3 Count: Keep Shaking
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1: Can’t Shake This: Taylor Swift to Face Copyright Lawsuit
First off today, Reuters reports that a lawsuit accusing Taylor Swift of copyright infringement in her 2014 hit single Shake it Off has been allowed to move ahead, setting the stage for a possible trial.
The lawsuit pits Swift against songwriters Sean Hall and Nathan Butler. According to the duo, they wrote the song Playas Gon’ Play, elements of which they allege were copied by Swift for her song. Swift had called for the case to be dismissed, saying that the works were fundamentally different and that there was no need for a trial.
The judge, however, disagreed. The judge ruled that, even though the defense made a great argument, there were still triable facts in the case and that many of the issues raised by Swift were ones to be decided by a jury, not a judge. As such, the long-running lawsuit has survived another hurdle and could be heading toward a trial.
2: Sonny Bono’s Widow Strikes Back in Cher Copyright Fight
Next up today, Bill Donahue at Billboard reports that Cher’s battle with Sony Bono’s widow, Mary Bono, is heading up as Mary has hit back, claiming that Cher is attempting to claim that her divorce agreement is more powerful than a law passed by the U.S. Congress.
Whey Sonny and Cher divorced in 1975, they began work on a divorce agreement that was signed in 1978. That agreement gave Cher 50% share of the rights to the music they created together. However, Mary Bono, who married Sonny after the divorce, has now filed copyright termination of that agreement in a bid to reclaim all the rights.
Copyright termination is a clause under the Copyright Act of 1978 that allows artists or their heirs to terminate previous agreements related to licensing their work. However, Cher is arguing that copyright termination does not apply in this case, prompting Mary Bono to accuse Cher of trying to place her divorce agreement ahead of the Copyright Act.
3: Portland Photographers File Federal Suit Against Andy Ngo Alleging Copyright Infringement
Finally today, Kale Williams at The Oregonian reports that two Portland-based photographers have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against conservative author Andy Ngo alleging that Ngo took videos they recorded and uploaded them to his social media accounts without permission.
According to the lawsuit, the pair recorded a pair of videos at protests in Portland on that took place on October 1. They uploaded those videos to Twitter, but Ngo would later download those videos and reupload them to his own accounts. Those tweets have already been removed by Twitter.
However, Ngo claims that he did nothing wrong and that he complied with the Twitter terms of service. He claims to have only used tools provided by Twitter and, as the plaintiffs allege, have downloaded the videos separately.
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