2017 - The Copyright Twelvemonth

When historians expect dorsum at the copyright basis inwards 2017 (if our attending spans allow us to take away hold roles such every bit a 'historian' inwards the future!) what would they create of this year? Well ane of the principal 'themes' of 2017 was the ongoing battle betwixt 'big tech' too 'big content' or too thence the globe, laid inwards the context of possible reforms to copyright law. In Europe, the U.S. too Commonwealth of Australia 'safe harbour' was beingness re-examined, amongst the cinema studios too recorded music sector finally making some headway against the likes of YouTube too straight off Facebook inwards shrinking the 'value gap' that has propelled the applied scientific discipline sector to host some of the biggest businesses inwards the World. And finally the tape labels too the platforms were doing deals! But it wasn't exactly applied scientific discipline vs content: ii major platforms, Spotify too Deezer, urged European legislators to ensure that the globally dominant giant U.S. applied scientific discipline companies (primarily Apple, Amazon too Google) don't abuse their seat every bit gatekeepers to digital consumers, non to the lowest degree every bit all 3 tech giants create too operate devices, command transaction platforms too ain content services. Spotify too Deezer are large inwards their sector, but dwarfed past times the likes of Google. And if Rupert Murdoch has seen the writing on the wall, shouldn't nosotros all? Does Disney's $52.4 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox give the combined content too broadcasting behemoth a peril of competing amongst Netflix or Amazon Prime? It no doubtfulness explains why Spotify too China's cyberspace giant Tencent exchanged equity stakes of exactly nether 10 per cent of each other, too why Tencent straight off has a $2 billion stake inwards Snapchat. The content industries mightiness live worried nearly the U.S. tech giants, but the U.S. tech giants volition live looking East, at the astonishing increase of the likes of Baidu, JD.com too Albibaba. 

Elsewhere, the Court of Justice of the European Union has defined, re-defined too refined its ain too (perhaps) our agreement of what the correct of 'communication to the public' nether Article 3(1) of the InfoSoc Directive actually is. The topic had already been bailiwick to nearly twenty references to the CJEU for preliminary rulings, too yes, in that location would live to a greater extent than from the courtroom inwards 2017 every bit the decisions inwards Filmspeler, C-527/15, and Ziggo, C-601/15 (The Pirate Bay) loomed! And what of copyright itself? In an e'er changing world, courts or too thence the globe proceed to revise our agreement on the subsistence of copyright, sometimes moving on from the classic Definition (where copyright subsists in  "original literary, dramatic, musical too artistic works") to approaches such every bit the CJEU's 2009 concept of protecting industrial plant which are the "author's ain intellectual creation'" inwards its determination inwards Infopaq. But this approach too indeed traditional approaches presume that a detail individual is the author of a locomote - too it a basis of selfie taking monkeys, animate beingness rights too really smart robots ....... exercise nosotros fifty-fifty know what a 'person' is whatsoever to a greater extent than - a conundrum confusingly explored too partially explained inwards Ex-Machina (pictured).
  

