The short answer is ‘yes’, you can own a fictional character, says UK Trademark Attorney Luke Portnow, and this summer the UK saw a particularly interesting case law development in copyright protection.
Racing car driver Max Verstappen hopes to continue his winning streak in the courts as he seeks to protect his portrait (image) right against the use of a lookalike. Julia Schefman explains the background to the Dutch case, while Marine Dissoubray and Luke Portnow provide the French and UK perspectives.
The District Court of Amsterdam has found geo-blocking and access-restricting measures sufficient to protect the copyright of Anne Frank’s ‘The Diary of a Young Girl’, despite the fact such measures are not fully airtight.
The estate of Swedish author Astrid Lindgren successfully established last year that a German version of the song ‘Hey, Pippi Longstocking’ infringed its copyright. To mark the launch of the new official version of the Pippi Longstocking song this month, Koen de Winder examines the court case and what it means for the character’s legacy.
The soccer world has been in mourning since 25 November, after Diego Maradona died at the age of 60 following a cardiac arrest. One of the greatest football players of all time, Maradona is also well known among IP professionals for his 2019 dispute with Dolce & Gabbana, as Léa de Ladoucette explains.
Disney, creator of the Toy Story movie franchise, is being sued by the Evel Knievel estate, which claims that its newest character, Duke Caboom, has ripped off the likeness of the infamous stunt performer.
Banksy has failed to block a greetings card company from using one of his famous artworks, after the EUIPO agreed that the secretive street artist had no interest in commercially exploiting the trademark he had registered to protect it.
In Brompton Bicycles, the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) ruled that products that are shaped in such a way as to obtain a technical result are eligible for copyright protection. Casper Hemelrijk outlines the implications.
From Led Zeppelin to Katy Perry, it seems that hardly a few weeks go by without another music IP case hitting the headlines. But, does this mark an increase in actual ‘copying’, or is it just a indication of the high amounts of money at stake once a pop group or pop song becomes successful?
A recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) found that designer clothing business G-Star is not entitled to copyright protection for its ‘ARC’ and ‘ROWDY’ clothing designs.
When it comes to celebrity tattoos, the story is always who's got one and where – but what about the artist who created the design? We redress the balance.
It’s one of the 1970’s most recognisable guitar riffs, but the opening of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Stairway to Heaven’ is becoming almost as well known for another reason: the accusation of copyright theft by US psychedelic rock band Spirit.