Proceed With Caution....

When deciding to become a part of this ever-changing entertainment industry, be prepared to wear your boxing gloves daily. You will have to fight everyday to make it in this industry. Around every corner, if you are not extremely careful, someone is going to want to sue you for something. Some things more obvious than others but now it has become increasingly hard to decide what is safe and what is not. I read an article discussing trademark “wars” and it was a very interesting read. It discussed the fact that more and more companies are trying to trademark everything under the sun. First it was Christian Louboutin trademarking their red soles so no other shoe company can have red-soled shoes. It is kind of understandable why companies are trying to trademark everything they can because there is a lot of revenue from licensing trademarks and it is all about earning money and staying relevant at the end of the day. Celebrities are trademarking their children’s names to catchphrases. That is why you have to stay on top of these things because you do not want to create or use something that has already been trademarked by someone else. Always do your research! That way you can stay out of the courts and continue to handle your business. As I was reading this other article about artists sampling other artist’s music and not giving them the proper credit, I thought to myself that people really go out of their way to try and receive a payday! The reason I say that is because TufAmerica, a record label, sued the Beastie Boys for sampling their artist’s music, and not give them the proper credit. The thing is that TufAmerica admitted that the casual observer would not notice it, so I say then why even go ahead with the lawsuit if the sample is not even recognizable by basically anyone. Madonna went through the same thing with her song, “Vogue.” I understand people want to be compensated and recognized for their hard work but if no one can even notice that your work was being sampled besides the accuser then what is the point? So, in a world where social media reigns supreme companies have social media policies in their employee handbooks to give employees a guideline to what they can or cannot do regarding the company on social media sites. So, in a new article posted on The Hollywood Reporter, Dish Network has been ordered by the National Labor Relations Board to make revisions to their social media policy. In the current policy Dish employees are not allowed to commentate on the company while at work or in their free time. They felt it was a little overboard. I totally agree! Companies today really try to take away employees free will to do what they want to do. It is like employees are living for the company and not themselves. I would understand if the statements that are made by employees about their respective companies were false, but if they are true then why try and stop them from venting or expressing how they truly feel. If it is not interfering in the employees doing their job then it should not be a problem. That’s my opinion and I am sticking to it. Point. Blank. Period.