January too our initiatory of all update of 2017 was tidings from Republic of Republic of India that 3 Indian music copyright collection societies were restrained past times the Delhi High Court from granting whatsoever licences until April. Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva made an interim monastic enjoin against  the Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS), the Phonographic Performance Ltd (PPL) too Novex Communications Pvt Ltd preventing them from contravening department 33 of India's Copyright Act,  which provides that only registered societies tin grant licences inwards honour of copyrighted work(s). In the USA, ane of the major musical industrial plant collection societies (and in that location are straight off four!)  BMI filed an activity inwards Federal Rate Court to laid interim fees for radio stations represented past times the radio industry's merchandise trunk the RMLC, piece BMI too the RMLC negotiate the damage of a novel five-year deal. Again inwards the US, the Second Circuit affirmed the Jan 2016 monastic enjoin of Judge Furman of the Southern District of New York (SDNY), which had found that the usage of the Louis Vuitton logo too the representation of the Louis Vuitton bags on stuff totes (pictured) with ane side representing a somewhat cartoonish rendition of a famous luxury bag, piece the other side read “My Other Bag is…” with the Louis Vuitton ‘LV’ logo replaced past times the initials 'MOB' (and retailing for $35 to $55) his see inwards The Pirate Bay case, advising the CJEU to respond the enquiry posed past times the Dutch Supreme Court of whether the Pirate Bay undertakes the human activity of communication to Earth inwards the affirmative saying "the fact that the operator of a website makes it possible, past times indexing them too providing a search engine, to notice files containing industrial plant protected past times copyright which are offered for sharing on a peer-to-peer network, constitutes a communication to Earth within the pregnant of Article 3(1) of [the InfoSoc Directive], if that operator is aware of the fact that a locomote is made available on the network without the consent of the copyright holders too does non take away hold activity inwards monastic enjoin to create access to that locomote impossible". 

"Should Press Publishers live Given an Exclusive Neighbouring Right?" inwards the context of Article xi of the Proposed European Union Directive on Copyright inwards the Digital Single Market. In Spain, a press publisher correct was introduced which automatically made Google pay, without the press publishers having to pursue payment nether an exclusive right. Google’s reply was exactly to closed downwards Google News inwards Spain. Further consequences were felt, amongst online Castilian tidings sites garnering less traffic. Tibbie opined that the cogent see released past times CIPIL stated that “If the existent problems facing press publishers relate to licensing too enforcement, the best respond is sure to focus on licensing too enforcement rather than to create novel rights” too that “Multiple rights are associated amongst clogging too opportunistic behaviour” wisely noting that "Realising policy objectives is a complex too hard goal, amongst almost endless variables to consider", amongst drafting of novel laws posing a peculiarly challenging task. The debate beingness played out across the globe presents many challenges, too it volition live interesting to review farther developments amongst this proposed correct inwards future. The Turtles ongoing tri-state litigation against SiriusXM over the satellite radio broadcaster's refusal to pay to broadcast pre-1972 audio recordings reached the the Florida Supreme Court, who looked ane time to a greater extent than at Judge Darrin Gayle's determination which found inwards favour of SiriusXM too agreed that "There is no specific Florida legislation roofing audio recording holding rights, nor is in that location a bevy of instance constabulary interpreting mutual constabulary copyright related to the arts" too "If this Court adopts Flo & Eddie’s position, it would live creating a novel holding correct inwards Florida every bit opposed to interpreting the law" adding that it's the undertaking of the Florida state legislature to address the issue, too that a determination to plug the gap would convey upwards a host of other issues such every bit resolving who sets too administers licensing rates, who owns audio recordings for dead artists too what exceptions in that location mightiness live to a world functioning right. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 host of impressive signatories (including the Centre d’Etudes Internationales de la Propriété Intellectuelle (CEIPI), University of Strasbourg, CREATe at the University of Glasgow too the Max Planck Institute for Innovation too Competition)  penned an opened upwards letter with the heading "EU Copyright Reform Proposals Unfit for the Digital Age".  And singer, songwriter too producer T Bone Burnett delivered a telling contribution to the U.S. Copyright Office's review of Digital Millennium Act 'safe harbor' provisions inwards the USA, proverb inwards a video that whilst the constabulary that was supposed to "balance the internet's openness amongst creators' powerfulness to earn a living wage from their work  ..... [T]hose security harbours take away hold failed".

