By Michael Hoven Zediva Closes Permanently, Pays $1.8 Million in Settlement The streaming movie service Zediva has agreed to shut down permanently and pay $1.8 million to settle its lawsuit with Hollywood studios, Wired reports. (The MPAA is hosting the consent decree from the Central District Court of California.) The studios sued Zediva in April, one month after it launched its service. Zediva let users watch movies online by remotely renting and operating DVDs and DVD players owned and stored ... Read More...

Stop Online Piracy Act Seeks to Block Piracy Websites By Amy Rossignol – Edited by Charlie Stiernberg H.R. 3261 – Stop Online Piracy Act Bill The proposed Stop Online Piracy Act, introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX), would vest in the U.S. Attorney General the power to regulate and prevent access to foreign websites infringing on U.S. Intellectual Property (“IP”) rights. The U.S. Attorney General, with court approval, would be able to issue orders to block access ... Read More...

U.S. Signs the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) By Amara Osisioma and Matt Gelfand – Edited by Andrew Segna Text of the Agreement On October 1, the United States — as well as Australia, Canada, Japan, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, and South Korea — signed the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (“ACTA”). Ars Technica provides commentary. The press release by the signatories indicated that the Agreement was necessary because “the proliferation of counterfeit and pirated goods poses considerable challenges for legitimate trade and ... Read More...

Is It Unconstitutional for Congress to Take Foreign Works Out of the Public Domain? By Julie Dorais – Edited by Matt Gelfand Golan v. Holder, No. 10-545 (U.S. 2010) Transcript of Oral Arguments On October 5, 2011, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for Golan v. Holder. The case involves the challenged constitutionality of Section 514 of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (codified as 17 U.S.C. §§ 104A, 109), which extends copyright protection to certain foreign works that have already been in the ... Read More...

Ninth Circuit Holds that Apple did not Engage in Copyright Misuse By Laura Fishwick – Edited by Michael Hoven Apple Inc. v. Psystar Corp., No. 10-15113 (9th Cir. Sept. 28, 2011) Slip Opinion The Ninth Circuit affirmed the Northern District of California’s holding that Psystar infringed Apple’s federal copyrights, and vacated and remanded the district court’s grant of Apple’s motion to seal summary judgment papers. The district court had rejected Psystar’s defense of copyright misuse, in which Psystar had argued ... Read More...