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1: Disney Survives an Appeals Court Scare in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ Case
First off today, Eriq Gardner at The Hollywood Reporter Esquire reports that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of Disney in a case over the popular Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise.
The lawsuit was filed by author Royce Mathew, who claimed to have come up with some of the original concepts in the films and presented them to Disney for the purpose of using it in the theme park ride of the same name. However, Mathew withdrew his first lawsuit and then signed a release form.
Mathew, then filed a second and third lawsuit but Disney argued that he failed to properly rescind his previous release before filing and that fact prejudiced Disney. According to Disney, that failure caused them to move forward with the franchise when they wouldn’t have otherwise and do so in a manner that wasn’t preparing for litigation. The lower court agreed and the appeals court, in a 2-1 split decision, upheld that verdict.
2: Daren Tang Elected Chairman of Standing Committee on Copyright at World Body
Next up today, Rupali Karekar at The Straights Times reports that Daren Tang, currently the chief executive of the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore, has been elected the chairman of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
WIPO is a self-funded agency of the United Nations that attempts to harmonize help shape international intellectual property policy. It administers some 26 different treaties, including the Berne Convention, which harmonizes copyright law across signatory nations.
The election is the first for a Singaporean and Tang’s tenure will last two years. During that time he will be overseeing international developments on copyright at WIPO and may be crucial in any international disputes over copyright policy.
3: Copyright Claim Yanks Fan-Made Breath of the Wild 2D Adaptation
Finally today, Owen Good at Polygon reports that a fan-created adaptation of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has been taken down due to a copyright claim by Nintendo of America.
Based on a 2D prototype, Breath of the NES was intended to be a hybrid of the modern game and the classic games that started the franchise. A demo of the game was uploaded to itch.io last week and included many elements of the current game but in a 2D format.
However, itch.io received a copyright notice from Nintendo of America and promptly pulled the game down. However, the game’s creator has said that the project will come back “bigger and better”. In the meantime, Nintendo will likely continue being aggressive in protecting its intellectual property, having shut down an 562 fan-made games on just one hosting website.
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.
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