Celebrity Troubles

In the entertainment industry there can be many setbacks as you try  to start and grow your business. Here are three current event examples to review and learn from.

On Monday, CNET published an article revealing a lawsuit that accuses high ranking companies of fixing worker pay. The lawsuit suggests that "senior executives from Adobe, Apple, Google, Intel Intuit, Lucasfilm and Pixar 'entered into an interconnected web of express agreements to eliminate competition among them for skilled labor'" and that those affected should be compensated. For those of us starting and growing our companies, money can be tight but we need to make sure that our employees are compensated for their creativity and involvement fairly.

Twitter has proven to be a useful social media tool, but despite it's professional uses others have found the entertainment value in creating false accounts. When I first joined Twitter in 2009, I ran a general search for Green Day, my favorite band. After a drawn out search I realized Green Day did not have their own twitter account but there were many accounts claiming to be. There is a new California bill being put into place to prevent false accounts like these and could be charged with a misdemeanor and could face a fine up to $1,000 and up to one year in prison. While everyone should be mindful of their own social media accounts, a law such as this one could help you recover a domain or username that infringes on your brand.

This week has been an interesting week for copyright infringement suits as Jay-Z has been accused of infringement in his 2000 hit "Big Pimpin'". His accuser is Osama Ahmed Fahmy whose father Baligh Hamdy wrote the original composition for the 1960 Egyptian film Fata Ahlami. Though Jay-Z and others say they obtained the proper licenses, it appears it was only for the unaltered sample and not a "mutilated" sample. This is a reminder that we must be aware and diligent of the copyrights and licenses we borrow from others. Be careful what you consider your own intellectual property, great minds do think alike.