Can changes to copyright in places like Germany or Canada threaten your business? In order to protect their revenue, publishers need to know about copyright battles being fought around the world.
With Books, US Was More Prudish Than Europe, Says Law Historian
James Zirn’s ‘Mother Court,’ a history of legal cases in the the Southern District of New York, recalls a failed attempt to censor Joyce’s ‘Ulysses’ in the US.
SURVEY: Should Transworld Have Gone Ahead with their Scientology Exposé?
Should Transworld have published Lawrence Wright’s Scientology exposé in the UK in spite of the threat of a libel lawsuit? Or was cancellation pragmatic? Take our survey.
PublishNews Brazil: Priests Dominate Bestsellers, Publishers Fight “Biography Law”
As in May, Agape Jr. dominates the bestseller list in Brazil (expect 50 Shades to bump it next month), meanwhile publishers protest anti-unauthorized bio law.
Lubbe Fighting Lost Symbol Piracy
By Siobhan O’Leary German publisher Lübbe is taking a hardline approach to piracy, particularly with regards to the audiobook version of Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol (Das verlorene Symbol). The Waldorf Chancery in Munich — a staff of attorneys specializing in copyright law — has been asked to send out warnings to individuals who illegally download the audiobook from filesharing …
Could the Google Books Case Go to The Supreme Court?
By Edward Nawotka Well, while I was at jury duty, my fellow publishing reporters in New York flooded the courtroom of Judge Denny Chin in Manhattan who was hearing arguments on the legality of Google Books’ plan to digitize all the world’s books. A total of 26 different speakers offered their take on the Settlement: Five spoke in favor and …
German Minister Threatens Legal Action to Fight Google
By Siobhan O’Leary German Federal Minister of Justice Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger recently spoke out against Google in an interview with Der Spiegel, and her criticism was not limited to Google Books. She stated that its services like Google Earth and Google Street View should undergo a legal review and that Google should be much more transparent in its approach to gathering …