Re: Patent pending: Network-based classified information systems.
Rohit Khare (rohit@bordeaux.ICS.uci.edu)
Tue, 24 Feb 1998 18:00:25 -0800
> Legal Issues:
>
> I haven't a clue as to whether or how "schemas" will be protected as IP in
> the future. A question I've asked, but never received an adequate answer to
> is exactly how does the MPAA protect its schema (G, PG, PG-14, R, NR)? Do
> large movies have to licence or pay a fee to the MPAA to receive a rating.
> If they refused to pay, could they rate it themselves without including the
> MPAA trademark terms or fanciful logos and get away with it? I'll ask Jack
> Valenti next time I see him. <smile>
Copyright. They copyrighted the logo/icon for the ratings and license it to
those films that pay a fee to be reviewed. The smart thing they did, as I
heard it told, is that they *didn't* copyright X. So anyone can release
something as X-rated for free, making it a failsafe default.
Of course, when "real" studios wanted to make X-level films, they had to go
back, innovate, and create the copyrighted NC-17 label.
Rohit Khare