3 Count: The Lawsuit King

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1: Netflix Knocks Out Trademark Suit Over ‘Tiger King’

First off today, Ashley Cullins at The Hollywood Reporter Esquire reports that Netflix has scored a major legal win against Hollywood Weekly Magazine in their fight over intellectual property related to the Netflix series The Tiger King.

The magazine filed the lawsuit alleging both trademark and copyright infringement. According to the lawsuit, the magazine coined the name “The Tiger King” meaning that Netflix violated their trademarks. They further objected to the series featuring covers from the magazine in the series, prompting a copyright complaint.

The judge, however, has tossed both of those claims but is giving Hollywood Weekly Magazine an opportunity to amend and refile its copyright claims. That said, the court expressed extreme disbelief that the copyright claims would work, even if amended.

2: German Court: YouTube Not Obliged to Reveal Movie Pirates’ Email or IP Addresses

Next up today, Andy Maxwell at Torrentfreak writes that, in Germany, the Federal Court of Justice has ruled that YouTube is not required to hand over information about a suspected pirate user, this includes both their email address and IP address.

The case was filed by Constantin Film, the rightsholder for many titles in Germany including Scary Movie 5 and Parker. Back in 2013 and 2014, they targeted three users that uploaded those films to the site and, in addition to seeking removal of the films, also wanted contact information for the subscribers.

A lower court rejected that request though a higher court partially restored it. This set the stage for the case to go to the Federal Court of Justice, which ruled in YouTube’s favor. The court further found that YouTube does not have to hand over any phone numbers or birthdays it may have on file.

3: 2021 Will Launch the Platinum Age of Piracy

Finally today, Abigail De Kosnik at Wired writes that, as Disney and Warner Bros. are transitioning their movie releases to include streaming services, it may lead to a “platinum age of piracy” as major Hollywood films quickly become available on pirate networks.

In recent weeks, both Warner and Disney have announced that their new films will be released on streaming services, HBO Max and Disney+ respectively, either alongside or instead of theatrical releases. However, such releases are much easier for pirates to obtain high-quality illegal copies of, possibly setting the stage for a film piracy renaissance.

Kosnik goes on to predict that Disney may not be as negatively impacted as some because their films often serve to promote not just their streaming service, but their theme parks, toys, cruises and other in-person events. However, much of that depends on those spaces reopening and recovering quickly following the pandemic.

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