Do.
To prepare for class, do the activities shown below. Bring to class any supporting documentation. Be prepared to discuss all the questions.
Read.
Read this.
Investigate.
- Go to http://iphattitudes.com/. Review the site.
- How should you document the site? Regular printout? Screen cap? HTML code? All?
- Is there any identifying info on the site regarding the owner? What is it?
- How do you determine the registrant of the domain name? Do a WHOIS and bring the results.
- Where is the video hosted? On iphattitudes.com? Elsewhere?
- Where is the rest of the content on iphattitudes.com site hosted? Do a traceroute using http://network-tools.com/.
- Does the U.S. Copyright Office list “designated agents” for the service providers hosting the video and content? Who are the designated agents? Go to https://www.copyright.gov/dmca-directory/.
Enforce.
Note: Several of you have written to ask whether you are required to draft C&D letters for today’s class. I applaud you all for looking more extra work, but to be clear, you are not required to draft any letters. The instructions below ask “what might [your clients] do?” That means you need to come to class having done enough investigation and thinking to come up with a recommended course of action for each of the clients. You need not draft any C&D letters. Indeed, a C&D might not be appropriate in all cases.
If you do choose to draft any demand letters, I would be happy to give you feedback on them. But I am more interested in you coming to class with reasoned and supported action plans.
Plaintiff # 1: Professor Nathenson.
Professor Nathenson wants the owner of iphattitudes.com to remove the video from that site.
- You are Nathenson’s lawyer.
- Does he have any good claims against the owner of iphattitudes.com?
- If so, what might he do?
Plaintiff # 2: The owner of the song.
Rick is the owner of the song that is the basis for Professor Nathenson’s version.
- You are Rick’s lawyer.
- Does Rick have any good claims against Professor Nathenson?
- If so, what might he do?
Plaintiff # 3: IPH.
IPH owns the federal trademark registration shown below.
- You are IPH’s lawyer.
- Does IPH have any good claims against the owner of iphattitudes.com?
- If so, what might it do?
Revised July 11, 2017 (clarifying no requirement of C&D letters)