©-LAW

Big Red Can copyright vest in mascots and characters? This, in a nutshell, is the question that the Italian Supreme Court had to address in  Ralph v Mediaset and Others , decision 14635/2018   [Katpat to  Valentina Borgese  for the heads up and the text of the decision] .  The Italian court answered in the affirmative, and provided some helpful guidance on copyright subsistence, derivative works, and infringement. What happened? In 1979 Ralph Carey created what would become the mascot of the Western Kentucky University (WKU) basketball team, a red character named Big Red. In 2009 he brought proceedings before the Milan Court of First Instance against broadcasters RTI and Mediaset and the creator of well-known TV programme  Striscia La Notizia , claiming that the likeness of mascot/TV character Gabibbo (‘operating’ since 1990) would infringe copyright in Big Red. The Milan court sided with Carey: in 2012 it h...

Charging Bull and Fearless Girl A little over a year ago The IPKat  reported  that  Italian-born sculptor  Arturo Di Modica , ie the author of  the well-known  Charging Bull   in Manhattan's Financial District, intended to file a formal complaint with the Office of the New York City Mayor over the decision of the latter to allow the positioning (and stay for a few months) of   Kristen Visbal 's   Fearless Girl  right just opposite the famous bull. Initially an advertisement  for an  index fund  which comprises gender diverse companies that have a higher percentage of women among their senior leadership,  Fearless Girl  has become a popular sight in Manhattan.  The reason why Di Modica was unhappy about the positioning of  Fearless Girl  is explained in his  complaint  to the Mayor.  His sculpture was meant to symbolize, initially, the 'strength and power of the American peopl...