3 Count: Jetting Off

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1: Sony Music Sued by Patrick Moxey’s Ultra Music Publishing for Alleged Copyright Infringement

First off today, Murray Stassen at Music Business Worldwide reports that independent music publisher Ultra International has filed a lawsuit against Sony Music Entertainment and several of its subsidiaries.

According to the lawsuit, Ultra holds the rights to some 50,000 compositions. Ultra’s owner, Patrick Moxey, also owned the record label Ultra Records. However, Sony acquired that company, and Moxey continued to operate the music publisher.

This has led to a dispute between the two sides over the name. However, that fight has expanded, with Moxey filing a lawsuit against Sony, claiming it failed to pay adequate royalties to the songwriter that Ultra Publishing represents. He alleges that unlicensed songs have appeared in various forms, including streaming, for sale and in videos. He is seeking “at least” $15 million in damages.

2: “Reduce Pirated Sites”: Major Anime & Manga Anti-Piracy A.I. Project Gets Approval From Japanese Government

Next up today, Chike Nwaenie at CBR reports that the Japanese government has announced a new AI-powered detection system that it hopes will counter online anime and manga piracy sites.

The announcement comes from the Japanese government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs. They say they are developing a system to identify pirate websites and report them to search engines such as Google.

The move follows a slew of other anti-piracy actions from Japan. This includes private anti-piracy efforts, such as WEBTOON’s tracking technology, which has closed 70 piracy sites.

3: Logo Creator Seeks Copyright in New Infringement Case Against Jets

Finally, today, Robert Freedman at Legal Dive reports that Jim Pons, a former film and video director for the New York Jets, has filed for copyright protection in the franchise’s logo, saying that he created it in 1978 and was never compensated for it.

The Jets hired Pons in 1973. He began as an office worker but eventually headed the team’s in-house video production. In 1978, he entered a contest to create a new logo for the team and won. His version was used between 1978 and 1997.

When the Jets began using the logo again this year, he sued over it and attempted to file a trademark on it. The United States Patent and Trademark Office refused him. Now, he is asking the court to grant him a copyright to the work. However, most believe Pons has an uphill battle as the logo could be considered a work-made-for-hire as he was an employee. Pons is seeking a share of the revenue the team generates by selling merchandise that includes the logo.

The 3 Count Logo was created by Justin Goff and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.