Digital Media Intellectual Property

The book provides a comparative and comprehensive analysis of the current technical, commercial and economical development in digital media describing the impact of new business and distribution models, the current legal and regulatory framework, social practices and consumer expectations associated with the use, distribution, and control of digital media products. In particular the author analyze the anti-circumvention provisions for technological protection measures and digital rights management systems enacted in the United States and in Europe.

The phenomenal growth of the media and entertainment industries has contributed to a fragmented approach to intellectual property rights. Written by a range of experts in the field, this Handbook deals with contemporary aspects of intellectual property law (IP), and examines how they relate to different facets of media and entertainment.

This book addresses the key issues, challenges and implications arising out of changes in the copyright law and corresponding judicial responses. Using concrete examples, the book does not assume any prior knowledge of copyright law, but brings together leading intellectual property researchers to consider the significant role of copyright law in shaping the needs of the modern digital world. It provides an insight into two distinct arenas: copyright and digital media. The exponential increase in the ability to multiply and disseminate information by digital means has sparked numerous conflicts pertaining to copyright – and in turn has prompted lawmakers to expand the scope of copyright protection in the digital age. Bearing in mind the new questions that the advent of the digital age has raised on the role and function of copyright, the book presents a collection of papers largely covering new frontiers and changing horizons especially in this area. The contributions intensively address core issues including the exhaustion principle, copyright and digital media, liability of hosting service providers, the originality requirement, accessibility to published works for the visually disabled, criminalization of copyright infringement, and software protection under copyright law, among others. Consisting of 14 papers, this book will be equally interesting to researchers, policymakers, practitioners and lawmakers, especially those active in the field of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR).

This new - and in its second edition - book captures a comprehensive treatment of intellectual property law and interactive media. It covers emerging trends such as the international contexts of games/virtual worlds, legislative and judicial history, and the efforts to balance public and private interests. It explains procedural issues in connection with various forms of intellectual property management (copyright, patent, open source/open publishing, trademark, trade secrets, personal torts - right of publicity, privacy, defamation - and digital rights management) and registration.

Front Matter -- Introduction to the Legal System -- Freedom of Expression -- Telecommunications Regulation -- Internet Regulation -- Conflict of Laws -- Information Access and Protection -- Intellectual Property: Copyright -- Intellectual Property: Patents, Trademarks, and Trade Secrets -- Defamation -- Invasion of Privacy -- Sex and Violence -- Commercial Speech and Antitrust Law -- Table of Cases -- Glossary -- Notes -- Index

In today's complex media environment, aspiring filmmakers and new media artists are as vulnerable as swimmers in shark-infested waters. This user-friendly guide supplies creative artists with the essential legal concepts needed to swim safely with lawyers, agents, executives, and other experts in intellectual property and business law How do I copyright my screenplay? How can I clear rights for my film project? What can I do to avoid legal trouble when I produce my mockumentary? How do I ascertain whether a vintage novel is in the public domain? Is the trademark I've invented for my production company available? What about copyright and trademark rights overseas? If I upload my film to YouTube, do I give up any rights? Bill Seiter and Ellen Seiter answer these questions and countless others while also demystifying the fundamental principles of intellectual property. Clear and thorough, this plain-spoken and practical guide is essential for anyone seeking to navigate the rapidly changing media environment of today.

This Handbook provides a scholarly and comprehensive account of the multiple converging challenges that digital technologies present for intellectual property (IP) rights, from the perspectives of international, EU and US law. Despite the fast-moving nature of digital technology, this Handbook provides profound reflections on the underlying normative legal dilemmas, identifying future problems and suggesting how digital IP issues should be dealt with in the future.