TVNewser has obtained a cease & desist letter sent by lawyers from Fox News Channel to AirNet Group Corporation, the company that hosts John McCain’s campaign Website.
The copyright infringement notification stems from this ad currently playing on the McCain-Palin site. It includes grainy images and audio of reporting from Fox News correspondent Eric Shawn. The notification states, “Fox News requests that you immediately cease and desist from any further use of the copyrighted material and that access through the Website to the Material, and any other Fox News materials, be immediately disabled.”
Two weeks ago, NBC sent a cease & desist to the Obama campaign after it used images of Tom Brokaw and Keith Olbermann in a campaign ad.
Click continued to read the email…
From: [Redacted]@foxnews.com
Sent: Fri 10/10/2008 7:13 PM
To: dmca@airnetgroup.com
Subject: DMCA Notification
October 10, 2008
VIA EMAIL
AirNet Group Corporation
ATTN: DMCA Copyright Agent
801 Broad Street, Suite 220
Chattanooga, TN 37401
o-423-664-7678
f-423-664-7680
email: dmca@airnetgroup.com
RE: DMCA COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT NOTIFICATION
Dear Sir or Madam:
The Fox News Network, LLC (“Fox News”), is the telecaster of the Fox News Channel (the “Channel”). Fox News owns intellectual property rights, including copyrights, in and to various telecasts, scripts, documents, articles, video, audio and electronic material and trademarks. These rights include, but are not limited to, the exclusive right to telecast the Channel.
It has been brought to Fox News’ attention that, as of today’s date, your website www.johnmccain.com (“Website”) includes Fox News materials, including the audio of Fox News Senior Correspondent Eric Shawn in a political advertisement which is currently located at http://www.johnmccain.com/Informing/Multimedia/Player.aspx?guid=4c34dbc7-d1a9-48a0-994f-18fc59cbb81a (the “Material”).
This letter serves as Fox News’s notice of copyright infringement pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”). The Material is the copyrighted material of Fox News, and Fox News believes in good faith that the use of the Material is not authorized by Fox News, its agents, or the law and that it is an infringement of Fox News’s exclusive rights under section 106 of the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. Section 101, et.seq. Fox News requests that you immediately cease and desist from any further use of the copyrighted material and that access through the Website to the Material, and any other Fox News materials, be immediately disabled.
The information in this notification is accurate and the party signing below is authorized to act on behalf of Fox News, the exclusive copyright owner of the Material.
Please understand that Fox News anticipates your full and immediate cooperation in this matter. Also, please understand that Fox News does not hesitate to enforce its rights in these situations.
Sincerely,
/s/ Chris Silvestri
Chris Silvestri
VP Legal & Business Affairs
Fox News Network
1211 Avenue of the Americas
New York, New York 10036