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posted by janrinok on Monday June 04 2018, @03:01AM   Printer-friendly
from the boot-on-the-other-foot dept.

Submitted via IRC for SoyCow8093

The Michael Jackson Estate is suing the Walt Disney Company and ABC for using dozens of its copyrighted works without permission. According to Disney, no harm has been done, since including these works in "The Last Days of Michael Jackson" documentary is "fair use." The Estate clearly disagrees and notes that Disney's argument would make even the founders of Napster pause.

According to the claim, Disney and ABC’s broadcast used at least thirty different copyrighted works owned by the Estate, without permission. In fact, Michael Jackson’s heirs specifically urged the media titans not to use its intellectual property without a license.

Since Disney is known to be an avid protector of its own rights, the Estate calls out the company’s double standard. “Apparently, Disney’s passion for the copyright laws disappears when it doesn’t involve its own intellectual property and it sees an opportunity to profit off of someone else’s intellectual property without permission or payment,” the complaint reads.

The complaint stresses that Disney is known for its strict copyright enforcement actions and a narrow view of copyright law’s “fair use” doctrine. “For example, just a few years ago, [Disney] sent DMCA takedown notices to Twitter, Facebook, and other websites and webhosts, when consumers posted pictures of new Star Wars toys that the consumers had legally purchased.

“Apparently, Disney claimed that simple amateur photographs of Star Wars characters in toy form infringed Disney’s copyrights in the characters and were not a fair use,” the state writes.

However, when the Estate urged Disney not to use any of its copyrighted works without permission, Disney’s attorney used fair use as a defense. The company argued that it could legally use Jackson’s copyrighted material since the broadcast was labeled as a documentary. This is “absurd” and “dead wrong” according to Jackson’s heirs, who see it as a blatant form of infringement which even the founders of Napster would recognize.

[...] A copy of the Michael Jackson Estate’s complaint against The Walt Disney Company and ABC is available here (PDF).

Source: https://torrentfreak.com/michael-jackson-estate-turns-the-fair-use-table-on-disney-180531/


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  • (Score: 1, Troll) by Runaway1956 on Monday June 04 2018, @05:06AM (7 children)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday June 04 2018, @05:06AM (#688234) Journal

    Pull your head out of your ass, and get a breath of oxygen - your brain needs it. Sumbitch was documented many times to be sleeping in the same bad with little boys who were unrelated to him. One of two things was going on:
    Either Jackson was an impotent, retarded sumbitch who never grew up,
    OR, he was diddling those little boys.

    Your choice. Either way, he was worthy of contempt, and certainly NOT worthy of the hero worship that America gave him.

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  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 04 2018, @05:12AM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 04 2018, @05:12AM (#688235)

    It seems strange to me that all these people wanted large payouts from a supposed child molester. If someone molested someone I know, I'd want them in prison at the very least. But no, large settlements from a supposedly dangerous child molester. That makes sense. Not.

    No conclusive evidence was ever found. I strongly suspect that had it been a criminal trial, it would have failed miserably. I guess irrational people don't care about evidence, though.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 04 2018, @02:22PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 04 2018, @02:22PM (#688367)

      He did go through a politically charged criminal trial, and he prevailed.

  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by anubi on Monday June 04 2018, @07:18AM (4 children)

    by anubi (2828) on Monday June 04 2018, @07:18AM (#688262) Journal

    Jackson was an impotent, retarded sumbitch who never grew up,

    That is my belief... I don't believe Michael ever had a "childhood", and even though his body matured, in his mind he was still a kid.

    And I think that is what a lot of us liked about him so much... he was still a kid... and we envied him, as the rest of us were forced by economics into the reality of living a life productive for someone else.

    --
    "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
    • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Monday June 04 2018, @07:30AM (3 children)

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday June 04 2018, @07:30AM (#688266) Journal

      Salutes, then. You are not one of those hypocritical asses who worship a man for his money. A lot of people think Jackson was diddling those little boys - and the STILL admire him!

      You, I think, may be foolish. Those other people, I think are sick, and maybe evil.

      That is my honest opinion, for what it is worth.

      • (Score: 3, Interesting) by anubi on Monday June 04 2018, @10:59AM (2 children)

        by anubi (2828) on Monday June 04 2018, @10:59AM (#688312) Journal

        Yeh, he may have well been diddling those boys, but I also believe he was still a kid - in an older body.

        Personally, I would have a hard time holding him culpable unless any physical harm came of it.

        This is a conundrum for law... as where does one draw a line. Equality under the law means that law applies to everyone. How am I to say Michael is not culpable, but someone else doing the exact thing is?

        Maybe I am a fool for thinking that... but its just one old fart's take on it. This is not the first time I've been a fool... actually I get "taken" all too often.

        --
        "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
        • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Monday June 04 2018, @11:32AM

          by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday June 04 2018, @11:32AM (#688323) Journal

          Good honest answer - and modded up for that.

          The conundrum for law? Yes, it is, and also an ethical and moral conundrum. The law echoes ethics and morals, as well as religion, in that, all recognize a "coming of age". And, all recognize that some people will never pass the "rites of passage". You could be right. Jackson never became a man, so he can't be held accountable as a man.

          So, now where are we? Maybe you're less a fool than I thought, but I certainly disagree with you! :^)

        • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Azuma Hazuki on Monday June 04 2018, @08:05PM

          by Azuma Hazuki (5086) on Monday June 04 2018, @08:05PM (#688534) Journal

          This is not a conundrum for the law, damn it. He was over 18. If at any time after he was 18 any of his partners were underage, then he broke the law. I don't give a tinker's damn for what his mental state may have been.

          --
          I am "that girl" your mother warned you about...