business law Intellectual Property (IP)

Essay by ninabin August 2014

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Problem 1:

Johnny has created his own website for his restaurant The Lame Duck. When he designed it he had trouble thinking of interesting and informative content and layout, so he had a look at what other restaurant websites looked like. He then designed his own website. He has now been contacted by Rochelle, the owner of 'La Rochelle Patisserie', who claims that Johnny has copied her website, specifically the colour scheme, the font and the menu design. She also claims that he has copied the slogan 'Every bite is like a kiss from a lover' from her website. Johnny insists that he did not deliberately copy the La Rochelle website; although it was one of the websites he looked at when he was planning his own. Is the La Rochelle website, including the slogan, protected by copyright law? If so, has Johnny infringed Rochelle's copyright?

ISSUES:

Is the La Rochelle website, including the slogan, protected by copyright law? YES

If so, has Johnny infringed Rochelle's copyright? YES

LAW:

Definition of copyright: Copyright is the legal right to prevent unauthorized copying of the expression of an idea, e.g.

a book, a song, a movie, or a photograph. Copyright in Australia is regulated by the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth).

The requirements for copyright protection:

The creation is a 'work' or 'subject matter other than works'. A 'literacy work' is not necessarily literature: it includes any expression of an idea in the form of text, such as a novel, a journal article, a screenplay, a poem, a letter, an email, a print advertisement, a set of instructions, a timetable, a contract, or the lyrics of a song.

The creation is original. The creation must be the result of the creator's own skill and effort rather than the result of copying...