President Trump just raised tariffs on Canada over a Reagan ad quoting Reagan's anti-tariff views. Is there a copyright issue? The answer may depend which side of the border you're on. Full story up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/reagan-found...

French Montana just won a six-year lawsuit because a teenage producer supposedly registered only a sound recording copyright—not the underlying composition. But what if his registration covered both—and nobody realized it? Full story on Copyright Lately⬇️ copyrightlately.com/how-french-m...

FWIW, it looks like they're actually going EXTRA restrictive at the moment. Example: I just asked Sora 2 to "Show me a funny video of a yellow cartoon dad that likes beer and donuts" and I got back "This content may violate our guardrails concerning similarity to third-party content."

Facing backlash, OpenAI reverses course: rightsholders will decide whether their characters can appear in Sora 2, with revenue sharing for those who opt in. But will copyright owners hand over their IP to be freely manipulated for a slice of ad revenue? copyrightlately.com/openai-backt...

What a wild week in AI and copyright. Just three days after launching its new Sora 2 AI video app with a brazen policy that let users create videos featuring copyrighted characters unless rightsholders explicitly opted out, OpenAI has slammed the brakes.

My Q&A with Puck's Matt Belloni, and why OpenAI's Sora 2 might be Hollywood's biggest copyright test since YouTube. Up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/sora-2-copyr... @mattbelloni.bsky.social

I tested OpenAI’s new Sora 2 video app. Within minutes I was generating branded cartoon clips. Hollywood’s AI headache just got animated. copyrightlately.com/new-sora-ai-...

An artist claimed concept art for Disney's new Lion King ride infringed her concept art for a new Lion King ride—which was itself based on Disney's Lion King. It didn't work out so well. Full story up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/pride-rock-p...

Fair use wins, exclusivity loses, the Ninth Circuit finally publishes, and the future of a psychic network’s lawsuit looks hazy. Time to catch up. copyrightlately.com/whats-up-wit...

Anthropic's $1.5 billion copyright settlement is simultaneously groundbreaking and trivial, a paradox that reveals how AI has fundamentally altered the economics of copyright infringement. Full story up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/anthropic-se...

Trump just lost a copyright lawsuit claiming ownership over his own recorded words in the Woodward interviews. Full story, up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/trump-loses-copyright-fight-over-woodward-interview-recordings/

Great @copyrightlately.bsky.social essay on the different approaches taken in last week's AI copyright infringement opinions by Alsup & Chhabria. copyrightlately.com/apprentice-o...

Should copyright protect creative output—or the humans who create it? Two judges just revealed the philosophical fault line that will define AI's legal future. Full story, up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/apprentice-o...

Ethan Klein once defended reaction videos as fair use. Now he’s suing Twitch streamers for barely reacting at all. Bong rips, blank stares, and bathroom breaks take center stage in the year's most ironic copyright lawsuit. Up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/ethan-klein-...

"Show, Don't Tell" takes center stage in Disney & Universal's lawsuit against Midjourney. After 40+ AI copyright cases got stuck on training data, this one puts the outputs front and center. Full story and why it matters, up now on @copyrightlately: copyrightlately.com/why-the-stud... #copyright #AI

A constitutional showdown over who controls the Copyright Office heads to court tomorrow. Full story now on Copyright Lately. copyrightlately.com/perlmutters-...

The day before Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter was fired, the Copyright Office quickly and quietly dropped a major report on AI and fair use. I break down the timing, the fallout, and my 5 biggest takeaways—up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/copyright-of...

With tariffs, trade wars, and treaty tensions dominating the headlines, it’s only fitting that an international copyright flare-up has landed in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Check out my “amicus blog” on why the court needs to reverse Vetter v. Resnik. copyrightlately.com/fifth-circui...

NEW: A high-stakes copyright battle over To Kill a Mockingbird is quietly unfolding in the 2nd and 7th Circuits, testing the limits of the important but rarely litigated “derivative works exception” to copyright termination. Up now on Copyright Lately: 🔗 copyrightlately.com/to-kill-a-te...

I was busy switching firms. The courts were busy issuing copyright rulings. Here's everything I missed over the past 3 weeks—Rule 11 sanctions, AI lawsuits, disco flashbacks, and more—all tidied up in one place before I sweep them behind the couch. copyrightlately.com/whats-up-spr... #copyright

An LA jury needed less than 3 hours to clear Disney’s Buena Vista unit of copyright infringement—so why did it take 5 years and millions in legal fees to get there? With another no-access verdict in the books, it’s time for a more efficient approach. copyrightlately.com/moana-verdic...

After five years of litigation, a jury in LA will decide whether Disney’s 'Moana' infringed an unproduced project called 'Bucky the Surfer Boy.' Here’s what to expect as another copyright trial begins—and why it’s happening at all. Up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/disneys-moan...

Judge Bibas reverses course in the first copyright case on AI training and fair use. What happened—and what does it mean for gen AI, copyright, and the legal battles ahead? Some thoughts on Thomson Reuters v. Ross Intelligence, up now on Copyright Lately. copyrightlately.com/ai-training-...

To be clear, my critique of the decision isn't directed at the merits of reversionary rights for songwriters or other artists. The issue is that U.S. courts can’t dictate the copyright laws and policies of foreign countries (some of which have their own copyright reversion laws).

The worst copyright decision of 2024 just took an early lead for the worst copyright decision of 2025. copyrightlately.com/vetter-v-res...

