Copyright

Fall 2010

Prof. William Fisher

 

The lecture notes for this course are available in the form of a Mindmanager "map" on the following website: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/people/tfisher/IP/IP%20Maps.htm

 

Syllabus 

Part I: What is Protected?

A. Introduction: The Copyrightability of Characters (Sept. 1)

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. v. American Honda Motor Co., 900 F.Supp. 1287 (C.D.Cal. 1995)

B. Originality (Sept. 2)

• 17 U.S.C 102
• Bleistein v. Donaldson Lithographing Co., 188 U.S. 239 (1903)
• Feist Publications, Inc. v. Rural Telephone Service Co., 499 U.S. 340 (1991)
• Mannion v. Coors Brewing Co., 377 F.Supp. 2d 444 (S.D.N.Y. 2005)

The International Framework (Sept. 3):

• TRIPS Agreement, Articles 9-14

C. The Idea/Expression Distinction (Sept. 8-9)

• Baker v. Selden, 101 U.S. 99 (1879)
• Nichols v. Universal Pictures Corp., 45 F.2d 119 (2d Cir. 1930)
• A.A. Hoehling v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 618 F.2d 972 (2d Cir. 1980)
• Alexander v. Haley, 460 F.Supp. 40 (S.D.N.Y. 1978)

D. Fixation (Sept. 10)

• Cartoon Network LP v. CSC Holdings, Inc., 536 F.3d 121 (2d Cir. 2008) [Background and Part I]

E. Architecture (Sept. 10)

• Intervest Construction v. Canterbury Estate Homes, 554 F.3d 914 (CA11 2008)

Labor-Desert Theory (Sept. 15):

• Justin Hughes, "The Philosophy of Intellectual Property," 77 Georgetown L.J. 287, Part II (pages 296-314) (1988)

Economic Theory (Sept. 16):

• William Fisher, "Theories of Intellectual Property" in Stephen Munzer, ed., New Essays in the Legal and Political Theory of Property (Cambridge University Press, 2001), Section III.A.
• F.M. Scherer, "The Innovation Lottery," in Rochelle Dreyfuss et al., eds., Expanding the Boundaries of Intellectual Property (Oxford Univ. Press 2001), pp. 3-21

F. Useful Objects (Sept. 17, 29)

• Pivot Point, Int'l v. Charlene Products, 372 F.3d 913 (7th Cir. 2004)

G. Software (Sept. 30)

• Computer Associates International, Inc. v. Altai, Inc., 982 F.2d 693 (2d Cir. 1992)
• Lotus Development Corporation v. Borland International, Inc., 49 F.3d 807 (1st Cir. 1995)

Part II. Ownership

A. Authorship (Oct. 1, 6)

• 17 USC 201 
• Lindsay v. The Wrecked and Abandoned Vessel R.M.S. Titanic, 52 U.S.P.Q.2d 1609 (S.D.N.Y. 1999)
• Aalmuhammed v. Lee, 202 F.3d 1227 (9th Cir. 1999)  
• Community for Creative Non-Violence v. Reid, 490 U.S. 730 (1989)  
• Avtec Systems, Inc. v. Peiffer, 21 F.3d 568 (4th Cir. 1994)  

The Ideology of Creativity (Oct. 7):

• Martha Woodmansee, "On the Author Effect: Recovering Collectivity," 10 Cardozo Arts & Entertainment L. J. 279 (1992)
• Peter Jaszi, "Toward a Theory of Copyright: The Metamorphoses of `Authorship,'" 1991 Duke L.J. 455, 485-491

B. Opting In and Opting Out (Oct. 8)

• Estate of Martin Luther King, Jr. v. CBS, Inc., 194 F.3d 1211 (11th Cir. 1999)
• Christopher Sprigman, "Reform(alizing) Copyright," 57 Stan. L. Rev. 485 (2004), pp. 545-568
• Browse the "Creative Commons" website: http://creativecommons.org/

C. Duration (Oct. 13)

• Eldred v. Ashcroft, 537 U.S.1 86 (2003) (Majority opinion & Dissent by Justice Breyer)

D. Renewals and Transfers (Oct. 15)

• Stewart v. Abend, 495 U.S. 207 (1990)
• New York Times Company v. Tasini, 533 U.S. 483 (2001)

