3 Count: Second Look

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1: Bad Bunny Reggaeton Copyright Case Ruling Gets Second Look From Judge

First off today, Nancy Dillon at RollingStone reports that a judge is reconsidering a ruling that would have sent a Bad Bunny copyright case to a jury, with multiple musicians and saying that could have a significant impact on both the case and the music industry more broadly.

The case pits the reggae duo Steely & Clevie against Bad Bunny. They claimed that Bad Bunny and other popular musicians infringed on their 1989 song Fish Market by using the percussion rhythm in their music. The judge in the case had previously ruled that it would require a jury trial to determine infringement, which caused many to worry about how the case would impact the genre.

Now those lawyers are asking the judge to reconsider that decision. According to lawyers representing the defendants, the case could grow to include more than 1,800 songs across 100 artists. At a hearing, the judge said that he is taking the arguments under advisement but that it would be weeks before he makes a ruling.

2: Court Rejects Fair Use Claim, Orders YouTube to Unmask Anime Recap Channels

Next up today, Ernesto Van der Sar at TorrentFreak writes that a California judge has ordered YouTube to unmask the operators of there popular anime recap channels, denying both a a fair use defense and a motion to quash the DMCA subpoena.

The subpoena was filed by the Japanese publisher KADOKAWA. They filed a DMCA subpoena demanding that YouTube unmask the operators. However, three of the users targeted filed a motion to quash the subpoena. They argued that their channels were not infringing and were protected under fair use. That prompted a fair use briefing in April, which the judge has now ruled on in favor of KADOKAWA.

To be clear, this ruling does not bring an end to the dispute over the DMCA subpoenas. It just means that these anime recap channels are not protected by fair use. The YouTubers can appeal the decision and a motion delaying the unmasking is still pending.

3: Bogus Copyright Claims Target WCMU’s Reporting on UP Bitcoin Mine, Congressional Candidate

Finally today, Tina Sawyer at WCMU reports that the site has had multiple articles removed from Google due to false copyright notices filed by an unknown party.

The articles in question covered an area Bitcoin mine as well as a Florida congressional candidate. The articles were scrubbed from Google search results following a copyright notice. That noticed alleged that the articles were plagiarized from an unknown source.

The articles have since been restored, though it is still unclear who filed the notices and why.

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