Digital Discourse / Archives for SCOTUS

NYT Says: Don’t Let Importers Undercut U.S. Publishers’ Sales

November 6, 2012 By

The New York Times published an excellent editorial yesterday that explains how a landmark Supreme Court copyright case could undercut the U.S. information industry. The Times breaks down Kirtsaeng v. Wiley as follows:

At stake in this important and knotty case is whether copyright holders — publishers, filmmakers, musicians and creative artists of all sorts — can sell their copyrighted works abroad at prices different from what they charge in the American market and rely on copyright law to help maintain the separate pricing without having importers profit from the difference.

The case establishes whether the U.S. Copyright Act can be interpreted to allow copyright holders to use sensible market segmentation strategies. SIIA hopes the justices agree that publishers should be able to set lower prices in less-developed countries, without importers snatching their products up and using them to undercut American sales.

This isn’t a new notion–it’s already codified in the Copyright Act. The Times explains:

… the Copyright Act prohibits anyone from importing into the United States copyrighted works without the copyright holder’s approval. That provision would be seriously limited if copies of a work made abroad could be resold by importers in this country without constraint.

When importers exploit discounts that are meant for poor students in undeveloped nations, they aren’t just denying those students an education–they are threatening American publishers’ ability to do business abroad.

For more information, read SIIA’s amicus brief in the case, which defends the view that these purchases violate U.S. copyright law, since the first sale doctrine does not apply to a work made and sold abroad.

Laura Greenback is Communications Director at SIIA. Follow the SIIA Public Policy team at @SIIAPolicy.

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Filed Under: Policy, Policy - Intellectual Property Tagged With: , ,

SIIA’s Keith Kupferschmid Weighs in on Kirtsaeng v. Wiley on HuffPo Live

October 30, 2012 By

SCOTUS was undeterred by Hurricane Sandy yesterday, holding arguments in Kirtsaeng v. Wiley while most of Washington hunkered down for the storm. The landmark case involves the legality of purchasing copyrighted works overseas and selling them here in the U.S. without authorization from the publisher. SIIA’s Keith Kupferschmid joined HuffPo Live to explain how the case threatens the U.S. information industry–wrapping up his segment just minutes before losing power.

Watch the full segment:

The justices seemed fairly split on the case during the argument. Wiley’s counsel, Ted Olson, reiterated a critical point made in SIIA’s amicus brief – that there are many of exceptions in the Copyright Act, including the Fair Use Defense, which can be used to prevent the concerns raised by the appellant.

We believe that the First Sale Doctrine should not apply to materials made and sold overseas. It threatens to severely undermine U.S. companies’ ability to compete in foreign markets. Ultimately, we hope that the Court will be convinced by the very real argument that both publishers and consumers will face direct harm if our markets are allowed to be flooded with copyrighted material that was intended for purchase overseas. American consumers will be defrauded into buying products that may be inferior or otherwise very different from those intended for U.S. markets, while confronting higher prices in the long run. Meanwhile, consumers and students abroad will lose access to valuable U.S. resources that were created for them.

Laura Greenback is Communications Director at SIIA. Follow the SIIA Public Policy team at @SIIAPolicy.

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Filed Under: Government, Policy, Policy - Intellectual Property, Software Tagged With: , ,

SIIA Weighs in on Supreme Court Arguments in ‘First Sale’ Case – Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Co.

October 29, 2012 By

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court held arguments in Kirtsaeng v. John Wiley & Co. – a hotly contested case that threatens the U.S. information industry. Last month, SIIA filed an amicus brief in the case, which involves the legality of purchasing copyrighted works overseas and selling them here in the U.S. without authorization from the publisher.

We believe that, if the First Sale Doctrine were to apply to materials made and sold overseas, it would severely undermine U.S. companies’ ability to compete in foreign markets. At today’s Supreme Court argument, the Justices seemed fairly split on the issues. Wiley’s counsel, Ted Olson, reiterated a critical point made in SIIA’s brief – that there are many of exceptions in the Copyright Act, including the Fair Use Defense, which can be used to prevent the concerns raised by the appellant.

Ultimately, we hope that the Court will be convinced by the very real argument that both publishers and consumers will face direct harm if our markets are allowed to be flooded with copyrighted material that was intended for purchase overseas. American consumers will be defrauded into buying products that may be inferior or otherwise very different from those intended for U.S. markets, while confronting higher prices in the long run. Meanwhile, consumers and students abroad will lose access to valuable U.S. resources that were created for them.

Keith Kupferschmid is General Counsel and SVP, Intellectual Property Policy & Enforcement at SIIA.

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Filed Under: Anti-Piracy, Content, Policy, Policy - Intellectual Property Tagged With: , ,