The Associated Press reports that Australian band Men at Work lost a copyright suit alleging its mega-hit Down Under infringed upon a 70 year old children’s song. Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree was written by Australian teacher Marion Sinclair, who later assigned the rights to Larrikin Music. The music publishing company sought 60 [...]

Last week the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) sent a mailer encouraging its members to challenge groups that “promote Copyleft in order to undermine our Copyright.” Such groups include Creative Commons (CC), Public Knowledge, and Electronic Frontier Foundation. On Wednesday, Eric Steuer, Creative Director for Creative Commons responded via the CC website. [...]

In 2009, Montreal-based producer, Tor, released Illinoize –  a free remix tape that samples instrumentals from Sufjan Stevens 2005 LP Illinoise, and mashes them with the likes of Aesop Rock, Big Daddy Kane, Gift of Gab (Blackalicious), C.L. Smooth, Outkast, Brother Ali, and Grand Puba. Almost a year and a half later, the compilation has [...]

Mark Hosler of Negativland talks about the band’s role as Creative Commons’ (CC) first Project Lead. In 2003 CC recruited the sound collage pioneers to oversee drafting of the Sampling License which allows people to “create collage art and “mash-ups” — as well as other art forms based on re-used materials — from licensed works.” [...]

Access to the original: check. Substantial similarity: check. Statute of limitations: lapsed. Folk singer Jake Holmes sued Jimmy Page for copyright infringement  — 41 years after Dazed and Confused appeared on Led Zeppelin’s self-titled album (1969). Because Holmes is bringing suit more than three years after the infringement began (just over 4 decades ago), his [...]

BBC news reports that the Swedish anti-copyright group which founded The Pirate Bay has disbanded. The Piracy Bureau, or Piratbyrån website states, “STÄNGT FÖR EFTERTANKE” which means “closed for reflection” in English. The announcement follows the recent death of co-founder Ibi Kopimi Botani. Apart from launching the infamous BitTorrent tracker The Pirate Bay in 2003, [...]

Vincent Peters (aka Vince P.) sued Kanye West, Roc-a-Fella Records and UMG Recordings on Friday for copyright infringement. Peters allegedly gave West (via his manager) a copy of Stronger, a song he recorded in 2006, seven months prior to West recording a song of the same title. The complaint states that West’s Stronger “copies significant [...]

Playboy is suing rapper Drake for the unauthorized use of Fallin’ in Love by Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds (1975) in his break out single Best I Ever Had (2009). Recognizing the “enormous commercial success” of the EP, according to The Boombox, Playboy seeks to destroy all remaining copies of the work and collect damages. [...]