3 Count: Psychic Lawsuit

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1: Bella Hadid Sued for Copyright Infringement Over 2020 Instagram Photo

First off today, The Messenger reports that Bella Hadid is joining a long list of celebrities who have been sued by a photographer claiming infringement in a photo posted to her Instagram.

The case was filed by Chose Figure LLC, which holds the rights to a paparazzi-taken photograph of Hadid that they allege was used on Hadid’s Instagram without permission. According to the lawsuit, Hadid posted the photograph in August 2020, and it featured Hadid walking down a street in sweatpants and a crop top.

The lawsuit is seeking actual damages as well as attorneys’ fees and other costs. The case is similar to ones that have been filed against many other celebrities, including Hadid’s older sister, Gigi Hadid, who was sued over a paparazzi photo she featured on her Instagram in 2019. She later won that case.

2: Copyright: Safaricom to Pay Rapper Bamboo Sh4.5m After Nine-Year Battle

Next up today, Sinda Matiko at Nation Africa reports that, in Kenya, former musician Simon Kimani, better known as Bamboo, has won a Sh4.5m ($31,500) judgment against local mobile phone provider Safaricom over the alleged infringement of three of his works.

The lawsuit was first filed in 2015 and accused Safaricom of using three of his tracks, Mama Africa, Yes Indeed and Move On as callback tunes on the network. In addition to Safaricom, the case also targeted two other companies that Kimani said were part of the infringement.

Safaricom, for their part, had said that they entered into a separate agreement with a third party to license the songs. However, the judge took no sympathy on that argument, noting that the company also didn’t do due diligence in verifying that they had the rights they needed. Multiple attempts to settle the case fell through, setting the stage for the lengthy court battle.

3: Seattle Psychic Startup Hit with Copyright Lawsuit it Never Saw Coming

Finally today, Paul Roberts at The Seattle Times reports that a Seattle-based fortunetelling startup is facing a copyright infringement lawsuit from a younger Florida-based company in the same space.

The lawsuit was filed by Enlightened Today, accusing Soulmate Medium of copyright infringement. According to the lawsuit, Soulmate has been copying marketing materials “nearly verbatim” which both prompted the lawsuit and for Enlightened Today to file a takedown notice against Soulmate’s site, which got the page removed for much of the month of July.

The site has been restored though, according to Soulmate Medium, the removal took away nearly all their business for the month. Soulmate Medium, for their part, has denied any wrongdoing and says that the case is an “illegal shakedown” by a competitor.

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