Movies for TV - Early Television Foundation

COPYRIGHT AND RELEASES 367
stations and used as an electrical transcription as in sound broad-
casting. This now involves us in recording rights.
The copyright law provides a royalty of two cents per copy;
however, in many instances the radio business has paid more than
that. A is kinescope recording only one variation of that since the
medium is film instead of a disc; therefore, it seems logical to pay
the statutory sum. In this connection it is interesting to note that not
too long ago it was held that a motion picture sound track did not
fall into this category. In the case of kinescope recording it is merely
a means to an end. If the program went by cable there would be no
problem, apparently if it went by disc there would be no trouble, but
because it uses film, which, after all, is only the vehicle which trans-
ports the program to the distant point, we run into many problems.
Literary rights in the kinescope field are a little less uncertain.
Agents are granting the right to use works for recording for audi-
tion, reference, and one-time use over a particular station for thirty
days. It is clear that some very definite decisions concerning kine-
scope recordings will be made quite soon since this is an aspect
of the
industry which will become of increasing importance.
In the field of general film use there are some important points
to keep before one at all times and especially when using news films.
This is the right of privacy. Most of the states have laws which
make it unlawful to use the name or likeness of anyone for com-
mercial purposes. The only clear exception to this is in the use of
newsreels. Current news is public property; it is something which
the public has a right to be interested in. Old news and historical
events are also in that category if they are genuinely of interest to
the public. But if these events are fictionalized or dressed up to pro-
vide entertainment instead of news appeal, then the production
for lawsuits.
goes beyond the bounds of news and the way is open
but if he does
Every person has the right to personal privacy,
something or goes somewhere so that he becomes part of the news,
then he has waived that right temporarily. In the case of a man
who goes to a football game, he is taking part in a public affair,
and, therefore,
is one of the incidental units which make it so. If
in panning or sweeping the bleachers or stands for normal interest