An Amended Doctrine that Will Silence the NFL: The Demise of the Existing Fair Use Doctrine as it Relates to Uses of Digital Sports Entertainment Media

Authors

• Michael E. Plantinga

Document Type

Article

Abstract

The existing fair use doctrine does not correspond with rapid advances in technology and information sharing. Part II of this Article will examine the background of the fair use doctrine. Part III will examine two leading Supreme Court decisions concerning the fair use doctrine: Sony Corporation of America v. Universal City Studios found fair use, while Harper & Row Publishers, Inc. v. Nation Enterprises did not. Part IV will examine the individual elements of the existing doctrine, and it will discuss why the doctrine does not harmonize with America’s growing technological society. Part V will discuss where the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals is headed in terms of its fair use doctrinal analysis. Part IV will present an amended fair use doctrine for digital sports entertainment media. Finally, Part VII will conclude the Article and reiterate its major points.