I agree, there'd be no cause under copyright law. However, MLB would
sue the local station for infringement of the trademarks that they have
in the uniforms, with tha argument that having these trademarks in the
broadcast could create confusion that this product (the telecast) would
be confused with one of theirs.
In my non-lawyerly opinion the whole gamecast thing comed down to: any
facts about a game that you can obtain WITHOUT entering into a
contractural arrangement with MLB (by buying a ticket, signing up for
their web servcie, etc.) you are free to pass along.
Of course all this assumed that the WIPO broadcast/cablecast/webcast
treaty goes nowhere.
-----Original Message-----
From: Chris Sprigman [mailto:sprigman1[_at_]yahoo.com]
Sent: Wednesday, December 03, 2003 11:54 AM
To: CNI-COPYRIGHT -- Copyright & Intellectual Property
Subject: [CNI-(C)] Re: The Rights of Major League Baseball
David's comment raises an interesting point. A
baseball game is, as David suggests, likely not a work
of authorship. The work entitled to protection is in
the "telecast" -- i.e., the game plus the associated commentary, graphic
images, etc. So long as an internet gamecast doesn't use protected
elements of the telecast, but instead transmits only facts about the
underlying (unprotectible) game, MLB shouldn't have a copyright claim.
And by this reasoning, it follows that MLB shouldn't be able to prevent,
through a copyright lawsuit, a local independent television station from
setting up a TV camera on one of the roofs overlooking Wrigley field and
broadcasting the Cubs game with its own commentary.
- David Post <Postd[_at_]erols.com> wrote:
> At 08:35 PM 11/30/2003 Sunday -0500, you wrote:
> >Interesting article in Wired, at this link:
> >
>
>http://www.wired.com/news/games/0,2101,61119,00.html
> >
> >In my opinion, the following statement by MLB is
> just plain wrong:
> >
> >"'If someone is communicating information about a
> game in real time, on a
> >pitch-by-pitch basis, that's an exhibition of that
> game," said Bob Bowman,
> >the CEO of MLB Advanced Media. "There's no
> difference, in our eyes, between
> >exhibiting a game using text and graphics and doing
> it on radio or
> >television."
> >
> >"Using that argument, MLB says that it is entitled
> to a license fee, or that
> >some other accommodation needs to be reached
> regarding gamecasts. What it is
> >sure of is that anyone doing a gamecast needs to
> secure the rights to do so
> >from MLB."
> >
> >Any other opinions?
> >
> >Thanks,
>
> I agree (with the 'just plain wrong' part). The
> game's not a work of
> authorship -- see the NBA case that Terry Carroll
> referred to (though
> there's an earlier, and badly written/reasoned, 7th
> Cir. case somewhat to
> the contrary: Baltimore Orioles, Inc. v. Major
> League Baseball Players
> Association, 805 F.2d 663 (7th Cir. 1986)). So
> maybe Bowman is correct
> after all: there's no difference between exhibiting
> a game using text and
> exhibiting it on radio or TV; neither requires a
> license fee (absent some
> contractual restriction .
> David
>
> ************************************
> David G. Post
> Professor, Temple University Law School and Senior
> Fellow, The Tech Center,
> George Mason Univ. Law School
> http://www.temple.edu/lawschool/dpost/writings.html
>
> "The point of philosophy is to start with something
> so simple as not to
> seem worth stating, and to end with something so
> paradoxical that no one
> will believe it." Bertrand Russell
> ************************************
>
>
>
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Received on Thu Dec 04 2003 - 02:11:48 GMT