Beyonce Trademarks the CRAP out of "Sasha Fierce"

One of our very astute legal interns was apparently still thinking trademarks in her down time (way to go, Jenn!). While surfing www.perezhilton.com this weekend, she found an entry HERE that Beyonce has apparently registered her alter-ego, Sasha Fierce, in several trademark classes. I checked and, lo and behold, she HAS! You can check out the entries here, here, here and here. Since trademark filings are public record, you can see that the classes reveal some upcoming business plans for Mrs. Jay-Z. Perfume and clothing, at least! Trademarks are uber cool.

Yes, Entertainment Law is Occassionally a Media Circus

Well, technically the suit isn't based in "entertainment" law, but I really hate when this happens(Thanks to blog.lawinfo.com for the post). Brit-Brit and her former "manager" Sam Lufti are at is again. The amazing thing about this case is that most of the allegations are probably grounded in some sort of truth. I have no doubt the "drama" that supposedly existed in Britney's life last year did, in fact, exist. The only thing that frosts my cookies about the whole situation is that it makes both the field of entertainment law and the legal field at-large look kind of silly. Although, if you strip away the celebrity status, all you really have is a case that combines claims alleged in domestic relation suits every day. Yee haw.

A Complete Waste of Resources

As an entertainment attorney, I am all about copyright protection and paying for intellectual property rights. However, the RIAA suits are absolutely ridiculous and a complete waste of money. If they're so concerned about all the money lost by artists, why don't they stop spending all that money on litigation and just GIVE it to the artists? Or, better yet, invest in some R&D and marketing and find some NEW ways for music to be profitable?? *GASP* What an amazing idea. It really just frosts my cookies, frankly.

Anyway, a Harvard professor has stepped up to the plate to challenge the RIAA's right to sue individuals under the Copyright Act. You can read the article here.

Music Like Water

I read a great, short little book my last year in law school called The Future of Music: Manifesto for the Digital Music Revolution (you can buy it here on Amazon, if you're interested) and it spoke of music being like water in your life, for two reasons: 1) music would be acessible to you at all times - in your bedroom when you wake up, it would continue as you took your shower, made your breakfast, used your MP3 player on the way to work, etc.; and 2) because you would pay for it based on your "consumption" of it, just like you pay for your water. People wouldn't mind paying for music under this model, so the theory goes, because it "feels" free while you're doing it. Sure, the bill comes at the end of the month, but how much does that change our consumption of other utlities, like electricity, heat and water? Now, some may say this analogy isn't accurate because the above utilities are "necessities." I agree. However, when we want to take a bath instead of a shower just for the luxury of it, do we count the pennies? When we come home at night and it's dark (especially here in the Northeast, where it gets dark around 3:30 in the middle of winter), do we refrain from turning on the lights and opt for candles because o fthe electricity bill? No, most of us do not. Thus, while these things are "necessary" utilities in the traditional sense, our practical use of them is much more analogous and "luxury" than most of us think.

So, why shouldn't music be consumed in the same way, according to our personal use of it? Administratively, it could be burdensome - after all, how would you keep track of it if one utilizes various devices to listen to music? Is a timed basis, a per-play basis, or a unique song basis (i.e. you only pay once for a song, but can listen to it an infinite number of times). Do you have to repurchase your music every month?

A flat fee, some argue, would be easier (read this article I found today - Canada is considering this method for internet use of music). However, a flat fee comes with its problems, too - what if I only listen to 15 tracks in a month? Why should I pay the same price as someone that listens to 1,500 tracks a month? The counter argument to this is simply that the flat fee model is more analogous to how you receive your cable and/or internet (and even phone, if you still own a land line!) each month. With Comcast, you don't pay every time you turn on your TV - you only pay for the "extra" stuff. So, if I watch 5 hours of TV a day, I still pay the same price as someone who only watches 5 hours a week. And from a practical standpoint, do you ever hear people complain about this model? No, because the once-a-month fee makes it FEEL free every time we turn our TV on; even if, when it's broken down, I pay twice as much to watch TV as my neighbor does.

There's no doubt that new models will and should be welcome for the consumption of music. People don't want to pay for it anymore, so publishers and record labels need to make it "feel" free; even if it isn't. Ok music consumers, what are your thoughts?

MySpace Redefining Royalties

I stumbled across THIS blog from an attorney that practices entertainment and media law in India. Apparently MySpace has formed a partnership with MTV Networks that will allow MySpace to keep up clips of copyrighted material posted by users (instead of normaly being forced, under the Safe Harbor Provision, to take it down once they've been given notice of it). In exchange, MySpace will give the original creator(s) credit on the video and said creators will be given a cut of the ad income that MySpace will insert in/around the clips (some weird version of "royalties," I suppose).

It's an interesting idea, though a bit more administratively burdensome than simply taking down - there's additional content that needs to be added, and other videos will still need to be monitored and taken down (if not own by MTV Networks). Although, perhaps the financial benefits outweight the burdens. One thing is for sure - their lawyers are creative!