The Australian Government will conduct a review of current copyright enforcement measures in 2023, to ensure they remain “appropriate, effective and proportionate.” The Attorney-General’s Department has released an issues paper for public consultation, the first step towards determining whether Australia’s existing enforcement regime is fit-for-purpose.
Source: Australia Launches Copyright Enforcement Review & Consultation * TorrentFreak
The US Copyright Office over the next year will focus on addressing legal gray areas that surround copyright protections and artificial intelligence, amid increasing concerns that IP policy is lagging behind technology. The agency is standing by its decision that a copyright can’t be registered for a work created exclusively by an AI—an issue at the heart of an ongoing lawsuit against the office. However, the office is exploring open questions on copyright registration for works created by humans in conjunction with AI.
Source: Copyright Office Sets Sights on Artificial Intelligence in 2023
After debuting its NFT collectibles earlier this month, popular football club Manchester United Ltd Cl A (NYSE: MANU) and its official blockchain provider Tezos Foundation have been accused of copying monsters’ NFT traits belonging to Lucrece. The 7,777 digital collectibles announced by Manchester United are said to share most of their unique traits with Lucrece’s monster artwork.
Source: Manchester United and Tezos Foundation Accused of NFT Copyright Infringement
This weekend’s Public Domain Day will give our cultural commons a few particularly notable new works. As outlined by Duke Law School’s Center for the Study of the Public Domain, the start of 2023 will mark the end of US copyrights on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s final Sherlock Holmes stories — along with the seminal science fiction movie Metropolis, Virginia Woolf’s To the Lighthouse, and the first full-length “talkie” film The Jazz Singer.
Source: Sherlock Holmes will finally escape copyright this weekend
Royalties in the digital art market have become a hot-button topic since several NFT marketplaces, including LooksRare and Magic Eden, made paying royalties to artists optional. If you ask Jacob Horne, co-founder of the NFT and DAO platform Zora, things are headed in the wrong direction. “Royalties were one of the most compelling features of crypto to artists coming into the space,” Horne said, “because that’s been such a long-standing problem in the traditional art world or music world or any creative art form.”
Source: Artist Royalties Are Among ‘Most Compelling Features of Crypto’: Zora Co-Founder – Decrypt
Striking the proper balance between the rights of creators and the public is never easy, and the digital revolution in particular has caused significant hardships for copyright owners. But after years of disappointing developments, the tide seems to genuinely be turning for the better.
Source: The Year in Copyright: 2022 Gives Creators Hope for the Future
There is nothing soft and cuddly about the way Disney protects the characters it brings to life. For the first time, however, one of Disney’s marquee characters — Mickey himself — is set to enter the public domain. “Steamboat Willie,” the 1928 short film that introduced Mickey to the world, will lose copyright protection in the United States and a few other countries at the end of next year, prompting fans, copyright experts and potential Mickey grabbers to wonder: How is the notoriously litigious Disney going to respond?
Source: Early Version of Disney’s Mickey Mouse Will Soon Be Public Property
According to a 2022 recap of the Artists Forward initiative, published on Sony Music’s website this week, the Legacy Unrecouped Balance Program “has already paid through millions of dollars to thousands of our long-standing creators”, and that “over time, thousands of artists globally are poised to benefit from Legacy Unrecouped Balance support as they become eligible for the program”.
Despite hiccups, the NFT market continues to expand as we move into 2023. The NFT market is even projected to reach more than $230 billion by 2030. But with the swift rise comes numerous obstacles. Minting an NFT for a virtual asset containing artwork, a song, or trademarks that creators no longer own or have a valid license can land them severe legal trouble.
Source: Intellectual Property Rights Will be Key in Web3 and NFT Evolution
The UK Government’s Intellectual Property Office published new piracy guidance today, and it contains a small, easily missed detail. People who share their Netflix, Amazon Prime, or Disney+ passwords are violators of copyright law. And it gets worse. The IPO informs TorrentFreak that password sharing could also mean criminal liability for fraud.
Source: UK Govt: Netflix Password Sharing is Illegal & Potentially Criminal Fraud (Updated) * TorrentFreak