3 Count: Confused KISS

Jonathan BaileyMarch 14, 2014

3 minutes read

Have any suggestions for the 3 Count? Let me know via Twitter @plagiarismtoday.

1: Solicitor General Asks to Argue Aereo Case at Supreme Court

First off today, Ira Teinowitz at The Wrap reports that the U.S. Justice Department is asking the Supreme Court for the right to to argue on behalf of broadcasters against Aereo in the upcoming hearing in April.

Aereo is a TV streaming service that uses a series of tiny antennas, one per customer, to capture and stream over-the-air broadest television over the Internet. It has been repeatedly sued by broadcasters with mixed results. However, one of the cases, which saw an injunction against Aereo be denied by the lower courts, is now heading to the Supreme Court.

The Justice Department had previously filed a friend of the court brief in the case and is now asking to argue it directly. This move is not uncommon as the U.S. Justice Department routinely testifies on behalf of cases where it has filed briefs. However, it is still an extra show of support for broadcasters in their case.

2: Music Rights Australia Backs Brandis’ Copyright Crackdown

Next up today, Josh Taylor at ZDNet reports that Music Rights Australia, a group that represents musicians and labels through the Australian Recording Industry Association, has announced that they support an initiative to block websites that commit large amounts of copyright infringement, such as The Pirate Bay, through court orders.

The organization points to similar laws that have been implemented in the UK and Italy to show that such legislation would not break the Internet. They also say that it is necessary because the recent iiNet case, which saw the local ISP be absolved of responsibility for user activity and not required to block infringing sites, shows that Australia is not complying with free trade agreements it signed.

The move comes amid reports that movie studios may be pressuring Netflix to stop accepting Australian credit cards. It’s estimated that some 50,000-200,000 Australians access the U.S.-only service through a virtual private network. Local video streaming services, such as Quickflix, have called for an end to Netflix’s “free ride” in the country.

3: Who Is Drumming Up KISS Royalty Dispute?

Finally today, Eriq Gardner at The Hollywood Reporter Esquire reports that the rock band KISS, was brought into a New York court thanks to legal action being taken by someone claiming to represent the estate of Eric Carr, the band’s drummer who died in 1991, claiming that it was underpaid royalties.

The filing was a pre-action disclosure, a filing that is made before a legal claim, seeking discovery. However, there seems to be some confusion as to just who is filing the action as KISS is claiming that the lawyer and individuals behind it do not have the authority to represent the estate.

A separate attorney claiming to represent the estate has sent a cease and desist too stop further actions by the other claimed estate. However, the attorney representing the petitioner says that the it is filer of the cease and desist who is in the wrong, representing only Carr’s sister, who has no control over the estate.

Suggestions

That’s it for the three count today. We will be back tomorrow with three more copyright links. If you have a link that you want to suggest a link for the column or have any proposals to make it better. Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email. I hope to hear from you.