Soundalikes are OK, unless they violate someone's Right of Publicity
under state law. Most state Rights of Publicity are limited to name
and likeness, and even if they cover voice a soundalike claim should
be preempted under 17 U.S.C. sec. 301 in most cases, but the Midler
decision in the Ninth Circuit (applying California law) led to a large
award to Bette Midler based on the use of soundalike in a car
commercial.
I criticized the Ninth Circuit's decision in a Note published in the
N.Y.U. Law Review a few years ago.
Christopher Pesce
chrisp[_at_]continuum.com
> From: cni-copyright
> To: Multiple recipients of list
> Subject: Re: Performers' Right in Sound Recordings
> Date: Wednesday, December 14, 1994 7:58PM
>
>
> > Date sent: Tue, 13 Dec 1994 17:12:44 -0500
> > From: Lesley Harris <harris[_at_]nicco.sscnet.ucla.edu>
> > Subject: Performers' Right in Sound Recordings
> >
> > Could someone pls. let me know whether the U.S. now has a performers'
> > right in sound recordings, and if so, pls. briefly describe it.
>
>
> There is no performance right in sound recordings -- sound
> recordings may be publicly performed without the permission of the
> owner (though the permission of the composer is necessary).
>
> There is, though, a reproduction right; sound recordings can't be
> physically duplicated without the copyright owner's permission.
> Soundalikes, though, are OK.
>
> -- Eugene Volokh, UCLA Law
> <volokh[_at_]law.ucla.edu>
Received on Thu Dec 15 1994 - 17:43:25 GMT