Copyright Fight

Ends in a knockout. And the conglomerate won.

... The Walt Disney Company really does own the rights to the Marvel characters created by Stan Lee, at least according to a federal judge today.

U.S. District Judge William J. Martinez Thursday granted with prejudice Disney’s motion to dismiss Stan Lee Media’s multibillion-dollar lawsuit superhero copyright suit. In his 11-page order (read it here) Martinez did little to hide his annoyance with the litigious SLMI. “Plaintiff has tried time and again to claim ownership of those copyrights; the litigation history arising out of the 1998 Agreement stretches over more than a decade and at least six courts,” he wrote of the company’s many legal moves. ...

Mr. Lee can't get his head around the idea that companies own copyrights, not the people who created the copyrighted character.

This has been spelled out in case law for decades. And the courts, particularly the Supreme Court, mostly make sure that companies are the winners in these disputes. "Nothing to see here, young man. Move along."

You want the quaint concept called "moral rights," you should move to Europe.