Fair use

Appeals court halts proceedings in Google Books case

An appeals court granted a stay in the copyright dispute between the Authors Guild and Google so it can review a lower court’s decision to let the class action advance. The literary community is watching to learn if Google’s book scanning will be considered “fair use.”

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Google Books judge rejects delay

The long-running copyright lawsuit over Google’s book scanning — in which the Authors Guild is seeking $750 per book — is turning into a procedural snarl as both the case and an appeal go forward at the same time. A new order confirms that the parties are due in court in December.

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Did Britain’s approach to copyright just grow up?

Britain’s copyright laws have always been byzantine, but the digital age has put them under more pressure than ever. Now the news that the government plans a major makeover has sent rights holders into a spiral, but could be great news for startups.

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Fair use isn’t much good if you can’t afford it

The web is enabling an explosion of “remix culture,” but as Kickstarter co-founder and blogger Andy Baio recently discovered, “fair use” only applies if you can afford to fight for your idea in court. What does that mean for the future of the remixable web?

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The Book Deal May Be Dead, But Google Is Still Right

The fact that the Google Books settlement has been rejected puts the spotlight back where it should be: on the fact that Google is doing nothing wrong, legally or morally, in scanning books without the permission of the authors or the publishers of those books.

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Interview: How Right Wing Radio Duck Was Done

Right Wing Radio Duck captured the internet by storm earlier this week. The mash-up, which has an out-of-luck Donald Duck falling for Glenn Beck’s rhetoric, even received praise from Beck himself. But how long did it take to produce this? We decided to find out.

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New DMCA Exemptions: Ripping DVDs for Online Video Now Legal

Documentary filmmakers and producers of non-commercial videos can now legally rip DVDs to their hard drives to use movies as source for their own works. The new rules come only days after a court found that copyright laws shouldn’t use DRM restrictions to prevent legal use.

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Our Footloose Remake Beats Paramount to the Punch

United behind the idea that “If anyone is going to ruin Footloose, it’s us,” a collective of 50 production teams came together over the last year to remake the 1984 Paramount film before anyone else could, premiering the hilarious results last night in Los Angeles.

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