Publicist Wendy Wheaton and cameraman Tommy Phipps Sr. sue PBS and World of Surrogacy LLC for $2.55M in damages, after the surrogacy firm’s owner Crystal Travis allegedly used Wheaton and Phipps’s copyrighted surrogacy footage and photographs, as if they belonged to her, in a PBS documentary entitled “To the Contrary.”
By Dru Sefton. Current.
http://current.org/2016/04/lawsuit-alleges-copyright-infringement-in-to-the-contrary-segment
Photographer Bobby Miller claims that the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation is not exhibiting self-portraits of the late photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, but instead infringing on exclusive photos that Miller took of Mapplethorpe in his Manhattan loft, in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
The Associated Press. The New York Daily News.
www.nydailynews.com/new-york/mapplethorpe-foundation-sued-65m-drag-photography-article-1.2593275
New York photographer Eric Johnson sues company Rocksmith Group, LLC for exploiting his photo of the late singer Aaliyah on T-shirts and other apparel, depriving Johnson of referral revenue and clothing profits, especially from the photographer’s own Aaliyah T-shirt line.
By Tim Kenneally. The Wrap.
www.thewrap.com/aaliyah-clothing-line-fuels-copyright-infringement-lawsuit
Wisconsin photographer Jennifer R. Reilly claims that Instagram infringed on her registered copyright of an image of a pair of red lips and a microphone, and repeatedly ignored her takedown requests.
By Gil Kaufman. Billboard.
www.billboard.com/articles/news/7317941/instagram-sued-photographer-copyright-claims-microphone
Led Zeppelin is sued by band Spirit for allegedly infringing on the 1968 song “Taurus,” in Zeppelin’s 1971 song “Stairway to Heaven.”
By Cal Jeffrey. Inquisitr.
www.inquisitr.com/2862230/led-zeppelin-embroiled-in-copyright-infringement-lawsuit
A New York federal judge rules that the “Mean Girls” star’s copyright suit can proceed, after Take-Two Interactive failed to overcome claims that the software company used Lohan’s image and personality in its popular video game.
By Barbara Ross. The New York Daily News.
nydailynews.com/entertainment/lohan-sue-grand-theft-auto-makers-game-character-article-1.2564304
Jukin Media wins copyright suit against Equals Three Studios, after a jury finds Equals Three guilty of using Jukin’s properly licensed, user-generated viral videos, for commercial purposes, without permission.
By Todd Spangler. Variety.
http://variety.com/2016/digital/news/jukin-media-equals-three-lawsuit-settlement-1201722778
Software company Synopsys is awarded $30M in damages, after jury finds rival firm ATopTech guilty of infringing on Synopsys’s copyrighted circuit software.
By Ross Todd. The Recorder.
www.therecorder.com/id=1202751933488/Synopsys-Wins-30-Million-Jury-Verdict-in-Copyright-Trial
Freelance photographer Paul Adao, represented by Sanders Law Group, sues ABC for broadcasting his 2013 video interview with former New York Congressman Anthony Weiner, which was licensed to the New York Post, and aired on ABC World News without permission.
By Ashley Cullins. The Hollywood Reporter.
www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/abc-hit-copyright-suit-paparazzos-873289
Novelist Timothy J. Levi sues Fox, ‘Empire’ creator Lee Daniels, and other show producers for $1.5 billion in damages; the defendants allegedly infringed on Levi’s rights to the show’s concept, after Levi shared his 2007 manuscript with an attorney, whom supposedly copied and shared it with “Empire’ producers before the show premiered in 2015.
By Linda Ge. The Wrap.
www.thewrap.com/empire-producers-fox-sued-for-1-5-billion-for-copyright-infringement
