The Copykat - Putting Yous Inwards The Picture?

Debate on Hong Kong's contentious copyright amendment neb was cutting curt inward the Legislative Council non because of protests or opposition  – but because non plenty members showed up. The premature adjournment came a twenty-four hours later the commerce government minister said he was optimistic that at that topographic point would endure plenty fourth dimension for discussion, despite the nearing Lunar New Year's Day vacation together with sessions for scrutinising the principal executive’s policy address together with the fiscal secretary’s budget speech. All but ane Pan-democrats were absent when the finally quorum bell rang on Friday. House commission chairman Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen, who chaired the coming together inward the absence of the sick president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing, said he regretted the adjournment. More on the SCMP here.

The BBC tell us that a breach of copyright claim against the Welsh regime over photographs used of Dylan Thomas inward a tourism drive has been thrown out past times a courtroom inward Ireland. Visit Wales used photos taken inward the 1930s to aid promote the 100th anniversary of the poet's birth. But the estimate said that if the illustration was to proceed, Pablo Star Ltd, which owns the copyright. would have got to convey the action in a courtroom inward Wales or England. Interstingly The Welsh regime claimed it has sovereign immunity. But at that topographic point was worse yet to come upwards for a Mr Haydn Price, who owns Pablo Star Limited. The BBC ane time to a greater extent than tell us that Mr Price has only lost a libel activeness against 93 twelvemonth quondam Gwen Watkins, whose hubby Vernon took the Dylan Thomas photos. It seems Mr Price persuaded Mrs Watkins to sell him the copyright inward several of the photos for the princely amount of £1,000. The Judge inward the libel case, Judge Raymond Groarke, the told Dublin's Circuit Court that he was dismissing the claim equally at that topographic point was no prove that a latter from Mrs Watkins to Mr Price proverb he was a 'bad man' had e'er been published: The BBC written report that Judge Groarke added "I am non going to become together with so far equally to tell Mr Price took wages of Mrs Watkins but he sure as shooting should have got been a lot to a greater extent than careful amongst the means he dealt amongst an elderly person."  Mr Price reportedly has a “zero tolerance” approach to copyright infringement together with has had roughly success inward other actions. In the electrical flow illustration against the Welsh Government, it was reported that Mr Price was claiming €3,000 for every usage of the photos.

Mark Towle,who made replica Batmobiles until existence enjoined, has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review his dispute amongst  DC Comics. He argues that the Batmobile doesn't deserve copyright protection equally its a 'useful article'. In february 2013 the District Court held that the “The ‘functional elements’ – e.g., the fictional torpedo launchers, the Bat-scope, together with anti-fire systems – are solely ‘functional’ to the extent that they helped Batman struggle law-breaking inward the fictional Batman telly serial together with movies. Thus, the Batmobile’s usefulness is a construct.”  Last September, the ninth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. Towle had argued that the replicas were fully performance automobile. In her opinion, ninth Circuit estimate Sandra Ikuta disagreed proverb the automobile also has "character" amongst "physical equally good equally conceptual qualities," together with "sufficiently delineated" to endure recognizable whenever together with wherever it appears. More on the Hollywood Reporter here. The CopyKat doubts the SCOTUS volition have got on the case. Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 terminal knockout blow for Towle. 

Sheep on Top - together with yes, (C) 2015 Ben Challis

As photography is my novel hobby (and yes, I am  published!), but even together with so reeling from that French Jimi Hendrix decision, the CopyKat was a trivial horrified to read that  photojournalists inward Serbia have got had to appeal to lawmakers to turn down a proposal past times the ruling political party to define their piece of job equally the upshot of a “routine mechanical act” together with hence non worthy of copyright protection. Not worthy!!!!! Photojournalists inward Serbia (and quite honestly elsewhere) oftentimes complain that newspapers together with Internet portals issue their pictures without payment, and are happy to "risk existence sued inward Serbia’s overloaded, inefficient together with sometimes corrupt courts." The Serbian Progressive Party’s latest proposals to parliament "would legalise such theft", photojournalists warned.

And finally, we've only been alerted to a novel online music platform, Wefre, which TorrentFeak  says is clearly 'inspired' past times Spotify, but which claims to usage officially available APIs from licensed sources to render 'free unlimited music' to fans. TorrentFreak says experts believe that borrows its music from YouTube's API feed together with its song/album database from Spotify. A Kickstarter fundraiser is underway to aid build iOS together with Android apps - but nosotros expression rapid attending from the major together with leading independent tape labels inward the real most future. TorrentFreak says: Not solely does this beautiful YouTube / Spotify mashup out-perform the late defunct Aurous inward every way, Wefre uses officially available APIs from already licensed sources. Legal? We mightiness non have got to hold off long to honor out.  UPDATE (30.01.16) : A ii calendar week quondam music streaming site, Wefre, has announced that until farther legal question is done, it volition closed access to its music streaming platform. "Initially, the Spanish-based squad didn't mean value that they were breaking whatever laws because they were providing the service through YouTube's together with Spotify's official APIs for developers. Wefre claimed that they created the service whilst fulfilling the damage of usage of those APIs." The squad of 3 students behind Wefre wrote "We desire to indicate [out] that nosotros haven't received whatever official warning from Google or Spotify, nosotros never wanted to turn a profit at the expense of the artists and, earlier making a huge mistake, nosotros desire to try advice inward a smarter way."