We've won an WEB BLOCKING ORDER !! 
(Photo past times Ben Challis)

On March 8th, a French fine art history pupil was escorted out of the Louvre Museum inwards Paris. His crime? He was taking pictures of the Valentin de Boulogne exhibition, a painter who has been dead for almost 400 years. Contrast that amongst the approach of the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art which lately made the images of it's artworks inwards Earth domain freely available through a novel opened upwards access policy, without restrictions. But French constabulary does render for the Louvre's actions: last Dec last, France's highest administrative court, the Conseil d’État, confirmed that a world entity tin forbid a individual entity to take away hold pictures of industrial plant within a world museum. But, asked Marie-Andree Weiss, is it right? In the Britain in Court of Appeal inwards London upheld a custodial judgement imposed on Wayne Evans past times HHJ Trevor Jones at the Crown Court inwards Liverpool for ii offences of distributing an article infringing copyright opposite to department 107(1)(e) of the Copyright Designs too Patents Act 1988 too also to a farther offence of possessing an article for usage inwards fraud opposite to department 6(1) of the Fraud Act 2006. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 twelve calendar month custodial judgement was idea right, despite Evans having no previous convictions, pleading guilty at the initiatory of all chance too making really picayune (if any) fiscal gain from distributing thousands of copyrighted music tracks through his deejayportal.com webite: But in that location was undoubtedly a existent loss to the owners of the relevant copyrights too related performers - too that weighed against him every bit did the demand for a deterrent. Can cheerleader uniforms live protected past times copyright inwards the U.S. fifty-fifty on utilitarian clothing? Well the U.S. Supreme Court said YES - when a feature incorporated into the blueprint of a useful article it tin live eligible for copyright protection but only if the characteristic (1) tin live perceived as a ii or 3 dimensional locomote of fine art dissever from the useful article,and (2) would qualify every bit a protectable pictorial, graphic, or sculptural work, either on its ain or fixed inwards some other tangible medium of human face if it were imagined separately from the useful article into which it is incorporated (infringed the copyright of French lensman Jean-François Bauret after reproducing (without authorisation) ane of Bauret’s photographs to create his Naked sculpture - too that a defense strength of parody would fail, ane of the initiatory of all cases to expect at the CJEU's determination in Deckmyn v Vandersteen, where the CJEU explained that a parody must “evoke an existing locomote piece beingness noticeably unlike from it, and, secondly, to constitute an human face of sense of humour or mockery". 

Prince past times Andy Warhol (1984) Copyright AWF

In April, a group of bipartisan legislators inwards the US Eleonora explaining that the CJEU had substantially followed the see of Advocate General  Manuel Campos Sánchez-Bordona, who proposed a broad(er) interpretation of the correct of communication to Earth and, amongst it, a broader reading of what amounts to an 'indispensable intervention': the CJEU noted that the aim of the [Infosoc) Directive is to constitute a high aeroplane of protection for authors too and thence the concept of ‘communication to the public’ must live interpreted broadly. In addition, the Court had already held that the availability, on a website, of clickable links to protected industrial plant published without whatsoever access restrictions offers users of the initiatory of all website straight access to those work, too that was extended inwards this instance to the sale of the multimedia player.  And finally, The Andy Warhol Foundation filed a pre-emptive suit against lensman Lynn Goldsmith asking the Southern District of New York Court (SDNY) to declare that the Andy Warhol Prince Series did non infringe on Defendant’s copyright, that the portraits inwards the serial are transformative industrial plant protected past times fair use, too that Defendant’s claim is barred past times the equitable doctrine of laches. 

In May nosotros said cheerio to our fantabulous blogging interns, Tibbie McIntyre too Davis Liao, who added too thence much to the 1709 Blog. Thank y'all David too Tibbie. You were both exceptional. And nosotros welcomed Matthew Lingard too Lolita Huber-Froment to send on where Tibbie too David left off, non to the lowest degree amongst our regular CopyKat updates.  In Australia, inwards the midst of a large review of copyright, examining the touching of extending a 'fair dealing' doctrine to a Heks’nkaas”, a Dutch cheese) could live a protected creation nether author rights,  but to a greater extent than importantly asked the CJEU (a) whether European Union Law allows copyright protection of taste? too (b) if so, what requirements must live met inwards monastic enjoin to determine subsistence of copyright protection?

