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Music Law Syllabus

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Music Law Syllabus MUSIC LAW Spring Semester 2019 Professor Sean O’Connor Room 433C, Hazel Hall, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University 703.993.8937 || [email protected] SYLLABUS Registration & Related Information Class Time: W 9:00 - 11:40 a.m. Credits: 3 Office Hours: W 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. and by appointment This course covers the broad range of legal issues at play in the music ecosystem—broadly construed as the chain of composition, performance, recording, distribution, and playback. Music recording and playback devices have often been at the forefront of each stage of media technology and so the course covers not only copyright issues, but also patents, other IP, and contract issues. The course will cover both policy considerations as well as practical skills aspects of representing different players in the ecosystem. Grading is based on the following quizzes and legal document drafting. (1) Copyright registration 20%; (2) Harry Fox License 10%; (3) Band Member Contract 20%; (4) Take Home Quiz 25%; (5) Final Quiz: 25% Texts & Materials: Readings and other materials will be distributed in advance of each class. 1/16: What is a “Music Ecosystem?”; copyright primer; brief history of music and music law Readings: Copyright and the Music Marketplace Part II.A; Statute of Anne; 1790 Copyright Act; Bach v. Longman; Copyright Act of 1831; Act of Jan 6, 1897 1/23: Music composition copyrights and registration Readings: A Musical Work is a Set of Instructions; Music as a Matter of Law; Brief Amicus for Institute for IP and Social Justice; Arnstein v. Porter (review for those who have taken IP or copyright); ZZ Top v. Chrysler 1/30: Sound recording copyrights and registration; sampling; sound-alike recordings and publicity rights Readings: Federal Copyright Protection for pre-1972 Sound Recordings Ch. II; Bridgeport Music v Dimension Films; VMG Salsoul v. Madonna; Midler v. Ford Motor Company; Waits v. Frito Lay Assignment: Draft copyright registrations for songs on ProfSeanO’Connor SoundCloud page 2/6: Contractual relations: work made for hire, assignments, termination rights Readings: Forms of recording and publishing agreements; Morricone v. Bixio Music Group Copyright registration assignment due by 5 pm 2/13: Recording, mixing, (re)mastering, reproduction, and distribution of sound recordings Readings: artist, engineer, producer, and Harry Fox contracts; AMP Act; ABS v. CBS Assignment: Harry Fox Request Form 2/20: The Complex Web of Licensing Readings: Copyright and the Music Marketplace Parts II.B-D, III, Appendix D (licensing and rate setting charts); BMI/ASCAP consent decrees; Copyright Act 17 U.S.C. §§ 112, 114, 115; Music Modernization Act; Synch License Form; CLASSICS Act; ABA E+S Lawyer Mass NOIs 2017 Harry Fox Request Form due by 5 pm 2/27: Current litigation issues: Blurred Lines, Stairway to Heaven, and beyond Readings: Williams v. Gaye; Skidmore v. Led Zeppelin Assignment: Take Home Quiz 3/6: Branding and trademark issues for composers and performers Readings: First Amendment, Trademarks and “The Slants” (Simon Tam); Fishman and Linford chapters Take Home Quiz due by 5 pm 3/13: (No class; spring break) 3/20: Live performance issues and venue arrangements Readings: Sample contracts 3/22 (Friday makeup class for 4/17) New business models: 360 deals; movie, TV, and online placement; merchandising and tie-ins Readings: TBD 3/27: Composer and performing artist management Readings: management agreements Assignment: Band member contract 4/3: IP and other legal issues for instrument and recording gear manufacturers/providers Readings: Patented Electric Guitar Pickups and the Creation of Modern Music Genres; guitar design patent cases Band member contract due by 5 pm 4/10: Playback devices and content management platforms Readings: Sonos, Apple iTunes; Amazon Music; iPods & iPhones; Pono and other hi res; return of vinyl; issues of different platforms over time 4/17: (No class) 4/24: Pushing the boundaries: new instruments, platforms, and artificial intelligence Readings: Macrez article; demo AI apps Assignment: Final Take Home Quiz DUE May 1 by 5 pm 2 .
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