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lazypadawanToday I get around to the latest mini tempest, a C&D issued to a bar in Brooklyn that had planned to run a Star Wars marathon over 4th of July weekend. The hipsters running the joint proceeded to whine about it to everyone who would listen and it's of course followed by the usual blind fury and rage directed at that cold, evil George Lucas. The media always portrays this sort of thing as the "little guy" getting beat down by the "evil faceless corporation."
Well, Darth Media and Darth Fanboy, U.S. copyright law covers exhibition and performance rights. You can invite your friends and family over to your house to watch your shiny new Blu-Rays in September. You cannot take them to some public establishment like a bar or restaurant and show them to the patrons. The bar owner thought he could get around any issues by not charging cover, but he was using the movies to draw people into the bar to buy drinks. Duh! You wouldn't believe by the way how many businesses get nailed for playing music over the PA without paying ASCAP licensing fees. There was even a case where a band that sued a bar somewhere because it hosted a cover band that hadn't paid ASCAP licensing fees.
"But it's just a bar!" they whine. Well, if you let a few guys squat on your land, pretty soon you're going to have a whole squatter village all over the place. Moreover, Lucasfilm asserted in its C&D that it had suspended exhibition of the films. Why is that? Because they have Blu-Rays and movie tickets to sell!
Lucasfilm owns Star Wars. It can tell me to take down my fan fic. It can tell me to deep six my icons. It probably won't because I'm not a financial drain on the company. But it can do what it likes. If you don't like it, go lobby your Congress critter to repeal our copyright law. While you're at it, lobby the European Union to do the same. We actually changed our copyright laws to comply better with European protection for authors.
Well, Darth Media and Darth Fanboy, U.S. copyright law covers exhibition and performance rights. You can invite your friends and family over to your house to watch your shiny new Blu-Rays in September. You cannot take them to some public establishment like a bar or restaurant and show them to the patrons. The bar owner thought he could get around any issues by not charging cover, but he was using the movies to draw people into the bar to buy drinks. Duh! You wouldn't believe by the way how many businesses get nailed for playing music over the PA without paying ASCAP licensing fees. There was even a case where a band that sued a bar somewhere because it hosted a cover band that hadn't paid ASCAP licensing fees.
"But it's just a bar!" they whine. Well, if you let a few guys squat on your land, pretty soon you're going to have a whole squatter village all over the place. Moreover, Lucasfilm asserted in its C&D that it had suspended exhibition of the films. Why is that? Because they have Blu-Rays and movie tickets to sell!
Lucasfilm owns Star Wars. It can tell me to take down my fan fic. It can tell me to deep six my icons. It probably won't because I'm not a financial drain on the company. But it can do what it likes. If you don't like it, go lobby your Congress critter to repeal our copyright law. While you're at it, lobby the European Union to do the same. We actually changed our copyright laws to comply better with European protection for authors.
