Newt sued for using Rocky III music on campaign stops

[thewayne]

Couldn't happen to a better guy. He spoke out against SOPA/PIPA during debate #417 saying that copyright and patent laws are good enough and that current protections allow rights holders to sue, then he goes and uses Eye of the Tiger without permission, and the man who wrote that song doesn't like that and is suing.

Irony: quite delicious.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-survivor-eye-of-the-tiger-composer-lawsuit-newt-gingrich-rocky-iii-20120130,0,6165205.story

http://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/12/01/31/1513230/eye-of-tiger-composer-sues-gingrich-to-stop-campaign-from-using-song

Comments

[thewayne.livejournal.com]

The performance license is an interesting angle. I'm thinking about ASCAP licensing of bars and restaurants and I really don't know how those rules work. I'm thinking this wouldn't be covered like that since it is not in a fixed location. I really don't know. Regardless, the song writer should maintain some rights, I remember many artists have slammed politicians in the past for using their music without permission and never heard blanket performance licenses being mentioned.

[silveradept]

That's what I want to know - what's different about using it for political purposes than using it on a radio, for example? Is it the possible commercial gain? The implication of endorsement? There's got to be something different about political usage than other usages that makes the blanket license not apply...