The Hollywood Reporter | Esq. | Entertainment and Media Law

Why Hollywood should be afraid of the iPad (video)

hollywoodreporter — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 14:32:45 -0700

By Eriq Gardner The technorati may be drooling over the iPad, but you'll forgive the Hollywood elite if they don't line up at the Apple Store to get their hands on this brawny new tablet computer. In fact, the introduction...

Hollywood Docket Top 5: Redstone escapes class action; iPod tax; 'Heroes' pirate pride

hollywoodreporter — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 10:05:09 -0700

CBS chairman Sumner Redstone catches a break as a New York federal judge dismisses a class-action lawsuit against the company and senior executives for allegedly artificially inflating the company's value in order to help Redstone on a loan. [Reuters] The...

Oprah defamation case can go to trial

hollywoodreporter — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:54:47 -0700

By Eriq Gardner Whenever we write about Oprah Winfrey litigation, whether it be with poets, flight attendants, physical trainers, or diet pill makers, it's usually with an air of dismissiveness. She's a billionaire media personality and can hire the best...

Hollywood Docket Top 5: FCC broadband plan; pawn shop expose; 'Project Runway' effect

hollywoodreporter — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 11:38:59 -0700

The FCC might expand its regulatory scope with an ambitious "National Broadband Plan." It seeks to increase access to the Internet but also includes provisions on competition rules, the video set-top market, broadcast spectrums and more. Here's an overview of...

It's on! Kirby estate sues Marvel; copyrights to Iron Man, Spider-Man at stake

hollywoodreporter — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:49:11 -0700

By Eriq Gardner The children of comic book icon Jack Kirby have officially sued Marvel to terminate copyrights and gain profits from such lucrative comic creations as Iron Man, X-Men, The Incredible Hulk and Spider-Man. The suit, filed in U.S....

Hollywood Docket Top 5: 'Hurt Locker' tops pirate list; 'Couples Retreat' model sues; Seinfeld slander sequel?

hollywoodreporter — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:12:34 -0700

Fresh off its best picture win at the Oscars, "The Hurt Locker" has become the most pirated movie online. Summit Entertainment, the film's distributor, was unable to significantly increase its theatrical booking last week because of policies by the nation's...

Why Letterman's extortionist needs an agent, not a lawyer

hollywoodreporter — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 15:03:44 -0800

Today we're starting a new weekly feature called Crime Time, which will delve deeper into the intersection of showbiz and the criminal courts than we typically go on this blog. For that we've reached out to a new contributor, Russell...

Super Bowl commercial lawsuits keep coming

hollywoodreporter — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 13:34:54 -0800

By Eriq Gardner For the third time in the last 10 days, a commercial that aired during this year's Super Bowl has prompted a lawsuit. The latest targets a spot aired by Kia Motors that allegedly rips off a classic...

Hollywood Docket Top 5: Wells rips Comcast-NBCU; Phil Spector appeal; law school & 'The Office'

hollywoodreporter — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 10:28:37 -0800

WGA West president John Wells was harshly critical of the planned Comcast-NBC Uni merger at Congressional hearings yesterday and proposed that the "new media superpower" be required to allocate 25% of primetime programming on its networks to independent providers. [THR]...

Judge tosses copyright claim on Sony's 'God of War'

hollywoodreporter — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 16:51:09 -0800

By Eriq Gardner Video games are becoming more like movies every day, so it's not surprising to see publishers facing the same kinds of idea theft lawsuits that frequently irritate Hollywood. Sony Computer Entertainment and game designer David Jaffe have...

How to solve the digital download problem in a flash

hollywoodreporter — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 11:05:05 -0800

Here's another attorney guest post. Schuyler Moore is a well-known film finance lawyer at Stroock and an adjunct professor at UCLA Law School and the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He's now a regular commentator for the print Hollywood Reporter,...

Hollywood Docket Top 5: Viacom drops clips from Youtube suit; more Lindsay vs. E-Trade baby; Tom Cruise headed back to 'South Park'

hollywoodreporter — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:16:34 -0800

Viacom withdrew 187 video clips from contention yesterday in its copyright infringement lawsuit against YouTube. The removal was on top of the 241 clips that Viacom previously withdrew in October. The company says it decided to pull them to "streamline...

Will & Jada Pinkett Smith battle with film financier heads to arbitration

hollywoodreporter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:03:29 -0800

By Matthew Belloni Will and Jada Pinkett Smith's aggressive lawsuit against the financier of her directorial debut will be decided behind closed doors. Lawyers for the Smiths and Overbrook Entertainment have agreed with attorneys for Tycoon Entertainment and principal David...

If Warner Bros. accidentally sent you $1 mil, would you cash the check?

hollywoodreporter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:11:57 -0800

By Matthew Belloni You get a fat check from a major studio that maybe shouldn't be yours. Do you cash it? David Bergstein would. At least that's what's implied in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. Warner...

5 possible reasons why Lindsay Lohan filed that talking-baby lawsuit

hollywoodreporter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:32:51 -0800

By Eriq Gardner Lindsay Lohan's $100 million lawsuit against E-Trade for airing a commercial that featured a "milkaholic" baby named Lindsay has the town talking (video below). Here's the actual complaint. We'd love to give a counterintuitive post that argues...

Nike sues to include Vince Lombardi speech in commercial

hollywoodreporter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:25:57 -0800

By Eriq GardnerDead celebrities have become cash cows for their estates. Laws protecting the publicity rights of the deceased have been expanded, and no management firm has benefited more from the trend than CMG Worldwide, representing Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, James...

Hollywood Docket Top 5: Pink Floyd vs. EMI; Joe Walsh vs. Joe Walsh; Music labels vs. 'Ellen'

hollywoodreporter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:20:42 -0800

Pink Floyd is suing EMI Group over online royalty payments and the sale of single tracks. The lawsuit, filed in London, asks a court to clarify the band's contract with regards to the calculation of online royalties and whether tracks...

Vancouver man files first 'Avatar' rip-off lawsuit

hollywoodreporter — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:25:05 -0800

By Eriq Gardner Well, it finally happened. James Cameron has been sued for copyright infringement for allegedly stealing source material to create the international blockbuster "Avatar." Since the first review of the film appeared in December, a popular parlor game...

Hollywood Docket Top 5: Viacom vs. Google; 'Kill Bill' stolen?; 'Bachelor' battery; Lindsay Lohan is a baby

hollywoodreporter — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:23:43 -0800

A federal judge has given Google and Viacom 10 days to figure out what portions of their recently filed summary judgment motions to keep under seal. Google has been particularly anxious to keep its motion private, leading to objections by...

Oscar Docket: 11th hour deal; acceptance-speech crashing; logo hijacking

hollywoodreporter — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:28:25 -0800

By Eriq Gardner Instead of our usual Hollywood Docket Top 5, today we bring you a special Oscars edition, as last night was a pretty amusing one for lawyers. The night started out with intrigue as Cablevision pulled WABC from...