Allysia Britton

Companies rely on intellectual property (“IP”) rights to protect their valuable information, creations, and branding. IP rights come in several forms: copyrights, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets.

As the U.S. Copyright Office explains, copyrights protect “original works of authorship including literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, such as poetry, novels, movies, songs, computer software, and architecture.” Copyright protection exists at the time of creation of the artistic or literary work, but before enforcing the rights against an infringer, it is necessary register the work with the U.S. Copyright Office.

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In 1991, the grunge band, Nirvana, was one of the most popular musical acts in the U.S. with its anthem Smells Like Teen Spirit, which was featured on its album, Nevermind. Many will remember the cover of Nevermind that featured a naked baby swimming underwater and reaching for a dollar bill on a fishing hook. Three months after its release, Nevermind rose to the top of the Billboard 200 rankings and has sold over 30 million copies. The picture on the album was licensed for use on other merchandise, such as t-shirts, and was also the subject of various parodies. Now, 30 years later, Nirvana, its surviving members, and its record companies face a civil lawsuit for distributing child pornography by the now-grown man who was depicted on the album cover.

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