Jimi Hendrix past times Gered Mankowitz

At the outset of June, the Bundesgerichtshof (BGH, the High German Federal Court of Justice) referred non ane but ii important copyright cases to the Court of Justice of the European Union for guidance on (a) the extent European Union copyright allows sampling too (b) what purpose exchange rights play inwards the copyright sphere. More specifically, what is the human relationship betwixt copyright protection, liberty of the press, too liberty of information? The initiatory of all reference had been made inwards the context the longstanding too complex Metall auf Metall litigation concerning the unauthorised sampling past times music producer Moses Pelham of a 2-second rhythmic sequence from Kraftwerk's 1977 vocal 'Metall auf Metall'. The minute reference was made inwards the context of litigation betwixt the High German Government too High German paper WAZ over the unauthorised publication past times the latter of the too thence called 'Afghanistan Papers' (confidential military machine reports). And in that location was to a greater extent than on sampling with Drake, his tape label too music publishers  first instance decision, the Paris Court of Appeal decided that the iconic photograph of Jimi Hendrix past times Gered Mankowitz was original too that, past times using the altered copyright-protected locomote to commercially promote their products online too inwards ii brick-and-mortar shops, the accused electronic cigarettes sales companionship had infringed copyright. The Court of Appeal confirmed that the individual claiming copyright protection bears the burden of proof. Here Mr Mankowitz had organised the 1967 shoot, had directed the stone star inwards damage of seat too angle, had chosen the usage of a specific photographic television receiver camera too lens to create a wide-angle effect without distortion, too had chosen the lightning, background, framing too angle of capture - too thence yes, a copyrighted image embodying the human face of the photographer's ain personality. It was a busy calendar month inwards French Republic every bit France’s Cour de Cassation ruled inwards favour of the 'freedom of expression' of Director Dmitry Chernyakov inwards honour of "Le Dialogue des Carmélites" staged for the Munich Opera inwards 2010 trumped moral rights - hither his usage did not violate the moral rights of composer too librettist Francis Poulenc. 


July, too the French courts blazed amongst to a greater extent than copyright tidings amongst some other instance nearly the importance of originality inwards French copyright, this fourth dimension deciding that a retail stores’ layouts was original plenty to live protected past times copyright. The courtroom of initiatory of all instance, the Tribunal de Grande Instance de Lille, had already ruled inwards favour of  the plaintiffs, an Italian cosmetics store, who had claimed that its stores’ layout was original too protected past times the French droit d’auteur.The Douai Court of Appeals also ruled inwards favour of the Italian companionship against the defendants, a French cosmetics too accessory company, and recognised that French copyright protects interior blueprint such every bit “the beat of color too the layout of a store chain” too explained that “[w]hen this protection is contested inwards defence, the originality of a locomote must live explained past times the individual who claims to live the author, that is the only individual able to seat the elements expressing his personality…. [and that] the exploitation of a locomote past times a moral entity nether its cry shall presume that this moral entity [owns the copyright].” When a grouping of museums too researchers inwards the Netherlands unveiled a portrait entitled The Next Rembrandt, it was something of a tease to the fine art world. It wasn’t a long lost epitome - but a novel artwork generated past times a figurer that had analysed thousands of industrial plant past times the 17th-century Dutch creative individual Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn. We've had monkeys taking photos - now theconversation.com asked "Should robot artists live given copyright protection?".  

Still inwards July too speaking of that monkey, freelance lensman David Slater, who facilitated the straight off infamous 'monkey selfie' taken past times dark macaque Naruto said he was inwards a dire fiscal province of affairs every bit the appellate proceedings regarding the selfie continued inwards the U.S. courts. More photography: snapper Donald Graham, who had filed a copyright infringement suit against the notorious 'appropriation artist' Richard Prince inwards 2016 claiming that Prince’s usage (without permission) of Graham’s Rastafarian Smoking a Joint photograph to create an Untitled (Portrait) featured inwards Prince’s New Portraits exhibition was copyright infringement, had some expert news. Prince, who of course of teaching has that controversial but helpful judgment in Cariou v Prince behind his art, claimed his appropriation was fair use. U.S. District Judge Sidney H. Stein from the Southern District of New York allowed the instance to locomote forwards too denied Prince’s displace to dismiss the case. And the CJEU issued its much-awaited judgment in Stichting Brein v Ziggo BV too XS4All Internet BV, C-610/15 (The Pirate Bay case) too the Court developed farther its structure of the correct of communication to Earth within Article 3(1) of the InfoSoc Directive, too clarified nether what weather the operators of an unlicensed online file-sharing platform would live liable for copyright infringement.