Part III. Rights and Their Limitations

A. The Right to Reproduce (Oct. 20, 21, 22)

• 17 U.S.C. 106
• Three Boys Music Corp. v. Michael Bolton, 212 F.3d 477 (9th Cir. 2000)
• Nichols v. Universal Pictures Corp., 45 F.2d 119 (2d Cir. 1930) (reprise)
• Steinberg v. Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., 663 F.Supp. 706 (S.D.N.Y. 1987)
• Computer Associates International, Inc. v. Altai, Inc., 982 F.2d 693 (2d Cir. 1992) (reprise)
• Boisson v. Banian, Ltd., 273 F.3d 262 (2d Cir. 2001)
• Swirsky v. Carey, 376 F.3d 841 (9th Cir. 2004)
• Mannion v. Coors Brewing Co., 377 F.Supp. 2d 444 (S.D.N.Y. 2006) (reprise)

B. The Right to Modify (Oct. 27, 28)

• 17 U.S.C. 106A
• Castle Rock Entertainment, Inc. v. Carol Publishing Group, Inc., 150 F.3d 132 (2d Cir. 1998) [Parts I & II]
• Lee v. A.R.T. Company, 125 F.3d 580 (7th Cir. 1997)
• Micro Star v. FormGen Inc., 154 F.3d 1107 (9th Cir. 1998)
• Martin v. City of Indianapolis, 192 F.3d 608 (7th Cir. 1999)
• Dastar Corporation v. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 539 U.S. 23 (2003)

Personality Theory:  (Oct. 29)

• Margaret Jane Radin, Reinterpreting Property 36-44 (1993)
• Justin Hughes, "The Philosophy of Intellectual Property," 77 Georgetown L.J. 287, 330-49 (1988)

C. The Right to Distribute (Nov. 3)

• Hotaling v. Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 118 F.3d 199 (4th Cir. 1997)
• Vernor v. Autodesk, 2010 U.S.App. Lexis 18957 (Sept. 10, 2010)
• Quality King Distributors, Inc. v. L'anza Research International, Inc., 523 U.S. 135 (1998)

D. The Rights to Perform and Display (Nov. 4)

• Columbia Pictures Indus. v. Redd Horne, Inc., Columbia Pictures Indus. v. Redd Horne, Inc., 749 F.2d 154 (3d Cir. 1984)
• Cartoon Network LP v. CSC Holdings, Inc., 536 F.3d 121 (2d Cir. 2008) [Part III]
• Perfect 10 v. Amazon.com. 508 F.3d 1146 (9th Cir. 2007) [Parts I, II, III.A., and III.B.]

E. Fair Use (Nov. 5, 10)

• 17 U.S.C. 107
• Sony Corporation of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 464 U.S. 417 (1984)
• Harper & Row, Publishers v. Nation Enterprises, 471 U.S. 539 (1985)
• Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music, Inc., 510 U.S. 569 (1994)
• Castle Rock Entertainment v. Carol Publishing Group, Inc., 150 F.3d 132 (2d Cir. 1998) [Part III]
• Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. v. Connectix Corp., 203 F.3d 596 (9th Cir. 2000)
• Blanch v. Koons, 467 F.3d 244 (2d Cir. 2006)
• Perfect 10 v. Amazon.com. 508 F.3d 1146 (CA9 2007) [Part III.C.]
• Gaylord v. United States, 595 F.3d 1364 (Fed. Cir. 2010)

Cultural Theory (Nov. 11)

• William Fisher, "Reconstructing the Fair Use Doctrine," 101 Harv. L. Rev. 1659 (1988): Part V (pages 1745-83) 

F. The Music Industry (Nov. 17)

• Newton v. Diamond, 388 F.3d 1189 (9th Cir. 2004)
• Bridgeport Music, Inc. v. Dimension Films LLC, 410 F.3d 792 (6th Cir. 2005)
• William Fisher, Promises to Keep: Technology, Law and the Future of Entertainment (2004) Chapter 6
• 20 USC 1094(a)(29)

G. Misuse (Nov. 18)

• Practice Management Information Corp. v. American Medical Association, 121 F.3d 516 (9th Cir. 1997)

H. Secondary Liability (Nov. 18, 19)

• Sony Corporation of America v. Universal City Studios, Inc., 464 U.S. 417 (1984) (reprise)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. v. Grokster, 545 U.S. 913 (2005)
• Perfect 10 v. Amazon.com. 508 F.3d 1146 (CA9 2007) [Part IV]
• Viacom v. YouTube, ___ F.Supp.2d ___ (S.D.N.Y. 2010)

 

 

Part IV: Paracopyright

A. Technological Protection Measures (Nov. 24)

• Universal City Studios, Inc. v. Corley, 273 F.3d 429 (2d Cir. 2001)
• Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. v. Jung, 422 F.3d 630 (8th Cir. 2005)

B. Copyright Management Information (Nov. 24)

• Textile Secrets International v. Ya-Ya Brand, Inc., 524 F.Supp.2d 1184 (C.D.Cal. 2007)

 

Last modified December 3, 2010

William Fisher

Email: tfisher@law.harvard.edu
Homepage: tfisher.org