Friday, April 07, 2006

Sounds Like the Perfect Exam Question. E!Online reports in "'Smallville,' Big Stakes." Fact pattern: The copyright to the character Superman is owned by Warner Brothers. The copyright to the character Superboy, i.e., the teenaged Superman, is owned by the family of the creator (after reclamation). Warner Brothers creates a television show based on the high school and college years of Superman. Is the resulting series a derivative work of the Superman character, or the Superboy character, or both? Even more interesting question from the article: "Freiman wondered whether the Superboy copyright issue would come into play 'anytime you have a young Clark Kent--which isn't just Smallville. [It could] affect anytime you have a Clark Kent flashback.'"

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