ENTERTAINMENT/FASHION
INDUSTRY LIABILITIES
Yes, the entertainment industry is fun, entertaining, and
glamorous, but with all that comes scandal, controversies, and lawsuits.
Professionals in the entertainment industry whether it is music, movies,
television, or design have to be very careful when it comes to deal
making. In this blog I am going to discuss three legal controversies that
I found to be very interesting, I hope you feel the same.
In the entertainment industry there is always something
going on. Being in the entertainment industry it is always best to know
what legal liability issues that are going on. Believe it or not, this is
vital to creating your business plan and running you business. Issues that I
found relevant to my business is cases such as “backing out of an agreement
to appear for a show” working with celebrity talents with our show we run the
risk of that artist not appearing as agreed which could result in refunds of
ticket sales profit lost and cancellation of show. Perfect example:
“LAWSUIT AGAINST BEYONCE”
In April 2011 “Gate Five” a video game developer filed a
lawsuit against entertainer “Beyoncé” for backing out of an agreement to appear
in the developer’s video game which resulted in Gate Five collapsing and the
loss of 70 jobs. Beyoncé’s attorney argued that the singer was well
within her rights of backing out of the agreement because Gate Five did not
meet their part of the agreement by meeting a November 10 deadline of gaining
funds. A New York Judge has ruled that the lawsuit will proceed.
In this case I’ve always felt that celebrities should not be
treated any differently legally than a non-celebrity. Beyoncé agreed to
appear in this video game, that has not been denied, but she decided to back
out because of funding. Know lets say yes the funding deadline did pass,
but lets take into consideration the consequences. I feel if the deal was good enough to agree
too, than maybe Beyoncé could have funded the project herself, which would add
something new and innovative to her well-established resume. Beyoncé is
such a huge name and influence, Nevertheless her backing out of this agreement
caused investors to turn away which resulted in the company going under.
What happened to those people who lost their jobs? It seems these people
weren’t considered when the thought of backing out of this deal came to mind.
When it comes to deal making, every aspect should be taken
into consideration. If the deal falls through who will be affected?
Where is the funding coming from? When are the deadlines? What
needs to be done everyday leading up to the deadline? These are just a
few questions that need to be answered at the deal-making table.
California band “One Direction” sue
Sony and Syco (Simon Cowell entertainment company)
Another industry liability is Trademark infringement with a
name. Choosing a name for your company or band can be a crucial
thing. We often sit and brainstorm for a name that feels right and a name
that represents what we stand for. Most of the time we do not realize the
possibility that our chosen name could end up in a lawsuit. Unfortunately, it
happens. For example a new and fast growing Britain Band “One Direction”.
A Federal lawsuit in California has been filed by a California band also called
“One Direction” against Sony and Syco (Simon Cowell entertainment company)
requesting that all promotional material causing confusion and damage to the
California base band (Dumon, 2012).
Louis Vuitton sued Akanoc Solutions, Inc. for contributory copyright
and trademark infringement under the Copyright and Lanham Acts
Louis Vuitton sued Akanoc Solutions, Inc. (January, 2012) ("Akanoc"),
Managed Solutions Group, Inc. ("MSG"), and Steven Chen (the owner of
both companies) for contributory copyright and trademark infringement under the
Copyright and Lanham Acts, respectively. MSG leased servers, bandwidth, and IP
addresses to other companies, such as Akanoc, who then operated the servers and
otherwise ran the business. Louis Vuitton alleged that some of Akanoc's
China-based customers directly infringed on Louis Vuitton's trademarks and
copyrights. Louis Vuitton sent the defendants eighteen Notices of Infringement
documenting the infringements occurring on websites hosted by defendants, yet
the defendants were unable to identify any action taken in response to the
notices sent by Louis Vuitton and the websites continued to operate. Louis
Vuitton alleged that defendants had actual knowledge of the website's
activities, that defendants knowingly avoided learning of the full extent of
infringing activities, and that defendants knowingly enabled the infringing
conduct by hosting the websites and permitting them to display the counterfeit
products. A jury found that all three defendants were liable for willful
contributory trademark infringement and willful copyright infringement. It
awarded statutory damages on both claims for each of the three defendants.
What I have learned from this liability issue is to be sure
to file the necessary papers to protect your business name/band name. There are
many things we have to be careful about because as you can see you can be sued
when you least expect it. When starting or running your business it is
imperative that we take the necessary steps to avoid these types of
infringements. We also have to be sure that our right are protected against
anyone who uses our works, name and photos for financial gain without
permission our approval.
Reference:
The Escapist: News: Judge Okays Dance Game Lawsuit Against Beyoncé.
(n.d.). The Escapist. Retrieved March 4, 2012, from
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/114603-Judge-Okays-Dance-Game-Lawsuit-Against-Beyonce
Dumon, M. (2012, April 11). One direction sued for
trademark infringement. Retrieved from
http://www.examiner.com/article/one-direction-sued-for-trademark-infringement
Sheppard Mullin
Richter & Hampton LLP (January 20.2012): Louis Vuitton Sets A New Standard
In Federal Trademark And Copyright Law
By Melisa Brown
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