David LaChapelle vs Rihanna: pre-trial ruling in photographer’s favour
Early this year, David LaChapelle filed a copyright claim against the label of Rihanna, accusing the Barbadian singer of copying scenes from his images in her video clip S&M.
A pre-trial ruling by a federal court in New York went in favour of the photographer, meaning that the case can now go to trial.
However, copyright laws protect the works themselves and not the idea. According to the court, the subject of the photos is not copy protectable, but several compositional elements in the video are similar to that of the photographs, meaning that Rihanna and her label could be found guilty of copyright infringement. This could mean that the distinction between the idea for an artwork and the work itself will no longer be one of the defining aspects of copyright.
Rihanna is expected to defend her case in court. The ruling might be of some encouragement to Phillip Paulus, a German photographer who has also accused the singer of plagiarism.
A pre-trial ruling by a federal court in New York went in favour of the photographer, meaning that the case can now go to trial.
However, copyright laws protect the works themselves and not the idea. According to the court, the subject of the photos is not copy protectable, but several compositional elements in the video are similar to that of the photographs, meaning that Rihanna and her label could be found guilty of copyright infringement. This could mean that the distinction between the idea for an artwork and the work itself will no longer be one of the defining aspects of copyright.
Rihanna is expected to defend her case in court. The ruling might be of some encouragement to Phillip Paulus, a German photographer who has also accused the singer of plagiarism.
