Copyright In the News
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Govt proposes update to copyright laws
A proposal has been made by the government to update the Copyright Act to better incorporate regulations around digital and other emerging technologies. (Sydney Morning Herald 14/10/11)
CommsAlliance joins iiNet copyright case
Communications Alliance (a teleco industry trade group) is the latest body to become involved in the case. The group have asserted a need to be involved due to the outcome of the case weighing heavily on the future operations of the industry. (Advanced Television 14/10/11)
Privacy body joins iiNet copyright High Court case
The Australian Privacy Foundation has made an application to become involved in the renowned iiNet case to ensure that privacy is appropriately considered in the trial. (The Australian 12/10/11)
'Authorisation' key to AFACT v iiNet High Court appeal
ITWire takes a closer look at some of the factors of the upcoming iiNet High Court appeal. (ITWire 06/10/11)
Copyright clash over sport on mobiles
Telstra is threatening to campaign for changes to the Copyright Act if their case is lost to Optus over their controversial TV Now service. (The Australian 07/10/11)
Blog entry from the Authors Guild highlighting some recent issues with the HathiTrust and supposed “orphaned works” (The Authors Guild Blog 06/10/11)
Australia to sign copyright treaty this Saturday
Australia is due to sign a new Anti Counterfeiting Trade Agreement in a bid to increase protection for industries and brands against counterfeiting on an international scale. (itnews 28/09/11)
AFL takes Optus to court over rights
The AFL and NRL have taken action against Optus asking the court to deny Optus the ability to make games available for viewing through their TV Now service claiming damages to current and potential rights contracts. (Sydney Morning Herald 27/09/11)
Progress in online piracy talks at the federal Attorney-General's Department
Various representatives from internet and entertainment industries have attended the first of a number of formal discussions with the Attorney-General’s department relating to working towards an agreement for combating online piracy (The Australian 27/10/11)
The copyright revolution at US art museums
A small group of museums have worked together to release high resolution copies of works from their collections; making them available online for use by anyone without copyright restrictions. (ArtInfo 15/09/11)
Telstra has voiced its anger over the release of the Optus TV Now service which allows users to watch TV broadcasts over phone, tablet or computer during or after the broadcast. The service is a threat to Telstra and arguably a violation of their multi-million dollar contract with the AFL securing broadcasting rights for games – including significantly – the AFL Grand Final. (Sydney Morning Herald 15/09/11)
US colleges hit with Aussie author suit
Authors and societies of authors – including the Australian Society of Authors have joined together to take legal action against a number of US colleges who have been accused of collecting millions of illegal scans of books with the intention of distributing them. (ZDNet 13/09/11)
EU Extends Copyright Protection From 50 To 70 Years
Copyright protection on performed and recorded works in Europe, has been extended from 50 – 70 years despite 8 countries rejecting the extension. (Intellectual Property Watch 12/09/11)
Sensis urges update of copyright law to protect phone directories
Telstra’s Sensis, has called for the Attorney-General’s copyright reform to include copyright in original databases, after a ruling earlier this year decided there was no copyright in Yellow and White Pages listings. (The Australian 09/09/11)
Copyright law puts brakes on Internet traffic
The roll out date of September first to commence NZ’s new three strikes policy has come and brought with it a new trend of internet behaviour. (NZherald.co.nz 07/09/11)
AFACT Uncle Sam's puppet in iiNet trial
After a recent release from Wikileaks, it appears that the Motion Picture Association of America has had a hidden hand in pushing AFACT’s case against iiNet. (Sydney Morning Herald 02/09/11)
MP3tunes Claims Victory in EMI Suit
MP3tunes have been granted a ‘safe harbour’ exemption though future litigation is not out of the question. (San Diego Reader 31/08/11)
US studios avoided Telstra battle and went after iiNet instead in copyright case
Wikileaks reveals that the US film studios guided AFACT to file suit against iiNet rather than seeking action with a larger provider. (The Australian 31/08/11)
Zediva movie streaming site cops an injunction
An injunction has been put in place against a US film streaming services (Australian Copyright Council 25/08/11)
Move By Universities Creates New Problem For Google Books Deal
Some US Universities have decided to digitise and make available collections of orphaned works, despite the subject of orphan works being a serious drawback in the Google Books case. (Paidcontent.org 30/08/11)
Optus has asked the Federal Court to declare whether their new TV Now service is lawful after receiving complaints from the AFL and NRL that the service violated their copryight. (Sydney Morning Herald 30/08/11)
Publishers tackle Rugby World Cup over copyright
The International Rugby Board are imposing restrictions on durations of footage and how the footage is used in reporting on the Rugby World Cup for journalists attending the game. The restrictions (which contradict rights given under the Australian Copyright Act) are forcing news groups to consider reporting from afar. (The Canberra Times 25/08/11)
A-G in call for talks on online piracy
The Attorney General’s Department have called for a meeting with industry stakeholders to discuss options for combating online piracy. (The Australian 24/08/11)
NSW Police in row over copyright charges
Micro Focus, a company responsible for producing ViewNow software, has alleged that NSW Police have been distributing more copies of the program than what has been licensed. NSW Police are disputing the matter claiming they have a right to make unlimited copies. (The Australian 23/08/11)
Amazon, Dropbox, Google and You Win in Cloud-Music Copyright Decision
MP3tunes has been cleared of any charge of copyright infringement paving the way for similar cloud-music services to operate in a similar fashion without copyright concerns. (wired 22/08/11)
New threat for labels as yesterday's stars want their music back
An interesting time for the music industry as singer/songwriters that signed over to record labels 35 years ago are able to claim the right under US Copyright Law to terminate their agreements. (The Australian 18/08/11 <original content credited to The Times>)
BBC caught in Twitter copyright row
Concerns were recently raised by members of the public after it was highlighted that a number of images being used by the BBC were citing the work as “from Twitter” without further detail. (British Journal of Photography 15/08/11)
High Court grants AFACT special leave to appeal iiNet copyright case
(Smartcompany.com.au 12/08/11)
Optus TV ignites row over copyright
A new service launched by Optus is under scrutiny to determine if its operation breaches copyright. (The Australian 04/08/11)