Lord of the Gadflies: Dispelling Confusion over Celebrity Likeness by Applying the Right of Publicity to Commercial Speech on Social Media
Nicholas Turgiss Celebrities have increasingly used social media to market themselves. This trend has given rise to confusion as to the extent of a celebrity’s right over their own likeness. This article discusses the right of publicity and argues that because celebrity social media accounts have significant commercial aspects, celebrities’ likenesses on those accounts should receive protective commercial speech interests. This article also urges courts to recognize these protective interests in celebrity social media accounts and provide additional protection to smaller social media influencers from the appropriation of their own likenesses. Read Full Text Here
Tarantino v. Miramax: The Rise of NFTs and Their Copyright Implications
Emily Dieli Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are digital assets that are part of a relatively new industry involving blockchains and cryptocurrencies. As NFTs grow in popularity, questions have arisen over NFT copyright ownership. A federal court will have the opportunity to rule on this issue for the first time in a pending case between Miramax and Quentin Tarantino. The film production company and the well-known director are in dispute over intellectual property ownership of screenplay scenes that Tarantino sold as NFTs. The outcome of the case and future laws will have a direct impact on the way NFTs are purchased and...
Decentralizing Drone Regulations in Low-Altitude Airspace
Julie Bateman States have long held authority over low-altitude airspace. Nonetheless, with the rise of commercial drones over the past decade, the FAA has extended its near exclusive authority over aircraft in navigable airspace, generally airspace above 500 feet, to low-altitude airspace. Several members of Congress have proposed affirming the state’s authority over low- altitude airspace, most recently Senator Mike Lee with the Drone Integration and Zoning Act of 2019. Under the FAA’s regime, dominant players have secured valuable authorizations for beyond visual line of sight operations and package delivery services, yet small businesses have struggled to obtain authorization for...