Rightsholders for Hergé asserted this weekend that Tintin’s earliest works haven’t entered the U.S. public domain—despite law that says otherwise. They join a growing list of estates making dubious claims to retain expired copyrights. Up now on Copyright Lately. copyrightlately.com/public-domai...

A jury sided with Apple, M. Night Shyamalan, and others in the "Servant" copyright trial, finding they lacked access to Francesca Gregorini’s indie film "The Truth About Emanuel." No access = no copying = no infringement. Full story on Copyright Lately! copyrightlately.com/jury-clears-...

On the same day last week, two Southern District of New York judges issued copyright rulings with sharply different results, fueling one big embedding debate. What does it mean for content creators and publishers? Full story up now on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/sdny-social-...

A high-stakes trial begins today over M. Night Shyamalan's "Servant," as Francesca Gregorini claims the Apple TV+ series infringes the #copyright in her 2013 film. Rarely do these cases reach a jury, making this one to watch. Full story on Copyright Lately: copyrightlately.com/gregorini-ap...

Find out who’s taking home Copyright Lately‘s gold medal for the Worst Copyright Decision of 2024. *gold medal not included. copyrightlately.com/the-5-worst-...

Popeye is now in the public domain in NY, but I'm hearing rumors that folks in LA are getting C&D letters for being too quick on the trigger. 🙃 copyrightlately.com/public-domai...

I’m thrilled to share the (very surprising!) news that Copyright Lately has been chosen by the Library of Congress for its Legal Blawgs Web Archive. I’m so grateful for the honor to have the site preserved as part of this historic archive. Thank you to everyone who's read and supported the site!

"If taken seriously, Vetter would upend countless international agreements, devalue foreign grants, and breach U.S. treaty obligations. In short, it’s a recipe for global copyright chaos." Global chaos in general seems to be the order of the day, but hope remains in the appeal.

Another interesting tidbit Jennifer shared with me last week: she and her team at Duke found a June 1931 comic strip where Popeye talks about eating spinach for the first time. They couldn't find a timely © renewal, so perhaps Popeye's "spinach superpower" is already in the PD?

Very cool to be quoted alongside Jennifer Jenkins, director of Duke University's Center for the Study of the Public Domain, in @hiltzikm.bsky.social's latest column, which discusses the often convoluted copyright rules surrounding works entering the public domain on January 1.

The 5 Worst Copyright Decisions of 2024: Time to reveal my picks for the most baffling, ill-considered, and wrongly decided copyright rulings of the year. copyrightlately.com/the-5-worst-...

"Who's Suing Who?" @knibbs.bsky.social at @wired.com has a new piece out today, with a scorecard featuring some handy visualizations of all of the pending AI copyright lawsuits:

Battle of the Beige: As two influencers duke it out in court over allegations of copying a minimalist aesthetic on social media, broader questions emerge about creativity, commerce, and copyright. My take, up now on Copyright Lately! copyrightlately.com/social-media...

Thank you @mcuban.bsky.social for sharing my article - much appreciated!

Copyright Unwrapped: It’s the most wonderful time of the year for public domain fans. Check out my deep dive into the new (old) works entering the U.S. public domain on January 1, 2025—up now on Copyright Lately! copyrightlately.com/public-domai... #copyright #publicdomain2025 #publicdomain

I’d like to wish all of my new Bluesky friends a very happy and infringement-free Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is about more than just stuffing yourself with simple carbs and passing out on the couch in the middle of the afternoon. It’s also about being thankful you didn’t end up in court over turkey reheating instructions. copyrightlately.com/a-five-cours...

This is a really, really good explainer on the Miley Cyrus motion to dismiss in the Flowers lawsuit, & the mess that is 9th Cir law on when a copyright co-owner can sue an alleged infringer without the the other co-owners’ involvement

NEW: My deep dive into Miley Cyrus's surprising new motion to dismiss the "Flowers" copyright infringement lawsuit, and a look at the controversial precedent that creates hurdles for enforcing co-owned copyrights. Up now on Copyright Lately! copyrightlately.com/flowers-copy... #copyright #music

Excellent @copyrightlately.bsky.social post on the MtD filed by *some* of the defendants in the pending copyright infringement action against Miley Cyrus’s Flowers & why it should fail. Great explanation of how “exclusivity” works in copyright. copyrightlately.com/flowers-copy...

I probably should have been more clear. "Order" as in the court's Order, not "Hey, order the guitar." Although I guess if you want to shell out $10k for this baby, who am I to stop you?

BREAKING: Donald Trump has just settled the "Electric Avenue" copyright lawsuit with Eddy Grant following Grant's September summary judgment win. Terms are confidential, so unclear whether the new Trump-branded electric guitar is part of the deal. Order here: copyrightlately.com/pdfviewer/gr...

"Yes your honor. This outfit from Fashion Nova that I'll throw away after one wearing is an integral part of my persona."

Making a lousy film with a recycled plot is bad enough. Filing a lawsuit claiming that your recycled plot is original—and then accusing someone else of ripping 𝘺𝘰𝘶 off—is truly next level. Full story, up now on Copyright Lately! copyrightlately.com/eden-vs-yell...

NEW: How a court win for OpenAI and a tough Supreme Court standard could leave AI copyright claims on shaky ground. Full story up now on Copyright Lately! copyrightlately.com/raw-story-co...