Reviewing the last U.S. Supreme Court 2022 term, the highest court decided several high-profile cases involving intellectual property rights. The keyword among these cases is “limitation.” There are limitations on the breadth of particular areas of IP law. These limitations will affect the IP holder’s rights, as well as those who are infringing those rights. …
Category: originality
Copyright Office Partially Cancels AI-Created Work
On February 21, 2023, the U.S. Copyright Office issued an unusual ruling partially cancelling the copyright registration originally issued in September 2022, essentially cancelling any part of the work made by an AI machine. A new registration will be re-issued as to the portions in which the human authorship was confirmed, including the selection, coordination, …
Spread Some LOVE . . . Or Not
Today, May 1, is Global Love Day. To commemorate the day, we spotlight ”love,” specifically the trademark registrations and copyright applications for LOVE. Registrant At World Properties, LLC, a real estate brokerage company based in Chicago, Illinois, registered two marks with the USPTO, one each stylized trademark and service mark for LOVE®. The first …
Dark Horse No Joyful Noise to Ears of 9th Circuit
On March 10, 2022, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held in Gray v. Hudson,[1] that an eight-note ostinato allegedly copied by defendants lacked originality to warrant copyright protection, affirming a district court ruling. Plaintiffs Marcus Gray (aka Flame), Emanuel Lambert, and Chilke Ojukwu form the three-member Christian hip-hop group known as Joyful …