August began amongst Marie-Andree asking "Is Reconstructing a Work to Preserve It Copyright Infringement?" in an update which looked at  the constabulary suit that followed the reconstruction of creative individual Cady Noland's "Log Cabin" sculpture, a life size artwork created inwards the nineties. Art collector Wilhelm Schurmann bought the locomote too loaned it to a museum which exhibited it exterior for 10 years. Over fourth dimension the locomote deteriorated, too inwards 2010 an fine art conservator recommended the locomote should live reconstructed it exclusively amongst novel materials too novel logs. The electrical charge alleges that Cady Noland was non informed of this decision, but instead learned inwards 2014 that the locomote had deteriorated, had been reconstructed, too the decayed stuff thrown away - too she said her moral rights were violated. Noland also disowned the 'new' work. Is in that location a claim? Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 federal guess ordered the dispute over the "Lady Liberty" stamp to locomote to trial. The U.S. Postal Service mistakenly produced a 2010 stamp that was based on a replica of the Statue of Liberty created past times creative individual Robert due south Davidson rather than the original.  And a New York guess dismissed a lawsuit brought the estate of promoter Sid Bernstein, who staged the Beatles’ legendary 1965 demo at Shea Stadium. The Estate had argued that band’s Apple Corps had infringed on the copyright of Sid Bernstein Presents past times including footage from the concert inwards Ron Howard's  documentary cinema Eight Days a Week - the Touring Years which was released inwards September 2016 - but the Judge noted that contract signed inwards 1965 “reserves no rights whatsoever for Bernstein inwards whatsoever filming or recording of the concert. And finally inwards August, the instance between Solid Oak Sketches against Take-2 Software, the maker of the NBA 2K video game which claims that the latter's reproduction of several tattoos worn past times famous basketball game players was copyright infringement rumbled on. The defendants argued fair use, the usage was de minimis - and that the constabulary suit would "seek to hinder the powerfulness to pull people every bit they appear inwards existent life”.

That monkey selfie

What tidings inwards September? Well carrying on from August, Solid Oak's lawsuit was dorsum inwards the news stepped upwards his fight against far-right activists who had appropriated the cartoon grapheme every bit a meme. Matt Furie vowed to "aggressively enforce his intellectual property" after the grapheme he created for a comic strip was plastered across social media too fifty-fifty merchandise, peculiarly past times fans of U.S. President Donald Trump every bit he fought his election campaign. George Chin reported that "We Shall Overcome" - labelled past times the U.S. Library of Congress every bit “the most powerful vocal of the 20th century” - was non original. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 federal judge struck downwards the copyright for component subdivision of the civil rights anthem proverb that the song’s adaptation from an older work, including changing “will” to “shall”,  was non original plenty to qualify for protection amongst Judge Cote saying “This unmarried give-and-take commutation is quintessentially trivial too does non enhance a enquiry of fact requiring a trial to assess whether it is to a greater extent than than trivial … The words ‘will’ too ‘shall’ are both mutual words. Neither is unusual” adding "The fact that a trivial alter to the lyrics became a component subdivision of a pop version of a vocal does non homecoming that alter nontrivial too automatically qualify the pop version for copyright protection". Professor concluding "Ultimately, piece the Commission appears to pursue a clear objective (reviewing the laid of responsibilities) through a bold framework, because the proposed Directive lies within a network of pre-established instruments Article xiii is probable to locomote a legislative bull inwards a delicate legal china-shop. It volition at the really to the lowest degree innovate “large amounts” of uncertainty, or, worse, obscure the obligations of the subjects involved.” And finally - was it genuinely the end of the 'who does?

