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Patently ObviousAuthor: Michael Gniwisch
Michael Gniwisch and Alex DeLaney, 2Ls at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and board members of Penn's Intellectual Property Group (PIPG), interview influential intellectual property (IP) litigators about their preparation for landmark cases. Our goal is to enhance students' understanding of and passion for IP litigation practice as a supplement to their doctrinal study. The cases we have chosen are significant samplers of patent, copyright, and trademark law. Language: en Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it |
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Mattel v. MCA Records & A&M Records v. Napster with Mr. Russell Frackman
Episode 6
Monday, 14 June, 2021
“The parties are advised to chill.” Thus ends Judge Kozinski’s judicial opinion regarding the Barbie doll and the Euro-pop band, Aqua, who used her name in a song. “I’m a Barbie girl, in a Barbie world/life is plastic it’s fantastic.” Is that allowed or can Mattel, Barbie’s makers, sue Aqua for trademark infringement? The court held, no. Some terms enter the public domain and are protected by the First Amendment, the 9th Circuit held. The case is called Mattel v. MCA Records. The second case discussed in this episode is A&M Records v. Napster. Napster was a file-sharing website which allowed one party to upload music onto the site and others to download it. The 9th Circuit, in 2001, held that transmitting a file to a new medium was not “transformative” under the fair use doctrine. This adverse ruling eventually lead to Napster’s demise. Mr. Russell Frackman has been an entertainment and IP litigator for many years and has represented Hollywood personalities such as Jack Nicholson, Neil Diamond, Coldplay, and the Rolling Stones with Mitchell, Silberberg, and Knupp. Hope you enjoy this great conversation with an entertainment law veteran! Link to Mattel: https://casetext.com/case/mattel-inc-v-mca-records-inc Link to Napster: https://casetext.com/case/a-m-records-inc-v-napster-inc-3
