a) musical compositions b) sound recordings c) photographs d) pantomimes e) a fictional literary book f) a translation g) an audio visual work h) architectural renderings

A translation and an audio visual work

Courts will allow a plaintiff to prove factual copying using indirect evidence if the plaintiff can show that the defendant had ____________ the plaintiff's work and there are probative similarities between the plaintiff and defendant's work. a) access b) A direct connection with c) intent to copy d) an affiliation with

Access

The right to prepare derivative works is often referred to as the right of: a) adaption b) publication c)Enumeration d) Iteration

Adaption

In the United States, trademark rights are acquired by: a) Adoption + Priority + Registration b) Adoption + Priority c) Registration d) Adoption + Originality

Adoption + Priority

Tallulah hired Andre the producer, an independent contractor, to create a "beat" for Tallulah to record her vocals over. Tallulah described the general feel and sound she was looking for in the beat to Andre, who subsequently delivered a WAV file to Tallulah about a week later. Tallulah attempted to send Andre $1,500 via Chase QuickPay, but the payment did not clear because of insufficient funds. Who is the owner of the copyright in the musical composition? a) Tallulah b) Tallulah, but only if there was a signed work-for-hire agreement c) Andre d) Andre, unless Tallulah makes the required payment.

Andre

"APPLE" as a trademark for computers would be considered: a) Arbitrary b) Fanciful c) Suggestive d) Descriptive w Secondary Meaning e) Generic

Arbitrary

A collection of precedents and authority set by previous judicial decisions on a particular issue or topic is called...

Case Law

Andre and Teddy are music producers. They own a studio together and work together as a production team. Andre discovered a young musician named Charlie and offered her a deal she couldn't refuse. Andre and Teddy would arrange for a week-long recording session at their studio free of charge. Not only that, but Andre and Teddy offered to hire and pay all the studio musicians and vocalists needed for the sessions. Charlie asked Andre to help select and "work-up" (i.e., arrange) 10 compositions Charlie had previously written, which they did. Some songs were changed more than others, but Andre ended up re-wording some portion of the lyrics for each song. On the first day of the recording session, Andre and Teddy got food poisoning. Teddy called Tallulah (the engineer that they had contracted to record the sessions at their studio) and told her, "Look, you're the best engineer we know, that's why we wanted you on this project. We can't be there, but we know you'll knock it out of the park." After a two days of intense recording, Charlie emerged with a masterpiece. Tallulah had gone above and beyond the call of duty. Her efforts had transformed good songs into great sounding recordings. Charlie even told Tallulah, "There's no way these recordings would sound as amazing as they do had you not been here." Based on the strength of the recordings, Charlie was offered a record deal from Universal Music Group. Unfortunately, around the same time, Andre and Teddy had a falling out. They decided to part ways. The split was a bitter one. As a part of the record deal, UMG wanted to acquire all the rights to the album recorded at Andre and Teddy's studio. An executive at UMG called Andre to inquire about purchasing the recordings. Andre said that he had a verbal agreement with Charlie regarding the ownership of the recordings (Andre and Teddy had paid for them after all), but that there was nothing in writing yet. As a matter of copyright law, who has a potential copyright claim in the 10 sound recordings?

Charlie and Tallulah

On the spectrum of distinctiveness, the weakest kind of PROTECTABLE mark is: a) Descriptive w Secondary Meaning b) Fanciful c) Arbitrary d) Generic e) Suggestive

Descriptive w Secondary Meaning

Which of the following does not fall within the scope of copyrightable subject matter under U.S. law? A) pantomimes B)Sound recordings C) Ideas D)Architectural works E) Dance routines

Ideas

The burden of persuasion in a civil action requires the plaintiff to prove a claim by a "preponderance of the evidence," which means...

More likely true than not

For purposes of fair use analysis, is this an example of a parody? Weird Al's "Tacky"

No

T or F: Congress has the power to prevent state legislatures from creating their own copyright laws

True

Copyright law only protects "original" works of authorship. To be "original" the work must be: a) independently created b) At least minimally creative c) Substantially creative d) All of the above e) Only (a) and (b)

Independently created and at least minimally creative

A "common law" legal system relies on principles of stare decisis, which means...

Let the decision stand

Andre is the author of a musical play titled "It's Bubble Time!". The musical play is about friends who discover that they can travel through time by turning on the jets in a magic hot tub. Andre is concerned that "It's Bubble Time!" is also the title of an earlier published book, protected by copyright, about the fun things kids can do in the tub. Should Andre be concerned about a possible claim of copyright infringement resulting from his choice of title for his musical play? a) No, the subject matter of the two works are not substantially similar b) No, titles of books are not protected by copyright. c) Yes, the titles are identical d) Yes, because the idea for the title was already taken

No, titles of books are not protected by copyright.

