Sampling of IP Clinic Projects from AY 2012-2013

* Clinic students created work product for Colombian clients trying to garner support for a balanced implementation of the Colombian-US Free Trade Agreement, with respect to copyright and ISP liability laws.

* Clinic students collaborated with Dance Heritage Coalition (DHC) who, in the course of preserving and providing access to historical dance works, has encountered issues regarding works for whom the owners could not be found and/or contacted. On behalf of DHC, the Clinic prepared a comment conveying DHC’s unique circumstances that was submitted to the Copyright Office in response to a call for comments on Orphan Works. The purpose of the comment was to ensure the preservation of dance’s cultural history for generations to come and ensure that the voices of those seeking to preserve this cultural history were heard during the formation of potential orphan works legislation.

* Clinic students prepared case studies about the universities involved in the first Native American civil rights movement to remove Native American imagery from college mascotting and discussed how this movement might inform the present-day rally to remove Native American imagery from professional sports mascotting. This project will be part of a larger endeavor by Suzan Harjo and the National Museum of the American Indian to educate people on the negative impact of Native American stereotyping in the sports industry and beyond.

* IP Clinic students have advocated for consumer freedom in both the Second Circuit Aereo and Ninth Circuit Aereokiller proceedings.  Both Aereo and Aereokiller technologies allow consumers to access broadcast content from any device, at anytime, and helps consumers avoid paying exorbitant cable fees just to ensure access to clear, reliable broadcast signals.  Broadcast content providers are seeking an injunction to block these services. The issues which the Aereo and Aereokiller cases highlight are fundamentally important to any television viewer because these services will help consumers save money, and will give consumers the necessary flexibility watch desired content when and where they want to.  It is crucial that courts allow consumers to continue to use technologies like the mp3 player, smartphone, tablet, and other hugely popular, user-friendly technologies which empower consumers by enabling time and space-shifting of content.  A decision that halts the Aereo or Aereokiller services in either of these cases could harm consumers by stifling innovation and decreasing access to information, and by forcing consumers to pay too much for TV.  The Second Circuit recently ruled in favor of Aereo, but the Ninth Circuit decision is still pending.  It is important to raise awareness about the importance of the current proceedings so that the public can demonstrate their support for new technologies like Aereo and Aereokiller that meet consumer needs.

About Mike Palmedo

Michael Palmedo directs interdisciplinary research on the effects of international copyright agreements at American University Washington College of Law’s Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property. His research focuses on the microeconomic effects of changes in intellectual property laws. In recent years, this has included developing metrics for the comparison of laws regarding copyright limitations across countries and over time. Other research areas have included the negotiation and implementation of trade agreement intellectual property chapters, and how these rules impact markets in the South, and how they impact global supply chains. He holds Master’s Degrees in Economics and International Affairs, and is an economics Ph.D. candidate at the American University College of Arts and Sciences. Before coming to American University, Mr. Palmedo worked on policy research and web communications for the Consumer Project on Technology (now Knowledge Ecology International), concentrating on issues of access to medicines and international trade policy.
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