Ariana Mafi
3/06/20
Media Law in the News 2
Professor Carlson
Copyright issues in the Media: Fortnite Dances
Part I – Summary of Issue
In class we discussed the issue of using copyrighted dances, and why a plaintiff can potentially bring a lawsuit forward against someone using said copyrighted dance. I wanted to further examine a lawsuit that was brought against one Fortnite dance, the Carlton, and why this lawsuit was taken down. This case comes under Intellectual Property law (the legal category including copyright, trademark, and patent law), and I would like to examine the plaintiff’s case for Copyright. This case is very complex; therefore, I am not going to look at any of the defenses. Copyright is an exclusive legal right used to protect intellectual creations from unauthorized use. Protected works include literary, musical, dramatic, motion picture, and many others. Ideas, history, and facts may not be copyrighted. When looking at this case, I am going to examine why Alfonso Ribeiro, the “original” creator of the Carlton dance, does not have a strong enough lawsuit to bring against Fortnite’s parent company, Epic Games.
In class we discussed the issue of using copyrighted dances, and why a plaintiff can potentially bring a lawsuit forward against someone using said copyrighted dance. I wanted to further examine a lawsuit that was brought against one Fortnite dance, the Carlton, and why this lawsuit was taken down. This case comes under Intellectual Property law (the legal category including copyright, trademark, and patent law), and I would like to examine the plaintiff’s case for Copyright. This case is very complex; therefore, I am not going to look at any of the defenses. Copyright is an exclusive legal right used to protect intellectual creations from unauthorized use. Protected works include literary, musical, dramatic, motion picture, and many others. Ideas, history, and facts may not be copyrighted. When looking at this case, I am going to examine why Alfonso Ribeiro, the “original” creator of the Carlton dance, does not have a strong enough lawsuit to bring against Fortnite’s parent company, Epic Games.
Part II – RULE – Legal Questions Raised & Applicable Rule
There are a few questions that come to mind when I look at this case.
There are a few questions that come to mind when I look at this case.
1)
We need to
determine what kind of Intellectual Property law this is: copyright (an exclusive
legal right used to protect intellectual creations from unauthorized use), patent
(exclude others from making,
using, selling and importing an invention for a limited period of years),
or trademark (a word, name, design, or symbol used to identify a companies
goods and distinguish them from similar products other companies make)
2)
We also need to
determine if the Carlton dance would be a protected work (see section above).
3)
Is the
dance “novel and distinctive”
4)
Is this Fortnite
dance a “choreographic work” or a “social dance step and simple routine”
5)
We need to examine the
Plaintiffs case for copyright; - A copyright plaintiff must prove the following
Part III – APPLICATION – Applying the Relevant
Doctrine / Precedent
To answer our first question, this is a copyright case since the dance is an intellectual creation. Additionally, the Carlton dance is a protected work, as a dance is not an idea, history or fact. When looking at dance moves, they come under a grey are of copyright law, as we discussed in class. The dance is novel and distinctive; however, the issue comes when examining if the Carlton is a choreographic work or a simple dance. According to the Copyright Office of California (where this case was brought), choreography commonly involves “the composition and arrangement of a related series of dance movements and patterns organized into a coherent whole” and “a story, theme, or abstract composition conveyed through movement.” Dances that meet that standard cannot be copyrighted, even if they are novel or distinctive. I want to examine the plaintiff’s case before answering this question. Alfonso Roberto’s dance was an original work fixed in a tangible medium (The T.V. show he debuted his dance on), however how original is it? Roberto has said in many interviews that his dance moves for the Carlton were inspired by several different actors. Moving forward to ownership, most would say that Roberto does own the dance, however some courts could disagree and suggest that the employer, aka the T.V. show producers own the dance, as a character on their show did the dance. Additionally, for a copyright to be registered, it needs to meet the standards of which works are protected. The Carlton is three simple dance steps, composed of swaying back and forth and step-touching together. These would most likely be considered a simple dance, therefore is not a protected copyright, no matter how novel or distinctive it is. Therefore, the copyright would likely be rejected from being registered. When looking at the final point of the plaintiff’s case, Fortnite directly copied the work, had access to the work (since it was on T.V.) and that they are both substantially similar.
To answer our first question, this is a copyright case since the dance is an intellectual creation. Additionally, the Carlton dance is a protected work, as a dance is not an idea, history or fact. When looking at dance moves, they come under a grey are of copyright law, as we discussed in class. The dance is novel and distinctive; however, the issue comes when examining if the Carlton is a choreographic work or a simple dance. According to the Copyright Office of California (where this case was brought), choreography commonly involves “the composition and arrangement of a related series of dance movements and patterns organized into a coherent whole” and “a story, theme, or abstract composition conveyed through movement.” Dances that meet that standard cannot be copyrighted, even if they are novel or distinctive. I want to examine the plaintiff’s case before answering this question. Alfonso Roberto’s dance was an original work fixed in a tangible medium (The T.V. show he debuted his dance on), however how original is it? Roberto has said in many interviews that his dance moves for the Carlton were inspired by several different actors. Moving forward to ownership, most would say that Roberto does own the dance, however some courts could disagree and suggest that the employer, aka the T.V. show producers own the dance, as a character on their show did the dance. Additionally, for a copyright to be registered, it needs to meet the standards of which works are protected. The Carlton is three simple dance steps, composed of swaying back and forth and step-touching together. These would most likely be considered a simple dance, therefore is not a protected copyright, no matter how novel or distinctive it is. Therefore, the copyright would likely be rejected from being registered. When looking at the final point of the plaintiff’s case, Fortnite directly copied the work, had access to the work (since it was on T.V.) and that they are both substantially similar.
Part IV – CONCLUSION
Through this analysis, I have determined that it is clear Roberto does not have a case. His work may not be original enough and he may not even have ownership of the dance. Those two points are subjective; however, you need to have a registered copyright to bring a lawsuit, and the dance is not protected due to its simplicity. Therefore, regardless of how frustrating it may be, Roberto dies not have a case for copyright against Epic Games. Overall, I believe the lesson learned is to always ask permission. This is one plaintiff and one dance that does not have a case, but I can imagine that there are many other scenarios like this one where a case would stand. Regardless, these types of cases go beyond legalities and move towards an ethical dilemma; in order to avoid any legal or ethical implications, it is simply better to ask for permission before using someone else’s work.
Through this analysis, I have determined that it is clear Roberto does not have a case. His work may not be original enough and he may not even have ownership of the dance. Those two points are subjective; however, you need to have a registered copyright to bring a lawsuit, and the dance is not protected due to its simplicity. Therefore, regardless of how frustrating it may be, Roberto dies not have a case for copyright against Epic Games. Overall, I believe the lesson learned is to always ask permission. This is one plaintiff and one dance that does not have a case, but I can imagine that there are many other scenarios like this one where a case would stand. Regardless, these types of cases go beyond legalities and move towards an ethical dilemma; in order to avoid any legal or ethical implications, it is simply better to ask for permission before using someone else’s work.
No comments:
Post a Comment