Introduction of House Online Piracy Legislation Sets Off Storm of Controversy

Within minutes of the announcement of the introduction on Oct. 26 of the Stop Online Piracy Act, there was a flurry of statements from supporters and, particularly, from detractors denouncing the legislation…

Second Circuit Joins Ninth: No First Sale Defense for Foreign-Made Copyright Works

In a split decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit joined the Ninth Circuit in holding Aug. 15 that an importer of a copyrighted work manufactured overseas for resale in the United States cannot use the first sale doctrine as a defense to infringement…

Government Brief in Copyright Restoration Case Argues Statute Is Constitutional

A statute granting copyright protection to certain foreign works that were previously in the public domain does not exceed Congress’s power under the U.S. Constitution’s copyright clause…

Senate Judiciary Committee Approves Bill To Make Online Streaming A Felony

By a voice vote June 16, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved the Commercial Felony Streaming Act (S. 978), which would make it a felony to stream copyrighted works without authorization…

‘Protect IP Act’ Would Give Department Of Justice, Rights Holders New Tools To Curb Rogue Websites

The Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act, or Protect IP Act (S. 968) will provide the Justice Department and rights holders with important new tools to crack down on rogue websites dedicated to infringing activities and will protect American companies’ investments in developing brands and consumers, Leahy said on the Senate floor the day of the bill’s introduction…

BNA INSIGHTS: Understanding USTR’s 2011 Special 301 Report: A Guide for International Copyright Practice

The author reviews the details and implications of the U.S. Trade Representative’s recent Special 301 Report on IP protection and enforcement abroad…

BNA INSIGHTS: Restricting Distribution of Copyrighted Works: A Ninth Circuit Hat Trick

Marketplaces such as eBay, vintage bookstores, and GameStop flourish at least partly through resale of secondhand copies of copyrighted works…

District Court Rejects Proposed Settlement of Class Action Against Google Book Search

The terms of a proposed $125 million settlement of class action claims brought by groups of authors and publishers against Google Inc. were not “fair, adequate, and reasonable” with respect to the rights of members of the relevant class not represented by the parties, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled March 22…

Supreme Court Will Review Constitutionality of Uruguay Round Restoration of Copyright Protection for Foreign Works

On March 7, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for a writ of certiorari in the appeal of a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit upholding the constitutionality of a federal statute that restored copyright protection to foreign works…

BNA INSIGHTS: Courts, Congress, and Agencies Adjust IP Law to Meet the Domestic and Global Challenges of the New Decade

The patent community was in rapt anticipation throughout the first half of 2010, waiting for the U.S. Supreme Court’s Bilski decision…

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