October - already!  The Bundesgerichtshof had been considering a instance that dated all the means dorsum to 2009 too finally decided that Google had non infringed the U.S. adult website Perfect 10 past times linking to illegally uploaded thumbnail amongst its image-search engine. Perfect 10 maintained that it was owed damages for copyright infringement. The Bundesgerichtshof disagreed. Under High German too European Union law, Google's tool was non infringing copyright past times reproducing the thumbnails of Perfect 10's models. Alibaba.com, the massive Chinese e-commerce companionship was been hitting amongst a US class activity lawsuit claiming that its network of e-commerce websites is abode to rampant copyright infringement of visual artwork.The lawsuit has been brought at the instigation of professional person Indiana creative individual Michel Keck who was seeking to certify a degree of copyright holders who take away hold seen their locomote copied too sold on Alibaba’s network of websites without their permission. And it seemed spider web blocking was straight off on the cards for copyright owners inwards the U.S. after Magistrate Judge John Anderson inwards the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recommended a ruling inwards favour of the American Chemical Society inwards their activity against Sci-Hub (sometimes dubbed the “Pirate Bay of science”) whom the ACS accused of copyright infringement for making available online copies of the former’s academic papers without licence. In the Britain the copyright (or perceived lack thereof) inwards TV formats was revisited in Banner Universal Motion Pictures Ltd v Endemol Shine Group Ltd [2017] EWHC 2600 (Ch). Here the courtroom held that a TV format can live potentially protected past times copyright, although inwards the specific instance the activity failed: but copyright protection volition non subsist unless "as a minimum (i) in that location are a number of clearly identified features which, taken together, distinguish the demo inwards enquiry from others of a similar type; too (ii) that those distinguishing features are connected amongst each other inwards a coherent framework which tin live repeatedly applied too thence every bit to enable the demo to live reproduced inwards recognisable form.”

Remember - November!  First off, would the Review Board of the U.S. Copyright Office concord amongst a novel asking from T.W.N. Industries to reconsider the denial to register ii of its patterns. The respond was 'no'. Even though the Board recognised that TWN's "Gold Wood" had been independently created, it was non creative plenty to live protected past times copyright, every bit “it consists of simple, pocket-sized variations on mutual shapes arranged inwards an obvious too uniform manner.” The Board explained farther that Gold Wood “is made upwards of only a really few elements (monochromatic lines inwards a few shades of gold” arranged inwards an unoriginal mode (densely too amongst only pocket-sized too repeating variations throughout the pattern).” As explained inwards § 313.4(J) of the examination of artificial intelligence - too copyright: As AI machines locomote increasingly autonomous, tin they live regarded every bit 'authors' inwards a copyright feel and, if so, tin the industrial plant they create live eligible for copyright protection? If the respond was ane time to a greater extent than inwards the affirmative, who would ain the copyright inwards such works? In China, Lego A/S, Europe’s biggest toymaker, said it won its initiatory of all copyright courtroom instance after the Cathay Shantou Intermediate People’s Cour ruled that products nether the cry Bela, sold past times ii Chinese companies, infringed upon Lego’s copyrights. And some other recurring theme inwards 2017, the battle betwixt the tech giants too the content sector bubbled over ane time to a greater extent than when Google too members of Australia's applied scientific discipline sector urged the regime to reconsider excluding them from changes to security harbour rules, piece the content sector has applauded the determination to non extend the copyright provisions to digital businesses. In Canada, the House of Commons triggered a parliamentary review of Canada's Copyright Act, initiatory of all passed inwards 1921. TorrentFreak commented that the music manufacture was quick to weigh in, congratulating regime ministers too making it known that the so-called 'Value Gap'  and  how the tech giants seem to live expert at everything except removing infringing material, too why likes of Google don't seem slap-up to pay for what drives the likes of YouTube should live high on the agenda. And the battle betwixt the tech behemoths, too giants of the content industries, was inwards total spate inwards the U.S. where the likes Google too Facebook are now facing off against Hollywood studios and major tape labels over how to update the North American Free Trade Agreement to protect copyright inwards the digital age. Silicon Valley is pushing for exceptions to copyright rules for online platforms too Internet service providers it says are needed to hold content flowing on the web. Meanwhile, the U.S. regime seems to live taking positions to a greater extent than favoured past times companies such every bit Walt Disney too Time Warner who are lobbying for stronger protections for copyright owners. The novel (US led) proposals for NAFTA would limit allowances for online usage of copyrighted material, a seat seemingly less supportive of online platforms than existing U.S. law, inwards detail a watering downwards of fair-use exceptions too a re-evaluation of 'safe harbor'. There was an uodate on our opeming even amongst IPRS re-registering every bit a copyright society too finally, would the mess surrounding pre-1972 audio recordings inwards the U.S. live sorted? Maybe! A grouping of 41 recording artists urged the U.S. Congress to variety out the mess amongst the novel "Compensating Legacy Artists for their Songs, Service & Important Contributions to Society Act"  - or (wait for it, too a a drum curlicue please)  the CLASSICS Act. 

