Media Law
June 15, 2025
On November 15th, former professional boxer "Iron" Mike Tyson and YouTuber Jake Paul fought in the very first live streamed boxing match in Netflix history. With about one out of every five Netflix subscribers tuning in to the event, this match aimed to attract a large number of younger viewers from Paul's social media following and a more traditional boxing crowd from former heavy-weight champion Tyson. This novelty match was fueled by the spectacle of two celebrities with controversial pasts fighting over a seemingly petty rivalry as Netflix marketed the match as an unmissable event at no extra cost to subscribers. However, during the match, thousands of people reported issues like buffering, freezing, and not being able to watch at all. Many subscribers also reported receiving no refund or technical support, which led to widespread frustration and a social media backlash against Netflix.
May 15, 2025
House v. NCAA (2024) is a lawsuit begun by Arizona State swimmer Grant House who challenged the NCAA over their revenue policies and restrictions on athletic compensation as anticompetitive behavior. This case is a federal class-action antitrust lawsuit meaning that the legal action was filed in federal court (in this case the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California). The progression to a lawsuit typically begins with the filing of a formal complaint, where the plaintiff, or person who filed a complaint, alleges specific violations of the law. In this case, House and fellow collegiate athletes claimed that the NCAA's regulations constituted a restraint of trade in violation of antitrust statutes. The court subsequently recognized the matter as a class action allowing a group of similarly impacted individuals known as a class to collectively sue the NCAA.
April 15, 2025
Contractual disputes in the entertainment industry are nothing new. From battles over creative control to allegations of misconduct, actors and studios have often found themselves at odds over the terms of their working relationships. One of the most famous early examples is the 1944 case De Havilland v. Warner Bros., where actress Olivia de Havilland successfully challenged Warner Bros' practice of tacking suspension periods onto her contract. The California Court of Appeals ruled in her favor, effectively limiting studios' ability to control performers through long-term personal service contracts. This case helped lay the groundwork for modern disputes around actor autonomy and workplace fairness.
March 15, 2025
On Jan. 15, 2025, Rapper Aubrey "Drake" Graham filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Group (UMG) for the release of Kendrick Lamar's song "Not Like Us." The lawsuit targets the music studio UMG for releasing music that Drake claims contains false and threatening allegations such as labeling Drake as a pervert and pedophile. This case is a continuation of Drake and Lamar's feud, for before the lawsuit, Drake filed several motions against UMG for Lamar's song. On Nov. 25, 2024, Drake filed a motion against UMG and Spotify accusing them of using bots to artificially boost streams for "Not Like Us." The following day, Drake filed a second motion for defamation, arguing that UMG could have blocked the "Not Like Us" release but chose not to, harming Drake's reputation.