PitchMark

3 June 2022 12:48

Snapchat sued by Swiss rights collection society SUISA for refusing to pay its composers, songwriters and publishers

Snap Inc., the owner of social media platform Snapchat, is being sued by Switzerland-based SUISA Digital Licensing for alleged copyright infringement.
SUISA Digital is a subsidiary of the music rights collection society SUISA that collects digital publishing royalties outside the U.S. for its 80,000 songwriters, composers, publishers and about 10 million works. It has created license agreements

31 May 2022 09:43

Can IP laws protect your work from being ripped off when evolving technologies are constantly changing the rules of the game?

Content creation is at an all-time high due to platforms such as Meta, TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, and the advent of new technologies such as NFTs has brought all kinds of challenges for IP lawyers when it comes to protecting your innovations or creations.
World Intellectual Property Day is an annual event that is celebrated on April 26. The theme of this year’s event was “IP and Youth:

30 May 2022 10:16

Comedian Amy Schumer called out for stealing a joke at Oscars, but says "I'm funny enough, I don’t need to steal shit."

Amy Schumer has been accused of plagiarizing a joke from Twitter for her Oscars opening speech.
In her monologue, Schumer said: "Leonardo DiCaprio, what can I say about him? He has done so much to fight climate change and leave behind a cleaner, greener planet for his girlfriends. Because he's older and they are younger. Okay, you get it.”
The joke triggered huge laughs in the audience. Howe

27 May 2022 10:43

Bill introduced to strip Disney of its copyright protection for Mickey Mouse may bring into question US’ global commitments to its IPR treaties

US Senator Josh Hawley has introduced the Copyright Clause Restoration Act, a new bill to strip corporations like Disney of special copyright protections. His bill would limit new copyright protections to 56 years and make the change retroactive for massive corporations like Disney that have been granted long copyright monopolies.
The action comes after Florida lawmakers deprived Disney of spec

26 May 2022 10:22

Ralph Lauren accused of plagiarising Malaysian designer's cape for Alicia Keys at the Met Gala

US-based Malaysian designer Datuk Zang Toi accused Ralph Lauren of copying one of his designs for a cape, which was worn by singer Alicia Keys at the Met Gala earlier this month.
The singer arrived in a silver gown and black cape embroidered with New York skyline.
On the red carpet, Keys told Vogue that she and Lauren were inspired by the Big Apple, since they both hail from New York.
Key

23 May 2022 13:00

teamLab sues a museum for copying its immersive art, but can it really be protected when the artwork itself is ever-changing?

Japanese art collective teamLab, founded in 2001 and known for creating 360-degree interactive software environments, has sued the Museum of Dream Space (MODS) for violating its copyrights.
teamLab’s museums have become popular over the years. In fact, its museum installations and other players such as Yayoi Kusama’s “Infinity Mirrored Rooms” and the Color Factory are so successful that they ha

Instagram: Ambra Fossati's Ambra Maddalena (Left) & Shani Grimmond (Right)

19 May 2022 11:33

Australian designer Ambra Fossati accuses beauty influencer of copying a dress design

Australian designer Ambra Fossati has accused a beauty influencer Shani Grimmond also hailing from Down Under, for allegedly copying her design.
The dress in question is a crew-neck maxi with long sleeves and sheer stretch knit that Grimmond hinted at releasing under her Sylk Swim label on her Instagram account, which has a massive following of 1.4 million users.
Fossati is a well-known desi

13 May 2022 09:14

Ed Sheeran wins copyright battle over his 2017 hit "Shape of You"

British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran has finally won a four-year copyright battle over his 2017 hit song Shape of You after a UK judge concluded that he had not plagiarized the work of another British artist.
Sami Chokri - aka Sami Switch - and songwriter Ross O’Donoghue had blamed Ed Sheeran and two of his co-writers for plagiarizing part of a track.
He claimed that the “Oh I” melodic hook

9 May 2022 12:20

Did Swedish fashion house H&M copy textured knitwear design from a young designer?

A young London-based Asian-American fashion designer Chet Lo has accused the Swedish clothing brand H&M of copying his signature highly textured knitwear.
The allegation revolves around a pink knitwear dress included in H&M’s “Innovation Cherish Waste” collection that looks like Lo’s famous spiky design, which was featured in Doja Cat and SZA’s “Kiss Me More” music video.
As soon as

Source: Instagram account of Duan Mei Yue and Angelina Poveteva

4 May 2022 12:19

Rip-off or not: Singaporean model accused Russian artist of using the likeness of her face on a topless body and exhibiting it for sale

Singaporean model Duan Mei Yue has accused Russian artist Angelina Poveteva of painting the likeness of her face on a topless body, and then exhibiting the painting at a Moscow art fair and selling it without her consent.
Duan published a two-minute video on social media to raise her concern along with the supporting evidence. She claimed that Poveteva had sold the painting to two buyers for US

Image source: llaollao Malaysia & II.Ia.Io Malaysia

28 April 2022 12:30

Rip-off or not: Malaysians identify a copycat brand of Spanish frozen dessert brand ‘llaollao’ on the first day of its launch

A newly open dessert store in Malaysia is being blamed for copying the whole concept of a frozen store franchise that operates in the country.
II.Ia.Io, a Malaysian small business that specialises in frozen yogurt, recently opened its first outlet to compete with llaollao, a Spanish frozen yoghurt desert chain that operates in the nation.
As soon as the new store opened its doors to customer

27 April 2022 10:22

Did Asghar Farhadi plagiarise the idea for “A Hero” movie from his student?

Oscar-winning Iranian director Asghar Farhadi has been accused of stealing the concept of his successful movie A Hero from his former student Azadeh Masihzadeh.
Masihzadeh had filed a case against Farhadi in a Tehran court for plagiarising the concept from her documentary All Winners All Losers, which was made for a workshop led by Farhadi in 2014. The movie was also shown at a film festival i

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