 HRP-4C

Our in conclusion thoughts: what of the andriod, to a greater extent than intelligent than a human, stronger too faster than a human beingness who looks similar a human but ia built inwards a factory. Lets say ane called Miim, some 100 years from straight off too having lived amongst too outlived her creators, aspires to live the best self taught creative individual ever?

Miim visits Mars too paints the most stunning Marscape every seen. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 existent masterpiece. If Miim dreams of electrical sheep - sure she is the author of this stunning work? AI too copyright -  no demand to brusk circuit this debate - it's the wild wild Westworld out there. And to a greater extent than here and here and here too here. 

Sadly nosotros take away hold lost some important creative talent this year. In music, Tom Petty, Chris Cornell, Joni Sledge, Fats Domino, Glen Campbell, Gord Downie, Chuck Berry, Al Jarreau, Johnny Hallyday, Gregg Allman, composer Vladimir Shainsky, and trance DJ too producer Robert Miles were exactly some of those who passed. Film, TV too theater lost a wealth of talent including the actors Sir John Hurt, Erin Moran, Frank Vincent, Sir Roger Moore, Danielle Darrieux, Robert Hardy, Kritika Chaudhary, Rosemary Leach, Aracy Cardoso, Reema Lagoo, Hiromi Tsuru and Partha Mukhopadhyay, comedian too purpose musician Jerry Lewis, along amongst the cinema directors Jonathan Demme too George A. Romero. And nosotros said cheerio to Paddington Bear author Michael Bond, sitcom writing icon Alan Simpson, Japanese playwright Akira Hayasakathe, children's author too artist Dick Bruna, Inspector Morse creator Colin Dexter, too the cartoonist Leo Baxendale. So all nosotros tin exercise is wishing y'all a happy too good for y'all 2017 too that y'all all 'live long too prosper'.
. 

2017 Copyright Awards on the IPKat here - too some of those are mentioned higher upwards (thank goodness!!). 

The EFF's Time to Rethink Copyright Safe Harbors? 2017 inwards Review  https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2017/12/time-rethink-copyright-safe-harbors-2017-review


And from Motherboard: 2018 Is the Last Year of America's Public Domain Drought

As e'er - readers volition take away hold their ain views on what should (or maybe should not) live included inwards the copyright year. The CopyKat writes from a UK/US, music manufacture too mutual constabulary perspective: So delight allow us know if y'all cry upwards something of import is missing - comment is gratis on the 1709 blog, but delight live polite too thoughtful!