Use of another brand's trademark in comparative advertising is an example of ___________________. a) Classic Fair Use b) Infringement c) Nominative Fair Use d) Unfair Competition

Nominative Fair Use

T or F: Some courts have held that a defendant doesn't actually have to distribute a work in order to violate the copyright owner's distribution right.

True

Which of the following is not a right afforded to sound recordings under the copyright act? Publicly perform (through digital audio transmissions), publicly perform (generally), prepare derivative works, reproduction

Publicly perform (generally)

T or F: Andre is a hip hop artist who wants to record a "cover" version of Outkast's "Ms. Jackson." He obtains a mechanical reproduction license to do so from the publisher of the composition. Instead of using the English lyrics, he translates them into Spanish and distributes his recording. Based only on these facts, Andre would be liable for copyright infringement.

True

Copyright ownership necessarily vests with

The author of the work

The concept of vertical Stare Decisis means that a decision from the federal fifth circuit court of appeals will be binding on...

The federal district courts within the fifth circuit

The copyright in a derivative work extends to... a) The entire work b)The new material added to the work c) None of the work d) only half of the work

The new material added to the work

Tallulah came upon a car crash involving a well-known celebrity who was obviously inebriated. Tallulah filmed the celebrity at the scene with the video function of her cell phone. The video was a minute in length. The quality of the video's audio and images was poor. Tallulah uploaded the video onto YouTube and opted to monetize the video. Within an hour the video had been stream-ripped and was all over the Internet. A local blogger, Teddy, obtained a copy of the video on a p2p network and posted it on his blog. Tallulah's lawyer sent Teddy a cease and desist letter. Teddy's lawyer says that the video may not be protected by copyright at all. The best argument for denying copyright protection for the video is: a) The audiovisual work was of poor quality b) The length of the audiovisual work is too short for copyright protection c)The work lacks sufficient originality d) Distributing the work without first registering the copyright caused the work to fall into the public domain

The work lacks sufficient originality

T or F: Before suing for infringement, a plaintiff must obtain (or be denied) a copyright registration from the Copyright Office.

True

Andre is a jazz trumpeter. He often has ideas for that wind up creeping into his improvisational solos. One night while playing with his trio, he played a melody during a solo that Charlie (an audience member) found very catchy. Charlie left the show humming the melody the whole ride home. When he got home he went home to his computer, where he played the melody on his keyboard and recorded it to GarageBand. The melody was looped over and over and became the fundamental piece of the song. Three weeks later, Andre heard Charlie's song on a local community radio. Andre instantly recognized the melody as the one he had played during his solo. Infuriated, Charlie went to a lawyer for advice on a potential copyright infringement suit. What question(s) should the lawyer ask? a) was the solo recorded? b)If the solo was recorded, was it released? c) If it was released, did it have a copyright notice on it? d) If the solo wasn't recorded, was the copyright registered?

Was the solo recorded?

Tallulah, a music supervisor working on behalf of a film production, was given a budget to secure 20 songs for the movie. Unfortunately she only cleared 19 songs and had no further budget to secure rights to the 20th. She decides to find a public domain composition on the understanding that it could be used in the movie without a license. Tallulah found an old blues song from the Mississippi delta that fit the mood she needed for a particular scene. The film was released and the production company received a cease and desist letter alleging that the inclusion of the song violated federal copyright law. The production company comes to you for your legal advice. What question would be most relevant to your evaluation of liability? a) How much of the song was used in the film? b) What year the songwriter died? c) What year was the recording embodying the composition created? d) Was the film released outside of the United States?

What year was the recording embodying the composition created?

An employee's creative works are owned by the employer as works made for hire: a) When created within the course and scope of employment b) Only for a one-year period after the employment relationship c) Only when there is a written agreement between the parties. d) None of the above

When created within the course and scope of employment

Andre has recently composed an original musical composition he has recorded on his personal digital audio recorder. He has not performed the composition for anyone, nor has he shared the recording with anyone. He has not registered the work with the Copyright Office and did not place a copyright notice on the digital recording. Is the musical composition protected by a federal copyright? a)Yes, because the musical composition is sufficiently fixed in a tangible medium of expression. b) No, because the recording is not accompanied by a proper copyright notice c) No, because the work was not timely registered d) Only once he deposits a "best edition" Copy with the Copyright Office.

Yes, because the musical composition is sufficiently fixed in a tangible medium of expression.

"TASTEE" as a mark for Apples would be considered: a) descriptive b) arbitrary c) fanciful d) generic

descriptive

Laws written by a legislature are known as

statutory law

Which of the following is NOT a "fair use" factor? a) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes b) the nature of the copyrighted work c) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole d) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work e) whether the defendant first asked for permission

whether the defendant first asked for permission