Beatles Win Lawsuit Over Shea Stadium Footage

The Beatles have won a legal battle surrounding video footage of their legendary performance at Shea Stadium in New York City. Ownership of the footage has been disputed over recent years and the Fab Four have now been awarded sole ownership over the show’s promoter Sid Bernstein. The promoter’s reps argued Bernstein owned the footage because he was employing the Beatles.More »

By on July 29, 2017

The Beatles have won a legal battle surrounding video footage of their legendary performance at Shea Stadium in New York City. Ownership of the footage has been disputed over recent years and the Fab Four have now been awarded sole ownership over the show’s promoter Sid Bernstein. “By zeroing in on Bernstein’s contributions to the filming of the concert rather than his efforts as a producer and promoter of the event, it is obvious that he is not an ‘author’ of any fixed works,” writes the judge in the case. The promoter’s reps argued that Bernstein owned the footage because he was technically employing the Beatles for the show: “For largely the same reasons as discussed above, this theory is misguided and fails on multiple grounds,” he writes. “The relevant legal question is not the extent to which Bernstein contributed to or financed the 1965 concert; rather, it is the extent to which he ‘provided the impetus for’ and invested in a copyrightable work – e.g., the concert film. The Complaint and relevant contracts clearly refute any such claim by Bernstein.” Copyright(c) 2017 RTTNews.com. All Rights ReservedLess «